'Big increase' in home energy audits, says EfficiencyPEI manager

Mike Proud, manager at EfficiencyPEI,says there has been a "big increase" in homeowners taking advantage of home energy audits to improve efficiency in their homes.

"We need good data and in order to get that data, we need to have an energy audit done so we can see the pre-consumption and post-consumption [usage] after you make retrofits or updates," Proud said.

"Then you've got a good sense of what the savings are going to be house-to-house."

'Suck all the air out of the house'

An energy audit is very thorough and takes two to three hours, said Proud. The auditor will take measurements of the house, doors and windows, and check insulation levels.

Then they do what's called a blower door test.

"They take the front door off. They'll put a big fan in the door and they'll suck all the air out of the house," Proud said.

Air leak a 'relatively simple' fix

That puts the house under negative pressure, which allows the auditor to see exactly how much air leakage there is.

"They'll walk around the home and be able to show them where all the leaks are."

Air leaks are the number one cause of energy loss, Proud said, and also "relatively simple" to fix.

The province offers incentives for making a home more energy-efficient, things like adding insulation, putting in new windows and doors, or adding a heat pump.

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