The Energy Friendly Homes Program upgrades are designed to improve your home's comfort, health, and energy efficiency. See how these upgrades can fit into your home!
A contractor finds out where your house might be wasting energy and figures out how to keep warm or cool air inside when you need it most. The contractor will look at every part of your home — the attic, basement, walls, windows, and doors — to see if there are places where air might be leaking out. If air leaks out, it means your heater or air conditioner has to work harder, and that uses more energy.
The contractor is an expert who uses building science-based tools and tests on your home. The assessment can take two to four hours (2-4) hours and normally costs $400-$800, but the Energy Friendly Homes Program offers this to you at no cost.
One important test the contractor will conduct is called a blower door test. A special cover with a fan goes in your front or back door. When they turn on the fan, it blows air out of your house and helps them find tiny cracks and gaps where air comes in or goes out. Then, they walk around your home to feel for drafts. When the contractor comes back to install upgrades, they can seal these gaps to keep air inside. Your house also still needs fresh air to stay healthy, so they check your ventilation to make sure you are getting the right amount of fresh air inside without wasting energy.
If you have a furnace with ducts that carry the warm or cool air through your house, your contractor will check them for holes and gaps to make sure they are not leaking your heating or cooling before it reaches your rooms. All these tests and checks help the contractor find ways to give you a healthier, quieter, more comfortable home that wastes less energy.
Our Client Navigators can help you understand how to participate in the program, come to your home walk-through, help answer questions, and provide translation or other support services you might need.
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