After having more insulation installed in my attic (earlier blog), I decided to look into getting an Energy Audit done on my house by Questar. I'm glad I did. I kind of assumed that because my house was built in 2002, we were okay. After the auditor left, I was really impressed by the amount of things we could do to improve our home.Below are some of the less expensive things we can do:
1- Fill in the cracks/holes in our furnace. If the fan or furnace is running you can feel air coming out of the seams or holes in the furnace, plug them with caulking or tape (stuff you can get from your local hardware store).
2 - Check the seals around your doors. If you can feel a breeze or see any light - you need to fix that.
3 - He showed us some pliable/bendable plug and light switch covers. These are actually designed to be added between the wall and the actual cover to provide insulation. He said they were inexpensive and could be picked up at most hardware stores.
He covered quite a bit and looked in our attic to view the insulation, checked our unfinished basement and gave some suggestions for that as well. He also went around and checked the shower heads and bathroom sinks to make sure they were slow flow. Before he left he gave us with some information on rebates, websites and where our own personal energy usage was. He also talked about appliances that use less energy and the rebates associated with those items.
Even though my house was built in 2002, there are definately some things I can do now to reduce the cost of my heating and cooling bill. I can't wait to get started. The best part of this audit was that he left us with some insulation for our pipes coming in and out of the water heater and he also left us a blanket for the water heater (he even gave us some directions on how to install it correctly). The items he left with us were free!
It cost $25 to hav
e him come out (this will show up on my Questar bill), but if we do the recommendations he suggested, the $25 gets reimbursed. If you'd like to schedule an energy audit you can visit Thermwise or call 800-695-7375. The website will also give you more information in what is included in an energy audit. My appointment was scheduled for 2 hours.
It cost $25 to hav
e him come out (this will show up on my Questar bill), but if we do the recommendations he suggested, the $25 gets reimbursed. If you'd like to schedule an energy audit you can visit Thermwise or call 800-695-7375. The website will also give you more information in what is included in an energy audit. My appointment was scheduled for 2 hours.In my opinion - every penny counts!
1 comment:
I also had a Questar rep. come to our home (built in 2003) and was amazed at the amount of energy being lost through imperfect door seals and the absolute minimum insulation installed in our attic. We were also given a water heater blanket and pipe insulation which took all of about 1 hour to install ourselves. The outlet plate covers can be purchased at Lowe's or Home Depot and are pretty cheap. I am all set to have the proper amount of attic insulation placed into our attic space and expect an almost 1/3 cost covered by the rebate. The $100.80 we'll have to pay ourselves will be well worth the cost.
I say have Questar come out and look at your home.
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