Blower Door Overview
How Does It Work?
Why have a Blower Door Test performed
Identify Air Leakage
Improve indoor Air Quality
Prevent Mold & Rot
Cut Energy Cost
- Why Conduct a Blower Door Test
- Understanding the Numbers
- Why choose us?
- BPI Certified
HOW IMPORTANT CAN IT BE?
Exterior air leakage, whether infiltration or exfiltration, has an effect on our health and may have an effect on your comfort. Unsealed cracks or gaps in the pressure boundary or air barrier can be responsible for several problems. These openings are the cause of hot or cold air entering the home. This air movement also brings along moisture, bugs, dust and other potentially harmful contaminants. These air leaks allow for unwanted drafts as well as conditioned air (heat or cool) to escape the building or dwelling. Air leakage may have a negative impact on the health & safety and comfort level of the occupants while increasing energy usage.
It is important to conduct a Blower Door Test to identify the leakage areas. This tool will allow our certified team to determine where the uncontrolled leakage is and to recommend the best, most cost effective approach to effectively seal the unwanted leaks.
WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
A Blower Door Test simply measures how airtight your home or building is, at 50 pascals (50pa). A pascal is a unit of minute air pressure. The Blower Door measures air and is recorded as cubic feet per minute (CFM). We can use the measured CFM to calculate the air exchanges per hour (ACH50). ACH50 indicates how many times outside air replaces or is exchanged with the full volume of indoor air under the testing conditions of 50pa. ACH50 is one of the most common ways to measure or compare air leakage in a home or building.
In addition to testing the home as a whole, we are able to complete what's called zonal testing. A zonal test determines how connected a particular area of the home is connected to the outside. The most common areas to have a zonal test are the attics, knee-wall areas, overhangs, garages, basements and crawl-spaces. Bedrooms, bonus rooms, sunrooms and additions are great zones to test as well. The test doesn't measure how much air leakage there is but rather measures the connection between the inside and outside by measuring pressure difference. An attic space is considered to be an unconditioned, outside space. When testing this zone we would expect to read -50pa. This would indicate that the attic has a 100% connection to the outside. Suppose that same test was performed and the results read -35pa. This would indicate that the attic has 70% connected to the outside, leaving a 30% connection to the inside. While this test doesn't measure total air leakage, it is a great method to assist the technician with what air sealing measures to recommend.
QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Our knowledgeable and certified team is why we can guarantee our customers a satisfying experience. We will not leave you without a thorough understanding of your test and results. Any questions will be answered until understood, making it a positive experience for everyone involved.
TECHNICIANS HELD TO THE HIGHEST STANDARDS.
Our team consists of qualified individuals. Blower Door Test are conducted by professionals who are BPI (Building Performance Institute) certified.
