CHEERS Certified HERS Rater
Certified for HERS inspections of
New and replacement HVAC systems, Insulation installation and infiltration testing.
It is kind of strange how we tolerate leaky ducts. Typically ducts leak at least 30%; if you were losing 30% of the gas in you car you'd be looking for a way to fix it but most folks aren't aware that we are pouring conditioned air, they paid for into the outdoors, or crawl space. The duct blaster test is a fairly easy way to determine your level of loss and then pinpoint the worst areas.
If you are getting a new system installed it is required that you get a permit and that this test be done. If you don't get a permit you don't meet the requirement and you don't get verification that the system is with in acceptable leakage ranges, all to often they aren't.
It is also quite common that insulation is installed poorly at best. Infrared imaging have demonstrated just how catastrophic even a seemingly small corner of missing insulation can be. Although it is easy to install insulation properly it is not common practice. A third party inspection can create the incentive to not cut corners on this important step in creating the ultra comfortable home we all strive for.
As a third party HERS rater I am not allowed to perform any repairs but I will do what I can to help pinpoint leakages.
If we are just analyzing ducts to improve performance I can do some repairs.
