Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Residential Energy Services Network, were part of the Green Build process of a poorly insulated home.
Attention all members of NSER and all Home Builders who are building homes to Energy SKY standards. If you are a builder trying to compete in today's tough market you may be getting hosed if your competition is not building to Energy SKY standards and you are. Especially if you are making the effort and paying the increased costs to comply.
If you are a member of the NSER and your fellow members are allowing home builders to cheat the rules then you too are getting hosed. Especially if you are charging more and your fellow member is charging less because they may be skipping blower door and duct blast tests.
Here are the facts -
1. Home was built from March 2007 to September 2007.
2. Energy SKY required a Thermal Bypass Checklist inspection to be passed starting January 1, 2007.
3. The home builder's rater/inspector conducted a TBC inspection in June 2007 and found SEVEN Items "Needing Corrections." These items were unknown to home owner during construction. Homeowner finally got a copy from NSER on November 28, 2008. The home builder refused to provide the homeowner a copy.
4. Ownership by homeowner started September 18th, 2007.
5. Homeowner never received a Energy SKY certificate, until a demand letter was sent to the home builder in January 2008.
6. Homeowner received an Energy SKY certificate from the builder's inspector, and it gave the home a rating of 63 and estimated the utility bills annually at around $2,474 dollars.
7. In February 2008 after a large gas bill, the homeowner's NSER inspector conducted a blower door test and duct blast test. He also used a Thermal Image Camera that showed many problems. The pictures are on this website. It seems that none of the items marked as "needed correction" on the TBC had ever been completed by the home builder. The homeowner rater scored the home a rating of 78. The builder's rater/inspector score was 63. Big difference in energy efficiency! In fact this difference turned out to be $1,200 a year!!
8. In March 2008, at the homeowner's dining room table, the NSER inspector for the home builder passed the TBC to the construction supervisor. The supervisor said, "I never saw this." And then he passed the TBC back to the NSER inspector. Remember that the homeowner had in hand at this moment in time a copy of the Energy SKY certificate with a rating of 63. THE TBC HAD BEEN IGNORED, and the rating was suspiciously good.
9. In July 2008 NSER decided to investigate the homeowner's complaints. Finally November 28th, a copy of the independent investigation was made available to the homeowner including the TBC. The complaint was for NSER to explain why two of their members had drastically different results. Builder's Rater scored 63 or 37% more energy efficient. The homeowner's Rater/Inspector scored 78 or 22% more energy efficient. The home builder advertised 40% more energy efficient.
10. Finally in 2009 NSER sent another of their inspectors to check the home. He scored the home 76. He also said that the home was not compliant with Energy Sky requirements. The TBC was not completed, two windows were not Low-E glass, and numerous insulation problems were found in the attic and basement perimetry.
11. After the findings of a third-party, NSER placed the home builder's inspector on "Administrative Sanctions."
12. The EPA is still allowing the home builder to build Energy Sky homes. In other words, they are still "PARTNERS!!"
