A family member of mine just purchased a home.  It’s around 10 years old, so the house shouldn’t be very drafty, right?  The local electric utility offers low cost blower door tests which uncover air leaks throughout the house.  These air leaks add up to costly energy bills whether its summer or winter.   The blower door test revealed a lot of air leaks that needed to be addressed.

Never heard of a blower door test?  Here’s a good description by the US Department of Energy:  ”A blower door is a powerful fan that mounts into the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air out of the house, lowering the air pressure inside. The higher outside air pressure then flows in through all unsealed cracks and openings. The auditors may use a smoke pencil to detect air leaks. These tests determine the air infiltration rate of a building.”

Using this information, you can then attack the air leaks, plugging up the holes and saving big money in the process.  I wrote about sealing air leaks last month, here.

Many local utilities offer blower door tests at discounted rates.  They may also keep a list of local energy auditors who can perform the service.  You may also do a search for “energy auditors” on the internet or in you phonebook.  A blower door test is a great way to find those leaks you may overlook.  It will also give you the confidence that comes with an expert analysis of your home. 

Photo credit:  Fairywren