Home Energy Audit in Los Gatos
Comfort & Indoor Air Quality Assessments

If you're concerned about the efficiency of your Los Gatos home, energy audit services from Residential Energy Pros can help you identify your home's specific problems in order to effectively solve them for a happier, more sustainable household.

When looking at how your home uses energy, it's not simply about the products you are choosing to use and install. It's about the structure of your home down to the smallest details. It's about the correct installation and use of your HVAC system. When you work with us, we perform comprehensive audits with a "Whole House" approach. Our highly trained and licensed specialists are certified by the Building Performance Institute (BPI) and perform work to the EPA standards of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). All work is 100% guaranteed.

We work to understand what your current questions and concerns are to get an idea of what seems to be the problem and how it's affecting your utility bills. With professional grade tools, we can identify problems and compromises within systems. Our comprehensive approach pays special attention to how the systems of your home interact and work interdependent of each other as a whole house system: building structure, HVAC systems, and insulation systems. From here we can identify possible solutions that can effectively reduce your propane, gas, and electric bills.

As a GreenHomes America partner, we are committed to providing the very best for our community. A good Los Gatos home energy audit can help solve your home comfort problems and improve the air quality inside your home. Call to learn more about our services today!

How much does a comprehensive assessment cost?  The cost of having a comprehensive assessment varies. Our basic price points are as follows:

• $249.00 for a typical home (conventional layout, single level, up to 3,000 square feet with a single heating/cooling system)
• $499.00 for a larger, or more complex home (larger multi-story >2,500 square feet homes and home up to ~5,000 square feet with two heating/cooling systems)
• We charge up to $995 for very large and/or complex homes and estates (single family residences typically utilizing multi-unit systems and having multi living levels).
• For large estates and residences that can include multiple out buildings with conditioned space (such as pool houses, specialized garages, paddocks & other function rooms) our prices depend on the special considerations of the residence/property  and are priced based on the unique circumstances of the estate/property.  

Contact us to learn more about this.

Our comprehensive evaluation of your home will include a scientifically performed evaluation and analysis that looks at your home's:

• Structure
• Heating-ventilation - air conditioning (HVAC) system
• Insulation levels,
• Leakiness, testing the air sealing of your home
• Comfort
• Health & Safety

And many other details about your home that interact as a "system" of elements that make your home unique. As a partner of Home Performance Contracting industry leader GreenHomes America we have been trained to use the proven Home-As-A-System testing procedures already utilized by the many GreenHomes America partner companies like us to help solve problems for over 10,000 homeowners in North America. 

The assessment provides you with the information to help you determine the most cost effective way to solve the comfort and energy issues in your home. From dramatically reducing your utility bills to ensuring your home is healthy and safe, a GreenHomes Comprehensive Home Assessment utilizing the Home-As-A-System process will reveal the smarter way to prioritize your home energy upgrades. Lots of different contractors offer various forms of an analysis; however, it's important to get a comprehensive audit that is accurate and actionable.

To be accurate, the assessment needs to include a thorough inspection and a range of diagnostics tests. To be actionable, solutions need to be recommended and easily understood by you and any installation contractor you might hire to complete them.

A simple "clipboard audit" or home energy rating won't cover both of these for you, so make sure you get what you need. And don't waste your money on what you don't!

During a comprehensive home energy audit, a (certified & trained) home performance advisor should conduct a variety of tests customized for your home, including:

• Utility Bill Analysis - to determine usage patterns and look for ways to reduce looking at your electric and gas (or oil or propane) consumption
• Blower Door Test - to measure and locate all the sources of air leaks in your home
• Infrared Scan - to identify hidden defects including insulation gaps, air leakage, duct leakage, and moisture issues
• Visual Inspection - to find evidence of problems affecting the durability of your house
• Insulation Inspection - to determine insulation levels in various areas of your home's shell
• Duct Resistance Test - to identify high duct pressures that can creative imbalances within the ventilation system reducing equipment efficiency & life expectancy
• Attic Inspection - to identify evidence of maintenance problems, verify insulation, check for moisture damage to roof from attic side.
• Furnace, Boiler, Air-Conditioner, Heat Pump, and Hot Water Equipment Inspection - to examine the overall condition of your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning equipment.

