Home Energy Audits

What is an energy audit?

The Comprehensive Home Energy Audit is performed to the specifications of the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® program. Our certified raters put state-of-the-art scientific equipment to work on your home to analyze precise ventilation and safety measures, including advanced equipment that detects invisible gas emissions. With your list of recommendations in hand, you’ll be surprised how inexpensively you can save up to 40 percent on your energy bills while making your home much more comfortable.

What happens during the audit?

The Comprehensive Energy Audit is a whole home approach that includes several diagnostic tools. We also take safety very seriously. During your energy audit we will perform the following:

Air Leakage Test: Using a Blower Door Pressure device, we test the airflow of your home to identify air leaks and find ways to keep air conditioned and heated air inside your home longer.
Detailed Visual Inspection with Infrared Camera Scan: We find hidden air leaks, insulation problems and moisture issues occurring behind walls, and explain how to fix them.
Furnace and Water Heater Safety and Efficiency Test: We examine your major gas appliances for safety with a focus on toxic emissions.

What happens after the audit?

You receive a customized report with energy savings estimates, photos/thermal images and a prioritized list of recommended improvements. If requested, we'll give you a proposal showing costs to implement the recommendations. In this easy-to-understand report, we prioritize your improvement options to meet your goals.

How long does an audit take?

This comprehensive service assessment can take between 3 and 4 hours to complete depending on home size and number of HVAC systems.

Who is this for?

The Comprehensive Home Energy Audit is most appropriate for:

People who want to reduce their energy consumption: the primary motivation for many customers is the prospect of reducing their high energy bills. The Energy Audit educates you on both mechanical and behavioral measures that can save you money. Homeowners in Colorado who follow the advice can save up to 40% on their energy bills.

People who want to improve the comfort of their home: The Audit provides solutions for seasonal room discomfort, uneven room heating/cooling, drafts, air quality concerns, humidity issues, mold/mildew concerns, and musty odors.

People concerned about Appliance Safety and Efficiency: If you are trying to figure out whether your major appliances are working safely and efficiently, or which appliances are near the end of their useful lives, this highly technical energy audit provides a unique and insightful view towards helping you make the right replacement decisions. We’ll help you understand whether changing an appliance today is really worth the money.

People concerned about Air Exchange Rates for a Healthy Interior: If you are looking for a precise measurement of air exchange. Too much air exchange means much of your air conditioned or heated air is escaping to the outdoors. Too little air exchange leads to a buildup of gases that could make you feel sick (or worse)! The Home Energy Audit ensures your air exchange is just right, and you should have your Air Exchange Rates checked after any work on your home that impacts air flow.

Remodelers: If you are thinking about remodeling your home and want to take advantage of the opportunity to make energy efficient alterations, this whole home evaluation is technical and educational and will help you figure out which solutions are most worth incremental investment.

When do I get results?

You’ll have the high level findings communicated verbally before the auditor leaves your home. The Home Energy Audit savings estimates relies on complex energy modeling that takes a few weeks to complete. We try to provide results within 2 weeks of your visit to ensure that you don’t lose your enthusiasm. You will receive a comprehensive report by e-mail and/or US Mail. If you would like, we'll even schedule an in home visit from your auditor to review the results with you.
 

What makes EnergySetter special?

Every respectable energy auditor does a blower door test and gives you a report with recommended energy retrofits. But EnergySetter goes above and beyond this standard, and all of these value-added services are included in our standard pricing:

- We use an infrared camera on every job to identify sources of air leakage that are invisible to the eye and/or behind walls and/or located in inaccessible parts of the home.
- If you have gas, oil, or propane-powered HVAC or water heater appliances, we test them for efficiency and safety to ensure your home doesn’t have dangerous levels of carbon monoxide or combustion gases.
- We run every job through software that models how much energy you will save when you implement the recommendations.
- We prioritize your energy retrofit options to best meet your goals and budget.
- We tell you about utility and tax incentives that lower your costs of getting work done and show you where to get the forms you need.

How much does it cost?

EnergySetter Home Energy Audits in Colorado cost $350. Currently, though, Xcel Energy is offering to pay $200 of that total for you so your cost is only $150. We'll even take care of the rebate paperwork for you.