Premium Efficiency can evaluate your home through:
Home Performance with ENERGY STAR evaluation
Duct Testing and Sealing
House Leakage Testing & Sealing

We also offer services to contractors and real estate agents. Click here to learn more.

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR uses a comprehensive whole-house approach that looks at all areas of energy use in your home, not just one specific area. During a Home Performance review our trained technicians will test the tightness of the building shell using a Blower Door. Any combustion appliances are tested for carbon monoxide and combustion safety. The duct system is tested for both leakage and possible backdraft situations. Insulation levels through out the home are inspected. An infrared thermal camera may be used to locate hidden defects, missing insulation and moisture problems.

Once all the data is gathered from your home the information is input into a modeling program that includes your homes electric and gas usage to determine approximately how much money each weatherization improvement could save you, and how long it will take to recoup your investment. A detailed report is then provided explaining all the areas that were inspected, the areas that need improvement and order in which they should be considered, the cost associated with each improvement and the approximate savings.

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR is a nationally accredited program sponsored by the Energy Trust of Oregon.

How to Prepare for a Home Performance Review
A Home Performance Review can take 2-4 hours. In addition to preparing for the duct leakage and building shell leakage tests (see below), home owners should have available their past 12 months of natural gas and electric usage. Please have the areas around combustion appliances such as furnaces and water heaters cleared of stored items. Please do not have fires burning and have all ashes cleared of fireplaces and woodstoves.

Duct Testing & Sealing

Leaky ducts can be responsible for up to 20% of the cost to heat and cool your home. These leaks can dramatically reduce the performance of even the most energy efficient equipment. If you heat your home with a furnace or heat pump, you should have your duct system tested. We can also recommend repairs — including sealing connections, reconnecting disconnected ducts, and sealing building cavities used to move air.

Most duct systems have leakage at all connections and fittings. Duct tape that once sealed some systems dries out over time, and looses its seal. Many systems are not even screwed together. Our crews remove any duct tape, add screws to all connections, and seal all accessible connections and fittings with water based mastic. Depending on the condition of the existing duct insulation (if any), we will salvage the existing duct insulation or provide a quote to wrap the system once all sealing is complete.

How to Prepare for a Duct Test
Duct tests take 1 -2 hours to complete. All testing is done from inside the home. Please have all registers accessible to mask off. If registers are not accessible due to furniture please let our staff know when scheduling. If your home has returns over stair ways, or in vaulted ceilings please let our staff know when scheduling (when a tall ladder is required to reach high register grills). After testing is completed the system is physically inspected for leakage areas, damaged areas, and insulation levels. Please have the access to the attic and crawl space clear of any stored items.

House Leakage Testing & Sealing

Most homes have leaks in their building shell. Building leakage is also called infiltration. Infiltration is uncontrolled air leakage that lets the air you have paid to heat and cool your home leak out of the home, and the introduction of unconditioned outside air. Warm air out equals cold air in. Our testing equipment calculates the home's Air Change per Hour (ACH). The ACH is a reading of how much air in your home is exchanged through infiltration.

Not only are there leaks around doors and windows, there can be many hidden leaks that are not as obvious. Leaks from the house to the attic can drastically reduce the effectiveness of the attic insulation. This can add to the cost to heat and cool the home, and can also put warm, moist air into the attic, causing mold and moisture issues. Leaks from the crawl space below the home can bring in dirty air. Our trained technicians can help locate the leaks that cost you most.

Homes can also be too tight. A home that is too tight can result in moisture/mold issues, stale air, and overall poor indoor air quality. Homes that test too tight should have a mechanical ventilation system. A mechanical ventilation system could be as simple as an exhaust fan with a programmable timer to exhaust stale air from the house. Some homes may even consider a Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV). An HRV exhausts stale air from the home while extracting the heat from the exhausted air to help condition the fresh air brought into the home. Our technicians can help find the right fit for your home and budget.

How to Prepare for House Leakage Test
House leakage testing can take 1-2 hours and can be done in conjunction with duct leakage testing. A Blower Door is set up in an exterior door. All other exterior doors and windows must be closed, and all interior doors open durring testing. The Blower Door depressurizes the home to a set pressure and a reading is taken. Based on the volume of the home a calculation is doen to deturmine the home's Air Change per Hour (ACH). Please have wood stove and fireplaces free of ashes and debris (no fires durring or prior to testing).