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Episode 8

CRAWL SPACE INSULATION MISTAKE - Why Make it Twice? 1900 Build Joppa Maryland

Home Energy Audit TAKEAWAYS
YouTube Series - Episode 8
March 4, 2023

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Episode 8 Summary

⚡️WHY DID THIS HOMEOWNER GET THE ENERGY AUDIT? Homeowner's exact reason: Want to reduce energy bill. The home is over 100 years old but has been renovated several times and most recently two years we purchased it from a home flipper. We want to find ways that we can save energy and be more comfortable.

⚡️WHERE WAS THIS HOME ENERGY AUDIT? This audit was done at a single family home located in Jopppa, Maryland 21085 through the BGE Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® program.

⚡️WHAT MADE THIS ENERGY AUDIT INTERESTING? The recommendation from another contractor was to have insulation installed at the crawl space ceiling where insulation already existed and did not seem to be doing the trick.

⚡️WHAT YOU MAY LEARN FROM THIS ENERGY AUDIT? Insulating an open crawl space with HVAC ducts should always look to encapsulation as the benefits are tremendous, not only for the HVAC efficiency, but also for comfort and structural sustainability .

⚡️KEY TAKEAWAY FROM THIS HOME ENERGY AUDIT: The fundamental Building Science principal that tends to help understand why a home is uncomfortable and has high energy bills is the stack effect and the more a homeowner understands about the simple principal, the better they will be able to improve the home's shell.

 

00:00 Introduction
00:12 Reason for Getting the Home Energy Audit
00:46 A Look at the Crawl Space
00:58 Cold Floor Thermal Image
01:12 Crawl Space Dynamics
01:28 Crawl Space Open Hatch
01:40 Uninsulated Ducts in Crawl Space
02:01 A Look at an Encapsulated Crawl Space

I would love to hear any comments below about things you would like to see or ideas you may have to make the series more interesting.

 

 

There are so many houses that I have been to for an energy audit where during the beginning walk through the owner is super focused on windows and doors. I know the reason for this. It is because it is the only possible place you can really see any cracks and crevices that lead to the outside.

But, there are far worse offenders than those two areas and they are usually hiding in plain sight.

Hello and welcome to my world which basically revolves around teaching some of the basics of building science so that more people can literally get into the driver’s seat when it comes to their energy usage and overall comfort around the house.

Weekly episodes should yield a variety of housing types that will provide both common and unique scenarios. 

As always, finding the correct diagnosis will require good investigative work, experience and the use of diagnostic equipment.

Hopefully these daily encounters will help open people's minds to the subtle, yet important ways in which a home can lose, literally "tons" of energy.

Do you have some other issue not covered here?

Often times homeowners don't know what a home energy audit is or how it can actually help you understand energy waste in "three dimensional" ways.

For example, it is quite likely that a set of poorly sealed recessed lights will cost you far more in annual energy waste than perhaps all of the windows in your house.

Here is what the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® program can do for you:

1.  It can help you avoid choosing the wrong solution to a comfort problem you are having around the house.

2.  An energy audit can help you find practical & often missed ways to reduce your energy bill.

3.  A home energy audit is a great way to organize your home improvement priority list.

4.  It will undoubtedly guide you, or someone you know, to a more comfortable home.

Can an energy audit help you?

Send us an email and we will respond.

If you have an issue that you are not sure about fitting in the parameters of what an energy audit can help diagnose, please inquire.

info@hometrustremodeling.com

Building Performance Institute Certified
Building Performance Institute
Eric Gans
Building Analyst
Envelope Professional
BGE Approved Energy Contractor
Pepco Approved Energy Contractor

Helping You!

*Improve home comfort
*
Educate you about your home
*Find air leakage in your home
*Improve energy efficiency
*Use science for solutions
*Assess your building's shell
*Help prioritize improvements
*Find the root causes
*Assess insulation levels
*Measure indoor air quality
*Evaluate windows & doors
*Evaluate attic ventilation

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    Our mission is to help Maryland homeowners create a more comfortable home and save energy. We achieve this by applying building science principles and modern air sealing and insulating techniques.


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    An Energy Auditor's Purpose 
    "Energy auditors visit residential buildings and talk to owners and residents.  They inspect, test, and measure to decide what energy-efficient retrofits are practical and cost-effective." Residential Energy