Home Performance with ENERGY STAR®
The Health, Safety and Comfort Story

Making your home more energy efficient saves you money but you may not realize that it makes your home healthier and safer too. It’s one more reason why it’s so important to have a Building Performance Institute (BPI) Accredited Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractor treat your home for heating and cooling equipment repair or replacement, installation of insulation, sealing up air leaks, and other improvements. The best way to start is with a comprehensive home assessment. BPI Accredited Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractors use the latest testing equipment and computer analysis to assess the energy performance of your home.  They look at your entire home, not just one room or appliance, so they can be sure that your house is operating in a safe and efficient manner.

Safety First

Long Islanders are constantly changing and updating their homes whether it’s redoing a kitchen or adding a hot tub. It’s only recently that we’ve begun to understand that when we make these changes we may be altering the way air moves through our homes. The problem is that if air doesn’t flow properly into, out of, and through your home dangerous pollutants can be trapped inside, causing health problems and structural damage.

Air flow is also essential for fuel-burning appliances such as furnaces, water heaters, fireplaces and clothes dryers. All of these need air in order to burn fuel but if the air pressure around them drops a backdraft can occur. A backdraft is when dangerous substances such as carbon monoxide are pulled back into the house. Because carbon monoxide is an odorless and colorless gas you may not even know this is occurring. But it is very dangerous – carbon monoxide can make you dizzy and nauseous, give you headaches, and if not detected it could be fatal.

A BPI Accredited Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractor can test the air flow in your home with state-of-the-art computerized equipment and make sure that your appliances are running properly.

The Comfort Factor

Cold spots, ice dams on the roof, premature roof failure, mold and mildew – all of these things make a house less comfortable and durable for you and your family. But did you know that they could also be major signs that your home isn’t properly insulated, the heating system isn’t properly balanced or that moisture is trapped inside your home? A BPI Accredited Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractor is trained to spot these common problems, help identify the source, and then remedy the problem if possible. Taking care of them will make your home more comfortable to live in and also increase the longevity of the building as well. It’s also important because mold and mildew can cause serious problems for allergy sufferers. A BPI Accredited Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractor will test for moisture levels, and help track down the source of the problem in order to help find a solution.

Warning signs:

• High indoor humidity with stuffy, stale or odd-smelling air
• Back-drafts (or down-drafts) from chimneys, flues, or vent pipes. Puffs of smoke or heat coming from the venting pipe or appliance out into the room can be the clue to a back-draft
• Little or no draft or draw in a chimney
• Blocked venting pipe or soot falling from a pipe or chimney
• Build-up and overhang of ice on roof (ice dams)
• Signs of excess moisture including peeling paint, mold, mildew, structural damage in walls and attic

Safety Tips:

• Install carbon monoxide detectors in your home
• Have chimneys, flues and vent pipes inspected and cleaned before the start of winter and throughout the heating season
• Have the chimney and pipe connections checked to make sure they’re tight without cracks, dents or rust holes
• Have the home checked for air leakage and inadequate or improperly installed insulation
• Have the home’s heating equipment and appliances checked for efficiency and combustion safety