Things are not always as they seem. Imagine a new custom-built home with all the amenities. The home looked exceptional, but the cold draft that ran down the steps from the second floor and throughout the home was preventing the homeowners from living comfortably in their beautiful new home.
To identify the source of the draft, the contractor used an infrared camera to do a full thermal imaging of the home. That scan showed no draft source, so the home underwent a second full thermal imaging scan by a PA state agency’s thermal imaging crew. They also used their Blower Door airflow testing equipment, but came up with no clear answer for the draft. And both thermal scans showed complete insulation “enveloping” at the perimeter.
The homeowner then called a weatherproofing estimator, to ask what additional diagnostic tools were available beyond what had already been done. The homeowner said that after two years and several deeper examinations, the contractor and the state agency’s crew had come to the conclusion that there was no heat loss at the expected spots in the walls, windows or ceilings.
Most weatherization projects are like a good mystery book. If the rain gutters fail, the foundation grading is poor or the basement windows and/or walls are leaking, there will be poor air quality in certain areas of the home. The answer to the mystery isn’t always “the usual suspects” — French drains, stucco walls and ineffective dehumidifiers. The roofing, siding, windows, insulation, venting, water seepage and heat loss must be evaluated for possible inefficiencies.
The weatherproofing estimator’s many years of experience with homes of every shape and size helped him identify that the source of the draft was in the “bonus room” above the garage. That room, which was next to the top of the stairs on the second floor, had a barn/Dutch-style roof line and a double-walled framed design, which meant that insulation could be omitted. When the lower part of the bonus room’s walls were cut open, there was NO insulation, but the storage space behind the walls had blocked the heat loss from showing on both infrared imaging scans.
That same weatherproofing estimator discovered what was causing water marks on the walls of another homeowner’s dining room, which had been a first-floor addition 10 years prior. The cause of the water marks had originally been misdiagnosed by an Energy Audit crew, at considerable expense to the homeowner. Although there was some insulation, the exterior soffit vents near the sliding door from the dining room to a patio created a cold corner in the room. The problem turned out to be the fact that there was no kitchen exhaust fan. This was discovered not by using thermal or other hi-tech diagnostic equipment but through the simple and proven troubleshooting methods of a weatherproofing estimator with many years of experience.