Renu Building & Energy Solutions

Energy Audits

Buildings consume more energy than the transportation or industry sectors, accounting for nearly 40 percent of total U.S. energy use and about 72 percent of total U.S. electricity use – the Residential Sector alone accounts for about 58 percent of energy use among buildings.

The U.S. Department of Energy recommends that “the first step to save energy is to find out where you are losing energy – and money. An audit will show you problems that may, when corrected, save you significant amounts of money over time. energy-audits

Where does all of your home’s energy go?
Home Energy Usage
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Home Air Leakage
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*Images courtesy of U.S. DOE 2007 Buildings Energy Data Book

Why should I receive a Home Energy Audit? Renu Building & Energy Solutions’ team of certified Building Performance Institute (BPI) and Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET) professionals can help save you money immediately on your monthly utility bills. Through a thorough on-site inspection and diagnostic testing process, we will inventory all of your home’s energy-related attributes and seek out potential problem areas throughout your home. In addition to analyzing your energy bills, we input all of your home’s energy-related data into our advanced, energy-modeling software, where we can further assess how much energy your home consumes and evaluate which energy-efficient measures carry the highest priority and deliver the quickest payback.

Energy Analysis

Renu Building & Energy Solutions offers three levels of home energy analysis:

Basic Home Energy Assessment
- On-Site Visual Inspection
- Inventory Energy-Related Attributes
- Generate Report with Improvement Options
Diagnostic Home Energy Assessment
- Basic Home Energy Assessment
- Blower Door Testing
- Duct Blaster Testing
- Combustion Appliance Safety Testing
- Thermographic Imaging
- Generate Detailed Report with Improvement Options
Comprehensive Home Energy Audit
- Diagnostic Home Energy Assessment
- Computer Modeling
- Post-Improvement Test-Out

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Diagnostic Testing

Blower Door Testing
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According to the U.S. Department of Energy, as much as 30 percent of a home’s energy loss occurs through air leaks and inadequate insulation. Renu Building & Energy Solutions uses a Blower Door to help us quantify air flow through infiltration and exfiltration, which aids us in determining your home’s resulting heat loss. A Blower Door also provides us the ability to pinpoint specific leaks in your home’s building envelope through Zone Pressure Diagnostics.

Duct Blaster Testing
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When applicable, Renu Building & Energy Solutions uses a Duct Blaster to test the leakiness of your home’s forced-air duct system – both within the home and to the outside. Energy Star estimates that leaky ducts can reduce heating and cooling system efficiency by as much as 20 percent. By taking measures to better seal the home’s ducts, your home will feel more comfortable while saving you money at the same time.

Combustion Appliance Safety Testing
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According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, inadequately operating combustion appliances can cause possible health effects ranging from headaches, dizziness, sleepiness, and watery eyes to breathing difficulties or even death. If your home houses any combustion appliances (e.g. furnaces, gas ranges and ovens, gas water heaters, gas dryers, wood or coal burning stoves, fireplaces, etc.), we will perform several tests – carbon monoxide levels, draft measurement and spillage evaluation, and worst-case negative pressure measurement – to help ensure a safer, healthier home.

Thermographic Imaging
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Thermography, or infrared scanning, measures surface temperatures through the use of an infrared camera by documenting the temperature variations of the building’s skin, ranging from white for warm regions to black for cooler areas. The resulting images help us to effectively determine whether insulation is needed, or even where air leaks occur when used in conjunction with a Blower Door.

Home Energy Rating System (HERS)

hersindex Renu Building & Energy Solutions can also help increase the value of your home not only by performing the energy improvement work itself, but also by providing a Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index; which is a nationally recognized home performance measurement tool used to compare your home against other homes relative to a code-compliant, reference home.

The HERS Index is based upon a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is equivalent to a net-zero energy home (a home that produces as much energy as it consumes on a yearly basis) and 100 is equivalent to a standard, code-compliant home built today. New homes earning Energy Star Qualification must meet a minimum HERS Index of 85, which is approximately 15% whole-house energy savings. Most existing homes rated on the HERS Index will typically lie above 100 due to the vastly improved energy codes over the last decade or so. However, with a comprehensive energy audit and a thorough energy improvement plan, it’s quite possible to bring your home’s HERS Index up to current Energy Star standards or even better.