Save money.
So until next time…Oh you want an explanation? Alright, I can do that.
Each year your house gets older, as all things do, with that comes several problems that you may or may not know about. Due to the forces of gravity, insulation will slowly settle in your walls. Believe it or not, it does happen, this will lead to cold spots along the top of your walls. Now, short of ripping off the drywall, there isn’t much you can do about this issue. However, it is nice to know how bad it is so you can plan a renovation if it gets bad enough. Let me put your fears to rest right now, in the average home this could be a problem in 50 to 60 years, so not really a big deal.
Now that we have the big scary out of the way, we can talk about the real problems that can be costing you more than you may think. Little things really but issues nonetheless, you may have air ingress around windows and doors, maybe through your dryer vent and around electrical outlets. These are problems that could be easily solved and actually save you money in the long run. There are also issues that are more complicated to repair but also can return a lot more money in savings. If you repair a few issues around your house, it can also be a benefit to your health and your family’s health.
What can I see when I thermal image your house and how can paying someone to come into your home save you money? Well, I can see the little areas around your switches and outlets that may have cooler air coming in. Now, over the course of time, this cooler air can lead to big problems, things that you can not see, things that can affect your health and the air inside your home. Due to the nature of living there is moisture in your home. Just breathing you expel water vapour, cooking, showering and even doing your laundry release moisture into your home. That is good, it actually helps your home feel warmer, it’s complicated and far beyond the scope of this article to explain how and why. The moisture in the air will condense when it comes into contact with cooler air, the cooler air we talked about before. Most of the time you won’t be able to see this condensation because it is going on inside your walls. That is a big problem. The environment inside your walls is ideal for mould spores to grow and multiply at an alarming rate, completely unseen and impossible to clean without a major renovation. So, if you know about the issue you can add an insulation layer behind your plug covers and slow the problem down or maybe stop it completely.
I can also see where the air is creeping into your home around windows and doors, a little bit of spray foam, weatherstripping or insulation can stop these drafts and save money on your heating bills. I can also see if your low-E windows are still gas-filled. You see each of those windows has an inert gas added in during the manufacturing process. Over time these windows can leak out the gas and actually be less insulation than an older single-pane window. When this happens there is a convection current setup in the window and I can actually see a circular pattern on the window if the gas is gone.
I am also able to find moisture that you may not know about. Due to the cooling effects of evaporation, I can clearly see where there is moisture in carpets, drapes and some types of hard surface flooring. If there is enough moisture I can see the cooling effects on the drywall as well. This could point to a leaking roof or poor insulation in your attic or wall space.
Some people are thinking “Why should I pay someone to do this? I can rent or buy my own thermal imager and do this myself.” To those folks I say go ahead, there is no reason at all to hire me. Well, there may actually be a good reason to hire a professional to come in and do the survey for you. You will find some thermal anomalies if you do it yourself, I have no doubt. Do you know which ones you should be concerned about and which ones are normal? Do you know the proper setting for the camera to find the little things? Does the camera you bought or rented have the thermal resolution to find the 0.05 degree Celsius temperature differences? Would you be willing to remove the cover from your electrical panel to see if you have any hot spots in there? So, in spite of the fact that it might be cheaper to rent a thermal imager for a day or two, you may not find the things you should be repairing. You may find something that you think is an issue that isn’t; potentially costing you lots of money in unnecessary repairs.
So, why hire me? Well, I have gone to several training courses and conferences for thermal imaging, at a cost of several thousand dollars, just so I know what to look for, how to set up the thermal imager to find what I need to find and provide you with a comprehensive thermal study of your home. I don’t think you can put a price on your family’s health and safety. I can provide peace of mind knowing what needs to be repaired immediately or what can wait until it’s nicer weather or when your budget will allow.