news
Cracked window in Nola Poirier's Sunshine Coast home, courtesy of some poorly placed lumber.
November 14, 2008
Step One: A home energy assessment
Posted by Nola Poirier
When I was in nursery school I won an award for "Striving Amidst Distractions." My mother says it was because I was the only kid who didn’t faint in the hot Bermudian sun on awards day.
But working here, wearing a thick Cowichan sweater (we’re still without heat), straddling the remains of an interior wall we tore down last night, my work area multitasking as part office, part tool shed, part dining room, I think my mother would have to admit that whether I deserved the award then, I have earned it now.
My ‘striving’ lately has taken as many forms as the distractions. It has been a week of learning. Some have been small but important lessons, like how it’s a good idea to wear socks in your clogs when cutting down blackberry bushes, that balancing lumber beside a window is a bad idea, and that you shouldn’t mumble uh-huh, uh-huh, beside the video camera microphone when you’re filming an interview. But my steepest learning curve of the week came in the form of my LiveSmart BC-sponsored Home Energy Evaluation.
I thought I knew a lot about home energy efficiency, as trying to live lightly is a constant work in progress for me. I have also done a lot of research on the topic for various projects. But the home energy evaluation was richer than reading about abstract situations.
I’m not saying that reading about energy efficiency isn’t worthwhile, in fact quite the opposite, and you’ll likely be inspired to read about all kinds of options after a home energy assessment. It’s just that having someone come and evaluate the specific structures and situations of your home is indispensable for developing an energy efficiency plan for your home and prioritizing your upgrades.
The LiveSmart B.C. Efficiency Incentive Program has five steps.
1. Find a certified energy advisor. Go to the LiveSmart at Home page and follow the link to the five steps. You put in your postal code to find the organizations that have certified Home Energy Advisors working in your area.
2. Have an evaluation. It takes between 90 minutes and two hours for the advisor to evaluate features of your home like the insulation, heating and cooling systems, windows and doors.
To test air leakage, the energy advisor hooks up this giant fan to an exterior door to do what’s called the blower door, or air infiltration, test. The fan sucks air and as you walk around the house with it on, you can feel any cracks or leaks in your ceiling-mounted light fixtures, wall sockets, windows, doors, chimneys, and even plumbing pipes. It is a highly effective way to see where your house needs some sealing.
If you want a better idea of what this assessment looks like, watch the video I made of the highlights from my energy assessment. (Please remember that I already admitted I had a lot to learn about making videos! – I can only get better.)
For this first visit, you pay $150 plus mileage and GST upfront. If you make qualifying upgrades in the 18 months after this evaluation, you can have the $150 reimbursed (see step five).
3. Make upgrades. Do changes that work with your needs and budget. You can contact your energy advisor during this period to help guide your decisions. Remember to keep ALL your receipts and any information from contractors and suppliers on the purchases and upgrades you make.
4. Have a second visit with the advisor. On a second visit, the advisor will test your home’s energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reductions and give your home a score that measures its energy rating. This score can mean lower energy bills, a smaller environmental footprint, and likely increased home value. The second visit will cost about $150, and this time you are responsible for the bill.
5. Conserve energy. The advisor will process your application for qualifying incentives from both the provincial and federal governments. You sit back in your favourite chair in your more energy efficient home and wait for two cheques to arrive to help contribute to the costs of the qualifying changes you made.
Some helpful advice
Call for an energy advisor before you start with renovations or upgrades. Our advisor was certainly an ace at striving amidst distractions (thanks Don!), but you need to have all exterior walls intact for the assessment, and after your evaluation you might have different changes you want to make. Besides, your upgrades could qualify as part of the program if you do them after the evaluation.
Stay tuned to our progress as we squeeze our tight budget to make some energy efficient changes.
Nola Poirier is a freelance writer and a key contributor to bchydro.com’s Green Guides.
Source: BC Hydro
