Well, I've been approved for a NYSERDA energy audit.
Can anyone recommend a "Participating New York Home Performance with ENERGY STAR" contractor?
Can anyone recommend a "Participating New York Home Performance with ENERGY STAR" contractor?
velvetfoot said:Well, I've been approved for a NYSERDA energy audit.
Can anyone recommend a "Participating New York Home Performance with ENERGY STAR" contractor?
joefrompa said:Just wanted to share my experience. Shortly after I moved into my well-built 1973 home, I had a door-blower test performed by a friend. So not a full work-up, but we walked around and felt all the drafts. The previous homeowner was somewhat of a DIYer, and had done a good amount - sealed the rim joist with thick beads of serious caulk. Added r-19 to an r-19 cellulose attic (r-38 total). Good weatherstripping. Etc.
So we found moderate leaks. All the cans/recessed lights leak like crazy - I'm going to build custom foam boxes to put around them and seal to the top of the drywall for those. Gives them airspace inside the foam, but makes the cans air-tight and adds some extra insulation around them. Simply take a piece of thick foam and cut it into a ~10x10x10 box pieces. Caulk the pieces together. Then put it over the can in the attic. Then caulk the bottom to the drywall. Then lay your fiberglass on top of that. Takes maybe 10-15 minutes per can.
Improved sealing to the attic and main wall spaces.
But what I missed from that test was the very broad amount of air being lost through the baseboards. Which has now been fixed via additional caulking and a foaming and tyveking of the entire exterior. Simultaneously, the entire house got a thermal bridging break through the addition of 3/8" fanfold foam put under the vinyl siding.
One thing I'll add to that is that most people don't know what their house is currently sheathed in. I had cement fiber siding. It was attached to the house via furring strips. Which were mounted on the original house sheathing - treated external sheetrock. Well, after 35 years that sheetrock was crumbling and full of holes. So all my rooms had air gaps coming in up under the cement fiber boards (which had 1/2" gaps under them) then up around sheetrock, down the walls, and through baseboard trim.
One other thing was that the main vent pipe running through the attic was completely unsealed. Probably 1 cubic foot around it. Was just stuffed with insulation. Massive heat loss spot right in the center of the house and since it's a main pipe - it's getting massive stack effect. A simple foam board cut-out, some more caulk, and the air is either eliminated or massively reduced.
What I notice now is that if I close my master bedroom door, even with a ceiling fan on (but not the central air/heat flow), the air gets stagnant. It's uncomfortable.
What this is telling me is that my interior air-flow is now getting vastly decreased. Probably to the point I want to stop air-sealing - since in the winter I might have my furnace AND wood burning stove on at the same time.
Next then is radiant heat. For me, that's the garage which butts up against conditioned space on 3 sides - my main living space on one side, a bedroom above it, and my foyer area butts the back of the garage.
I don't know if I can get away with it, but I'm planning on using some sort of foam sheathing there to add r-6 insulation + vapor barrier + thermal bridging.
Anyway, I noticed a marked decrease of my A/C bill this year and my siding was doesn't until August. What this tells me is that these things are already making a marked difference.
We'll see how my heating does this winter - I've made alot of large investments, so it's time for them to start paying off.
velvetfoot said:Ooops, I forgot, I'm in the Albany, NY area.
I didn't get a chance today yet to look at that list, but a recommendation from someone would be nice, I thought, if possible.
Jaugust124 said:Joe, Nice work.
Jaugust124 said:Joe, Nice work.
you also mentioned about insulating the garage. Around here and probably in your area everything on a common wall in the garage has to have a fire rating. Which it sounds like you already know. I tried to find rigid foam that is fire-rated and can't seem to do so. I've been looking at fire rated paint, which will satisfy the code. It is available, but its about $60 / gallon and covers roughly 100 sq. ft. I may try to get this done before winter as well. I only have 1 wall to cover, so the expense will be limited, probably about $200. Nice to do things to the house that you know will save you a few bucks.
I'm not sure, but check Dow Thermax polyiso:
http://building.dow.com/na/en/products/insulation/thermaxwhite.htm
It may satisfy code in your area.
Highbeam said:Getting the air sealing done so well that air feels stagnant is a good thing. In the winter when you are burning wood you will have a much better chance of maintaining humidity levels in the home. What you want is controlled ventilation through ventilation devices vs. sloppy contruction leading to uncontrolled air losses of "good" air along with the old air.
joefrompa said:I hate the feel of stagnant air. How do I retroactively install a ventilation device?
joefrompa said:Highbeam said:Getting the air sealing done so well that air feels stagnant is a good thing. In the winter when you are burning wood you will have a much better chance of maintaining humidity levels in the home. What you want is controlled ventilation through ventilation devices vs. sloppy contruction leading to uncontrolled air losses of "good" air along with the old air.
Never heard that before - and I hate the feel of stagnant air. How do I retroactively install a ventilation device?
I will say that the previous owner apparently cracked the small (10" tall) window in the furnace room in the winter to supposedly help draw fresh air in for when the furnace was running. That's in a basement in it's own room which was also insulated (though not sealed). But I don't want to run the furnace alot.
joefrompa said:Ouch! Not cheap!
All this air-sealing just to have to spend $500+ bringing in better quality air? Ugh!
Maybe I'll just crack a window...
All kidding aside, I think my main issue is going to bringing in fresh air near the stove so that the stove room provides significant heat, and BLOWS fresh air through the rest of the house. Similarly, so the stove can draft in a tight house.
My stove room has 1 sliding glass door and 2 casement windows. Casement windows are kinda hard to crack just a tad, but it might be worthwhile for me to crack the one closest to the stove just a tad. It might cool off the stove room, introduce a little humidity, provide better draft to the stove, and also help push fresh air to the rest of the house (Along the very heated ceiling conveyance of air moving away from the stove).
I love the concept of the HRV - but I'm wondering if it's right for me since the house wasn't designed for it and it may not be financially wise.
woodgeek said:When I am done (after this heat season of compulsive 'data'), I will do a blower door (if I can find a cheap one), as well as a radon check and, of course, check my boiler and insert draft with all my exhaust fans running simultaneously.
joefrompa said:I am definitely making my house tight - since the tyveking, the indoor bugs have decreased dramatically (considering it's summer time). We'll see in the next month or so as it cools off if they flood indoors.
So now I'm wondering - how should I introduce fresh air in the winter? Opening a window will dry out my house (unless I humidify, which I might do anyway). An HRV system is too expensive...
joefrompa said:I am definitely making my house tight - since the tyveking, the indoor bugs have decreased dramatically (considering it's summer time). We'll see in the next month or so as it cools off if they flood indoors.
So now I'm wondering - how should I introduce fresh air in the winter? Opening a window will dry out my house (unless I humidify, which I might do anyway). An HRV system is too expensive...
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