Okay. #EnergyScore held another #BPI training class here at our home and ran multiple blower door 
tests. They found that the house measures at 14ACH (14 Air Changes Per Hour). Your first thought might be, “Holy cow, is that house made of Swiss cheese?” But then you would think back to January’s post and say, “Hey, congratulations!” Why? Because that 14 means another 3ACH drop toward our goal of a total 3ACH…only 11 more to go!
What changed from January? Little things like air sealing in places that don’t get much attention. We looked inside each outlet and switch cover and found some surprising things. Under one there was nothing – no wires, no box, just cobwebs and the dark of the wall cavity – no wonder the outlet didn’t work. Others had boxes that were askew, boxes that were empty and, almost surprisingly, boxes that were well installed. We removed and dry-walled the empty ones and caulked the others to the drywall. We also re-weather stripped the loft French door, side door and deck door.
We didn’t repair some of the larger holes yet because we wanted to see the impact of easy-to-do, low cost, low skill level, incremental changes. So far these little air sealing projects have resulted in a reduction of 5ACH and have made a noticeable difference on the comfort of the house.
We are hoping that #E
nergyScore will hold a class here again soon because our next projects are a bit bigger: repairing 8 dry wall holes left by the electrician, sealing the walls of the wine cellar, closing up the old dryer vent hole and sealing up the hole behind the microwave. In total that looks to be about three square feet of open space through which a lot of air can move.
While we wait for them to return, you might think about getting out your caulk gun and a screw driver. You may be surprised what you find inside your walls and you may be equally surprised at the impact you can have on you electric bill. Go forward to seal and save!
