Duct Leakage Testing
Ducts are one of the most important elements of your home’s energy systems yet they are frequently overlooked. Properly installed and sealed duct systems contain little to no leaks and perform far more efficiently. All new duct systems Advanced Home Energy installs are properly sealed and tested after installation. Duct leak testing ensures that your home’s ducts are operating effectively. Properly sealed and functioning ducts will not only reduce your utility bills but make sure the rooms in your home are as comfortable as you want them to be. Duct leakage testing is also important in keeping your home’s energy systems as healthy as possible.
Why Duct Leakage Testing is Important:
- Up to 30% of your home’s heated or cooled air can be lost through improperly sealed ducts.
- Leaky supply ducts don’t deliver the heated/cooled air where it is needed.
- Leaky return ducts add unnecessary load to your system increasing utility bills.
Leaky return ducts can pull air from undesirable locations increasing humidity and possibly pulling in air contaminates.
At Advanced Home Energy a duct leakage test is part of our standard home energy audit. Using a duct blaster or duct blower we test your entire duct system for leakage. The duct leakage test allows us to pinpoint the problem areas in your duct system that might be causing heated or cooled air to escape. This can identify comfort problems with a room not being properly heated or cooled as well as identify reasons why heating or cooling bills are higher than anticipated. It is also important in making sure your indoor air quality is as healthy as possible.
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Duct Leakage Testing Process:
- Visualize walkthrough inspection of entire duct system.
- Seal all vents in the duct system.
- Use a duct blaster to pressurize the ducts to a specified level
- Measure the flow that is required to maintain duct pressure.
- Compare data results with standards.
Duct leakage testing is an important aspect of applying the latest innovations in building science to your home. By collecting accurate objective data, today’s energy auditors can accurately assess your home’s energy efficiency. This data collection is necessary to then recommend the most cost-effective and energy-efficient upgrades to make to your home.
