What Is a Home Energy Audit and How Does It Work?

Are you thinking about conducting a home energy audit? Has your electricity bill increased suddenly? You might be wondering why. Moreover, you may feel too hot in summer and too cold in winter inside your home. Sometimes, it’s not the weather; uneven temperatures and insulation gaps cause such problems.

Over time, all these issues may feel frustrating. You pay high bills even when you are not using appliances that much. In this situation, considering a home energy assessment is a wise decision to track energy use and energy loss in your home. Here, you’ll understand what a home energy audit is and how it helps reduce energy waste. If it’s your first time doing this kind of audit, you’ll get all the information you need here.

What Is a Home Energy Audit? 

A home energy assessment (or audit) is an evaluation of the energy usage in your home. It’s conducted by certified professionals who use advanced tools to understand the energy use and loss in your home. The process of an energy audit identifies energy waste, safety issues, and air leaks. The professionals use physical and digital tools, such as blower doors, infrared cameras, and smoke pencils, to measure energy consumption. Finally, they create a detailed report outlining improvements to reduce energy loss.

Why You Need a Home Energy Audit 

A professional home energy audit is important for many reasons. Saving energy helps reduce costs and prevent waste. It cuts down on heavy bills at the end of the month and ensures energy is not being wasted. Here are more reasons why you need an energy audit for households: 

• It enables you to fix energy waste caused by old appliances and poor insulation.
• It eliminates guesswork by providing a report with recommendations for home improvements.
• It can also detect any harmful gas, such as carbon monoxide, due to poor ventilation. 
• This audit suggests ways to lower your home’s energy consumption, which is a good step toward saving energy and the environment. 
• The tools used in an audit can pinpoint the hot and cold spots in your home, helping you find comfort in different weather conditions. 

How Does a Home Energy Audit Work? 

A home energy audit includes three main steps before auditors create a final report with recommended upgrades. Once this audit is done, you’ll know where to add insulation and whether you need to upgrade your appliances. 

Step 1: Initial Home Check

This step is all about checking your utility bills for the last 6-12 months. It gives the auditor an idea of your regular energy consumption patterns. Based on this analysis, the professionals will perform a few physical and diagnostic tests and prepare the final report for you. This step may take 30-45 minutes to complete. 

Step 2: Physical Inspection 

In this step, professional auditors look around your home and inspect windows, doors, floors, ceilings, and walls for leaks or insulation gaps. It may take about 45-60 minutes. Additionally, they check the HVAC systems and the efficiency of your appliances. 

Step 3: Diagnostic Testing 

Once the auditors have inspected everything visually, they will use diagnostic tools to more closely monitor energy use and losses. Here is a brief on the tests they perform: 

• Blower door test: A fan is used in this test. It’s attached to the exterior door to depressurize your home. Then, the auditor calculates the air-leakage rate in your home. 
• Thermal imaging: In this test, infrared cameras are used to identify cold spots and areas without proper insulation. The blower door test makes thermal imaging more powerful. 

• Combustion safety testing: This step is crucial for homes with gas appliances. Here, auditors check carbon monoxide levels and ventilation systems. Moreover, they check for gas leaks and any other hazards. 

• Moisture and air quality assessment: Auditors use hygrometers and various air quality monitors to detect humidity issues, mold risks, and indoor pollutant levels to ensure health and improve energy efficiency. 

Step 4: Final Report

After conducting all the assessments, the auditors provide a full report that identifies gaps and recommends improvements. Here is what this report includes: 

• A full overview of the home’s current energy performance.
• An energy usage analysis of previous utility bills. 
• Details about insulation levels in walls, floors, and ceilings.
• Results obtained from the blower door test and infrared scanning. 
• Evaluation of HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) and water heater efficiency. 
• Energy consumption of lighting and appliances. 
• A list of cost-effective improvements, such as adding insulation and upgrading equipment. 
• The estimated cost for improvements.

