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[OM] Re: IR film to discover heat losses?

Subject: [OM] Re: IR film to discover heat losses?
From: Jan Steinman <Jan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 9 Mar 2007 20:15:15 -0800
> From: Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>
> The last couple of weeks in the new/old house with bitter cold
> temperatures and howling westerly winds have pointed out that this
> 1950's house is full of holes... Can IR film help me here?

I don't think so.

There's "near IR" and "far IR". The IR film is sensitive to IR that  
is very near the red end of the spectrum. It's really more like light  
we happen to not be able to see, whereas "far IR" is closer to heat  
than light. I can't tell you the nanometers right off my head, but  
it's closer to radio microwaves than light.

In order to do far IR, you need cryogenically-cooled sensors, because  
there is simply not enough difference between the sensor temperature  
and the desired "light" to be detectable.

> I discovered before we moved in that there was no insulation in the
> walls and paid a couple thousand to have cellulose blown into the  
> walls.
>   All seems to be pretty much for naught since, when the wind howls,
> cold air comes rushing past window seals, electrical outlets and other
> wall openings and probably numerous points I have yet to discover.

These can be fixed rather inexpensively. We just completed a grant  
for energy improvements that involved a fairly sophisticated energy  
audit and a follow-up trip after the work was performed. The auditor  
replaced one of the doors with a frame and membrane with a big fan  
through it. There were two manometers measuring indoor and outdoor  
pressure, and we got a "rating" on a scale from zero to 100 of 64.  
That was about average for the age of the house. They also gave an  
absolute number -- we had the equivalent of a two-foot-square hole in  
a perfectly airtight container!

The auditor went around to all the possible openings with me, and we  
could feel the rush of air at all those that needed help, and they  
were noted for me.

We put about $50 into weather stripping, including those foam things  
behind every outside-wall outlet and switch. We used 1cm foam tape on  
all sides of our seven (!) outside doors. We used the same tape on  
the attic access ports. We also adjusted (lowered) several door  
sweeps and put a new one on one door than you could see light under. :-)

The biggie was floor insulation -- that which was there was thin bats  
that had mushed out (from moisture infiltration) and fallen down.  
That cost about $850 for R-48, self-installed. We also put $70 worth  
of 6 mill poly in the crawl space as a vapour barrier. We REALLY feel  
the difference on the floor, since we're a "shoes off" household!

Upon return, the auditor determined our score went up to 75, which is  
average for NEW construction for a building this size. We had to beat  
our previous score by ten points to qualify for the grant, and we had  
eleven.

So having passed, we got ~$700 plus the auditor's fee ($250) back.  
They claim we'll break even on energy bills over what we ended up  
paying for materials in less than three years, whereas it would have  
taken seven without the grant.

But we did all the labour, logging 54 person-hours on the effort. If  
you have to (or decide to) pay for labour, that could really add up.  
Professionals can probably do it more efficiently, but it would still  
be several hundred dollars.

> Any advice or references for locating and plugging holes and other  
> heat
> loss points on a 1950's brick ranch house will be appreciated  
> whether it
> involves IR film or not.

Do see if you have energy auditors in your neck of the woods. Our  
audit cost $250, and it was really obvious with that big fan going as  
to where the leaks were! If you don't want to do the work, the  
auditor will probably be able to make recommendations.

I don't know where grants may be available. They are throughout  
Canada, but the latest incarnation no longer includes the auditor's  
fee, which is a shame. It was the least Stephen Harper could do to  
milk the growing green sentiment in Canada.


:::: "I make them go up, don't care where they come down.
:::: That's not my department," said Werner Von Braun -- Tom Leher
:::: Jan Steinman <http://www.Bytesmiths.com/Item/99AO31>



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