• Carbon Monoxide Tests - to measure carbon monoxide levels in the flue gases of your heating appliances and in the air of your house to ensure safety
• Combustion Draft Tests - to ensure that your combustion appliances are venting properly and that combustion gases are not being dumped into or pulled back into your house
• Combustion Efficiency Test - to measure the efficiency of your heating system
• Flue Pipe Exhaust Inspection - to examine your combustion equipment flue pipes for blockages, disconnects, or other unsafe conditions
• Duct Leakage Test - to measure the leakiness of your duct system (in some areas, as much as 30% of the conditioned air moving through ducts leaks directly outside!)
• Visual Inspection for Mold and Moisture Sources - to look for areas where there is evidence of mold or high humidity.
• Visual Inspection for Indoor Air Quality Indicators - to look for evidence of potential sources of indoor air pollution
• Exhaust Fan Inspection - to measure whether fans are moving enough air to properly ventilate your home, and should include an inspection of the exhaust fan ductwork to ensure proper venting
• Clothes Dryer Venting Inspection - to ensure dryers are vented properly to avoid moisture and combustion safety problems
• Lighting Upgrade Inspection - to identify opportunities to replace incandescent lighting with more efficient fluorescent and LED bulbs and fixtures that use less energy and last longer
• Appliance Inspection - to look for opportunities to save money and improve performance
• Pool and Well Pump Analysis - to check pumps for sizing and efficiency and look for opportunities to reduce pumping costs

For the average home (single level, up to 2,000 sq. ft.), the comprehensive assessment usually takes between 2 and 3 hours. During the assessment we do our best to create the minimum of disruption to your regular household routine.

Once the comprehensive assessment is completed and we have reviewed the results we might recommend various changes, improvements or needed health and safety repairs matched to the conditions we found. We focus on specifically relating solutions to the problems your house has in regards to your comfort, health and energy usage.  
Should you choose to have any improvements made the comprehensive assessment is also necessary as it also serves as a baseline for our full "test out" conducted after all the improvements are installed. This initial assessment "test in" and then the final "test out" procedure is required by most state and local rebate and incentive programs to ensure that the expected improvements were achieved for you and to ensure the safety of the air quality inside your home once work is completed.

And the Residential Energy Pros team handles the entire process -

And the process goes like this - We start with the initial consultation, then our team performs the actual comprehensive assessment. Next, we propose what we would do if it were our home. Then, if you decide you want our help in improving your living environment, we make all of the improvements with our in-house team. When necessary we bring in and manage trusted partners with specialized capabilities & licenses such as the removal of asbestos and other EPA regulated substances. We help in the facilitation of getting you all applicable utility rebates and tax credits you are entitled to. Financing?  Yes, we help with that as well. Life is short. Why go another day with a home that isn't the healthiest, most energy efficient and comfortable home possible?   Click here to contact us to get the ball rolling.  

How much does a comprehensive assessment cost?  The cost of having a comprehensive assessment varies. Our basic price points are as follows:

• $249.00 for a typical home (conventional layout, single level, up to 3,000 square feet with a single heating/cooling system)
• $499.00 for a larger, or more complex home (larger multi-story >2,500 square feet homes and home up to ~5,000 square feet with two heating/cooling systems)
• We charge up to $995 for very large and/or complex homes and estates (single family residences typically utilizing multi-unit systems and having multi living levels).
• For large estates and residences that can include multiple out buildings with conditioned space (such as pool houses, specialized garages, paddocks & other function rooms) our prices depend on the special considerations of the residence/property  and are priced based on the unique circumstances of the estate/property.   

Quite often we credit the cost of the assessment back to you should you choose to have us perform the improvements you feel you need.