Grab This Yardstick And Do Your Own Home Energy Audit

We hear a lot of talk about household energy efficiency and the various measures homeowners living along the Coastal Bend can take to increase the energy efficiency of their property. However, it can often be difficult to gauge exactly how much energy you’re saving without a good point of reference. Luckily, a home energy audit can help you determine the efficiency of your home in comparison to other households across the country. Knowing where you stand can have a huge impact on knowing what steps you need to take next.

There are a couple of different ways to complete a home energy audit. The first, and easiest, is to use the Home Energy Yardstick – which is an online tool available on the federal Energy Star program’s website. This tool only takes a few short minutes, but it requires you to have all of your utility bills for the last 12 months. After inputting the information, this automated tool will show you how your home’s energy usage compares to that of the rest of the country. You can then use the Energy Star Home Energy Adviser to help you determine what sorts of improvements you can make based on the improvements made by other homes in your area.

The second home energy audit option is to complete a walk-through of your home using the following checklist. This will help you spot trouble areas within your home so you can decide which repairs will help improve your energy efficiency. While walking through your home, check the following areas for air leaks:

• Windows and window frames
• Doors and door frames
• Weatherstripping
• Electrical outlets
• Switch plates
• Ceiling Fan connections to ceiling
• Window- or wall-mounted air conditioners
• Baseboards
• Fireplace dampers
• Attic doors or hatches
• Areas surrounding pipes
• Foundation seals
• Mail slots

For additional home energy efficiency advice and other heating and cooling concerns, please contact us at CCAC, Inc. today. We’ll be happy to help you improve the comfort of your home.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Corpus Christi, Texas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about energy audits and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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