Focus On Energy New Homes Program
The Focus on Energy New Homes Program is available to builders and new home buyers throughout the State of Wisconsin (for example investor owned utilities like WE Energies and Alliant Energies). Benefits of the program standards and thorough consultant inspections include lower operational costs, better control over indoor air quality, cash back rewards and piece of mind that the home is well-built and tested to national standards. Full diagnostic performance testing of mechanical systems and the building shell completes the certification. Please refer to "Standards and Guidelines for New Home Construction: Focus on Energy New Homes Program" for detailed program information and requirements.
Scope of Service:
Step 1:
A pre-construction plan review, or Based-on-Plan (BOP) is completed for each new home entered into the program. Using a computer program, the design and component specifications of the home are modeled to verify its potential energy efficiency/performance level. This is preliminary confirmation that the home meets federal Energy Star criteria for overall energy efficiency. Also, it allows our consultant to identify and discuss details of construction and consider options.
Step 2:
Pre-Drywall Site Visit(s) During Construction: Allows us to verify plans/specs and evaluate various aspects of the home at a critical stage of construction to ensure that the home will meet program standards for air tightness, ventilation capacity and combustion safety. The Site Visit occurs at the framing/insulation stage. Our primary concern is the presence of air bypasses. This is the last chance to address some important issues before being covered up with insulation and drywall. This Site Visit is followed up with a written report summarizing findings and recommendations.
Step 3:
Performance Testing: Once the project is at or near completion, thorough testing of the mechanical systems and building shell is scheduled. We find HVAC airflow testing to be extremely valuable to address comfort concerns before they happen. For new homes, we are focused on the air leakage integrity of the windows/doors and completeness of attic insulation, but are looking for any air leaks which may have not been addressed during the rough-in Site Visit.
Step 4:
Update Building Modeling
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Summary of Performance Testing:
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Blower Door Test - to determine just how leaky the house may be, and to locate air leakage locations throughout the home. This test simulates a 20 mph wind from all directions. How tight is your home? The home must meet Standard 1A-Air Barrier requirement to be certified.1
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Infrared Scanning - By itself, and in conjunction with the blower door test, allows us to locate cold spots and air leakage points or insulation flaws in hidden locations, for example interior chases or inaccessible areas of an attic.
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HVAC Airflow Testing - We like to measure supply and return airflows from the furnace (if this is how your home is heated) to ensure that the system is reasonably balanced. Balancing of airflows can often improve comfort.
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Ventilation System Testing - In addition to confirming that the home¡¯s ventilation equipment meets the Standards 1AQ and 2AQ of the program, it is important to recognize that airflows from ventilation equipment can be a large factor in the home¡¯s ability to expel moisture/odors from the home. We find many flaws from simple bathroom exhaust fans which can be easily fixed, that would often never be known without this testing.
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Duct Tightness Testing - Duct Blaster testing if any ductwork is located outside conditioned space or other compliance objectives.