Energy Auditing Tips
• Check the insulation levels in your
attic, exterior and basement walls,
ceilings, floors, and crawl spaces.
Visit www.energysavers.gov for
instructions on checking your
insulation levels.
• Check for holes or cracks around
your walls, ceilings, windows,
doors, light and plumbing fixtures,
switches, and electrical outlets that can
leak air into or out of your home.
• Check for open fireplace dampers.
• Make sure your appliances and heating
and cooling systems are properly
maintained. Check your owner’s
manuals for the recommended
maintenance.
• Study your family’s lighting needs
and use patterns, paying special
attention to high-use areas such as
the living room, kitchen, and outside
lighting. Look for ways to use lighting
controls—like occupancy sensors,
dimmers, or timers—to reduce lighting
energy use, and replace standard (also
called incandescent) light bulbs and
fixtures with compact or standard
fluorescent lamps.
Formulating Your Plan
After you have identified where your
home is losing energy, assign priorities
by asking yourself a few important
questions:
• How much money do you spend on
energy?
• Where are your greatest energy losses?
• How long will it take for an
investment in energy efficiency to pay
for itself in energy cost savings?
• Do the energy-saving measures
provide additional benefits that
are important to you (for example,
increased comfort from installing
double-paned, efficient windows)?
• How long do you plan to own your
current home?
• Can you do the job yourself or
will you need to hire a contractor?
• What is your budget and how
much time do you have to spend on
maintenance and repair?
Your Home’s Energy
• Check the insulation levels in your
attic, exterior and basement walls,
ceilings, floors, and crawl spaces.
Visit www.energysavers.gov for
instructions on checking your
insulation levels.
• Check for holes or cracks around
your walls, ceilings, windows,
doors, light and plumbing fixtures,
switches, and electrical outlets that can
leak air into or out of your home.
• Check for open fireplace dampers.
• Make sure your appliances and heating
and cooling systems are properly
maintained. Check your owner’s
manuals for the recommended
maintenance.
• Study your family’s lighting needs
and use patterns, paying special
attention to high-use areas such as
the living room, kitchen, and outside
lighting. Look for ways to use lighting
controls—like occupancy sensors,
dimmers, or timers—to reduce lighting
energy use, and replace standard (also
called incandescent) light bulbs and
fixtures with compact or standard
fluorescent lamps.
Formulating Your Plan
After you have identified where your
home is losing energy, assign priorities
by asking yourself a few important
questions:
• How much money do you spend on
energy?
• Where are your greatest energy losses?
• How long will it take for an
investment in energy efficiency to pay
for itself in energy cost savings?
• Do the energy-saving measures
provide additional benefits that
are important to you (for example,
increased comfort from installing
double-paned, efficient windows)?
• How long do you plan to own your
current home?
• Can you do the job yourself or
will you need to hire a contractor?
• What is your budget and how
much time do you have to spend on
maintenance and repair?
Your Home’s Energy
Heat/Cool Loss Control
Insulation Tips
• Consider factors such as your
climate, building design, and budget
when selecting insulation R-values
for your home.
• Use higher density insulation, such
as rigid foam boards, in cathedral
ceilings and on exterior walls.
• Ventilation plays a large role in
providing moisture control and
reducing summer cooling bills.
Attic vents can be installed along
the entire ceiling cavity to help
ensure proper airflow from the soffit
to the attic to make a home more
comfortable and energy efficient.
Check with a qualified contractor.
• Recessed light fixtures can be a
major source of heat loss, but you
need to be careful how close you
place insulation next to a fixture
unless it is marked IC—designed
for direct insulation contact.
Heating and Cooling Tips
• Set your thermostat as low as is
comfortable in the winter and
as high as is comfortable in the
summer.
• Clean or replace filters on furnaces
once a month or as needed.
• Clean warm-air registers, baseboard
heaters, and radiators as needed;
make sure they’re not blocked by
furniture, carpeting, or drapes.
• Bleed trapped air from hot-water
radiators once or twice a season;
• Consider factors such as your
climate, building design, and budget
when selecting insulation R-values
for your home.
• Use higher density insulation, such
as rigid foam boards, in cathedral
ceilings and on exterior walls.
• Ventilation plays a large role in
providing moisture control and
reducing summer cooling bills.
Attic vents can be installed along
the entire ceiling cavity to help
ensure proper airflow from the soffit
to the attic to make a home more
comfortable and energy efficient.
Check with a qualified contractor.
• Recessed light fixtures can be a
major source of heat loss, but you
need to be careful how close you
place insulation next to a fixture
unless it is marked IC—designed
for direct insulation contact.
Heating and Cooling Tips
• Set your thermostat as low as is
comfortable in the winter and
as high as is comfortable in the
summer.
• Clean or replace filters on furnaces
once a month or as needed.
• Clean warm-air registers, baseboard
heaters, and radiators as needed;
make sure they’re not blocked by
furniture, carpeting, or drapes.
• Bleed trapped air from hot-water
radiators once or twice a season;
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Copyright © Savant Solar LLC 2008. All rights reserved
Copyright © Savant Solar LLC 2008. All rights reserved