Home Performance Archives - Efficiency First California

Recording Heat Loss at the House With Infrared Thermal Camera

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director It’s human nature — everyone wants to find that magic “silver bullet” that will solve all their problems. It’s no different in the energy efficiency space, where the industry is constantly looking to find the latest and greatest technology or product that will fix everything. But while we have a lot of innovative solutions, from the simple (smart thermostats) to the complex (hydronic space heating paired with solar thermal collectors), the thing they

In April 2022, the Building Performance Association held its annual National Conference. For the past few years, the planners had to build a contingency for providing the content virtually due…

Heating and cooling replacements are often done upon failure. When this happens, the primary concern is to restore service, leading to decisions that have long-term impacts. Here are a couple…

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director These are difficult times. While we all might hope that things can get back to “normal” soon, it’s likely that some things will change for good. Like a lot of businesses, contractors are suffering, as customers put off renovations and upgrades. If there’s a silver lining though, it might be that after spending weeks indoors, some homeowners will finally be ready to consider investing in non-cosmetic upgrades that enhance the quality of their indoor environments

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director Recently, there has been a noticeable shift in California energy efficiency policy. For years the focus has been on the overall reduction in energy use. Today, the goals are much more complicated, with aggressive state mandates specifically targeting greenhouse gas emissions. As a result, when energy savings occur has become a factor, often superseding total consumption. The utilities have responded with time-of-use rates and incentives. In California, the transportation sector is by far

Posted by Gabe Lieb, EFCA Director of Strategy Our executive director Charley Cormany works with the Building Decarbonization Coalition and National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to bring a contractor’s perspective to residential decarbonization and electrification policy in California. Efficiency First California (EFCA) manages the SMUD Home Performance Program, which last year started incentivizing electrification with hefty rebates. I subscribe to MCE’s 100% renewable energy Deep Green rates. You could say that I’m an electrification champion. So why did I just

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director Building Science (BS) is pretty powerful stuff. Home performance contractors have been providing data and improving building science techniques for well over 30 years now. But while there is no question building retrofits have many benefits, selling the concept to homeowners and property managers is no small feat. While early adopters and others who have specific concerns (such as high utility bills or a child with respiratory problems) are relatively easy to convince,

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director Two years ago at the Home Performance Coalition conference in Nashville, a few folks had an after-hours conversation discussing the state of the efficiency industry and the players involved. At the time, Efficiency First National was struggling financially and with membership growth. From the conversation, it became evident that several organizations were replicating each other’s efforts in this small and resourced-constrained industry. Someone floated the idea that perhaps we could play to each

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director The Grid Is Changing The recent fires in California have had tragic consequences. Thousands of people have lost their homes. Many have lost loved ones too. In many cases, the fires were caused by downed or damaged power lines or failed electrical distribution equipment, and the utility, PG&E, has been blamed. If PG&E is found guilty of violating mandates set by the CPUC for maintaining their equipment and clearing trees from their power

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director Recently, I attended the 39th annual Institute of Heating and Air Conditioning Industries (IHACI) trade show in Pasadena, California, in the hopes of learning about some exciting new products and maybe a couple new technologies for the heating and cooling industries (HVACR). It’s been about four years since I was actively involved as a contractor/installer, and I was curious to see how many new solutions have been developed in my time away from

Home performance hasn’t changed much over the past 30 years. Recently though, a few big things have started to change in the world of energy. Contractors need to be aware…

Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director A few rotten apples The world is full of contractor horror stories. Over the years, contractors have lost customer trust, often for good reason. Simple mistakes like forgetting to re-install a water heater vent after a roof replacement could have drastic consequences if the exhaust fumes, and potentially carbon monoxide, were to re-enter the building. Unfortunately, this lack of confidence from the public means that gaining a customer’s trust can be a real

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Explanation and Importance

Measured Airflow vs. Nominal Airflow

Step-by-Step Directions to Conduct the Test

Why Is It Important?

Step-by-Step Directions for Conducting a Duct Leakage to the Outside Test

Using This Information with Homeowners