Home Energy Audit Checklist for Homeowners  

A home energy audit helps detect energy waste and improve energy efficiency. The professional auditors inspect sealing and insulation, optimize HVAC systems, and update lighting. Here is the home energy assessment checklist they follow: 

• Auditors detect air leaks and inspect drafts around doors, windows, pipes, and electrical outlets.
• Auditors check insulation levels in attics, walls, pipes, and ducts. If necessary, insulate hot water pipes and seal leaks in the HVAC. 
• Check and replace HVAC filters regularly, clean coils, and detect other duct leaks. 
• Check refrigerators and replace them if necessary. Additionally, install a water heater blanket to keep the heat in. 
• Use LED bulbs instead of fluorescent bulbs. Plus, power off electrical appliances and chargers when not in use. Otherwise, it will continue consuming power. 
• Use the electricity bill of the past 12 months to track high use and save on energy in the future. 

Benefits of a Home Energy Audit 

A home energy assessment identifies areas of energy waste and inefficiencies, such as air leaks, poor insulation, and outdated appliances. Some studies suggest that energy improvements after an audit may reduce utility bills by 5–30%. In addition, it helps improve homeowners’ safety. There are more benefits of an energy audit:

Lower Energy Bills

When you know the energy-waste areas in your home, you can try to reduce your electricity bills significantly. This helps reduce energy waste and high utility bills. Overall, it gives you clarity over your monthly electricity bills so that you can use energy efficiently. 

Better Home Comfort

A home energy assessment identifies insulation gaps and temperature imbalances and recommends methods to address them, making the home more comfortable. You will understand which areas of your home lose heat or stay cooler during different seasons.

Improved Home Safety

As you know, gas leaks such as carbon monoxide may be dangerous, and even moisture can lead to mold. The professional auditors identify potential safety hazards and moisture issues. This way, auditors ensure that your home is a safe place to stay. 

Less Environmental Impact

A thorough home inspection for gas leaks and moisture not only improves home safety but also reduces environmental impact. It reduces carbon emissions and provides environmental protection. 

Detailed Energy Report

Auditors prepare a detailed report outlining the improvements you need to make to your home. It includes upgrading appliances and sealing leaks. It allows you to spend your money on important improvements. 

Professional Home Energy Audit vs DIY Audit  

A home energy inspection can be conducted professionally or as a DIY project. Both methods aim to reduce utility costs and save energy. However, the ways to do so differ. It needs different tools to conduct an energy audit. And the results are also different. 

Therefore, you can conduct an energy inspection yourself or hire professional experts who can complete the energy audit in a few hours and provide you with a detailed report. 

Home Energy Audit Cost 

If you want to hire an expert energy audit team, it may cost $200 to $700. However, it may vary depending on your home’s size and location. Hence, there is no fixed amount for this audit. On the other hand, if you’re conducting a home energy inspection by yourself, it may cost you nothing or a moderate amount. 

A basic home energy inspection may take 1–2 hours, whereas professional inspections may continue for 2–4 hours or more. Professionals use advanced tools such as blower doors and infrared cameras to pinpoint inefficiencies in your home. Therefore, they charge more. In contrast, a DIY audit may use a flashlight, thermometer, incense, and basic observation.

Why Choose Vertesol for a Home Energy Assessment

We, at Vertesol, create a safe and comfortable environment for your home by increasing energy efficiency and reducing utility costs. Our expert energy auditors utilize advanced tools such as blower doors, infrared scanning, and air quality analysis to detect gas leaks and insulation issues. We improve home safety by detecting carbon monoxide leaks and moisture problems that may lead to mold.

After inspecting your home, we provide a detailed report with recommended upgrades. We recommend upgrades such as better insulation, sealed leaks, and improved appliances. We offer an affordable home energy assessment to transform your living space into a healthy and risk-free place. 

Our experts identify areas in your home where heat loss or temperature imbalance occurs. After a proper energy audit for households, you notice more comfort, better ventilation, and an insulation system in your home. Additionally, it will cut your monthly utility bills. You’ll protect not only your home but also the environment and air quality. 

Therefore, if you have been observing high utility bills or want to check energy inefficiency, consider Vertesol for your home energy inspection and creating a better living environment.