Rising Energy Costs During COVID-19
The COVID-19 second wave surge is coinciding with a drop in temperatures and winter’s approach. Many folks around the country have moved back to working and going to school from home. Even in Horry County where schools are open, students typically only attend 2 days a week, spending the remaining 5 at home in front of a computer. With more time spent indoors and dwindling daylight, you may begin to become more aware of your energy consumption, especially as South Carolina moves into “heating season.”
Cooper Mechanical Services can help you reign in heating costs this winter with a home energy audit and weatherization recommendations. Weatherization, or weatherproofing, is the practice of protecting indoor environments from the outdoor elements like wind, rain, cold air, etc. Typically weatherization activities include finding and sealing gaps, holes, and poor insulation so your home can remain comfortable and efficient.
Conducting an Energy Audit and Blower Test
Sometimes, you can identify places to weatherize from your own senses and observations. You may see missing weather stripping from a door jamb or a gap in a window that needs to be fixed. But if you want a better picture of the energy and heat you are losing to these leaks, you’ll want to conduct a full energy audit using the right tools and technology.
A couple of the most common energy audit tests are a blower test and a thermal imaging test. The blower door test measures the amount air leaking out of your doors. Similar tests can be conducted on windows. Thermal imaging helps technicians locate cold spots in your home and determine their causes, whether a lack of insulation or leaking ductwork. It’s possible you are losing warm air through leaks in your attic and a thermal camera can help find the problem area quickly.
A comprehensive energy audit will address all areas of potential energy loss and calculate an estimate of energy and money lost to inefficiency.
Sealing Leaks and Addressing Problems
A lot of weatherization tasks can be a DIY job with minimal tools and items easily found at a home improvement store. Weather stripper, caulk, and plastic are all materials to help you weatherize your home and keep warm air in.
For areas requiring duct repair and insulation, you’ll most likely want to work with a professional. Cooper offers a variety of heating, cooling, ventilation, and mechanical and electrical services. To learn more about energy audits and weatherization, give us a call or send us a message via our website.