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Contractor's Corner
 
Contact Us:
Connie Wilbert
Wyoming Home
Performance Program Manager
(307)742-9924
cwilbert@wyoec.org
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Frequently
Asked Questions
What should I expect from a Wyoming Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
contractor?
A contractor who is providing Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
services will begin with an inspection of your existing home. This
inspection is called a
Home Performance Assessment (also known as a "home energy audit"). Prior to the
assessment,
the contractor will request your permission to gather energy usage
data from your utility companies for the past one to three years.
Energy usage data provides important clues to how your home is
performing and allows accurate analysis for savings.
The energy audit allows your contractor to collect technical information
such as orientation, shading area, existing HVAC components and
performance data, insulation levels, etc. During the inspection,
your Home Performance contractor will:
- interview you and your family about how you live in your home and in
particular problems or concerns you have with your home;
- perform a visual inspection of your entire home, including all
mechanical systems (the assessment team will need access to all rooms, your
attic, crawlspace, and maybe even closets and garage to do an accurate
evaluation);
- conduct a blower door test (to test how much air is leaking in or
out of the house);
- a duct test (to test how much air is NOT getting from your
furnace or air conditioner to the rooms where you want it);
- thermal imaging (using an infrared camera) to see what is happening with
temperatures during different parts of the other diagnostics (optional).
Results of
the on-site tests and inspections, along with your energy usage
data, are used to locate problem areas in your home and make cost-effective
home improvement recommendations for resolving comfort issues and improving energy
efficiency, while reducing your annual energy costs. Your Home
Performance contractor may request your permission to continue gathering energy usage data
for one to five years following the retrofit of your home in order
to measure the effectiveness of the home improvements over time.
Following the retrofit, your
contractor may request permission to write
about your home in a case study to help the EPA and DOE evaluate
the effectiveness of the programs and to illustrate special solutions
to energy problems for other home improvement contractors.
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performance contractor today
Will my home receive an ENERGY STAR
label?
No. Existing homes can be vastly improved in terms of comfort,
durability, and energy efficiency, but rarely will it be cost-effective
to bring them to the level of energy efficiency where they can qualify
for the ENERGY STAR label. However, depending on the services you
select, you can expect the energy efficiency of your home to improve
40% to 80% over what it was prior to the retrofit.
Home Performance improvements
also typically result in improved home health and comfort. Third-party Quality
Assurance testing is done on 15% of homes where work has been performed
by home improvement contractors participating in Home Performance with ENERGY STAR.
This Quality Assurance testing must be done to ensure that contractors
provide customers with quality work that will give them added confidence
that their home will perform more efficiently.
Do energy-efficient homes look different?
No. Home improvement contractors providing Home Performance with ENERGY STAR services
rarely alter the architectural design or appearance of the home.
Is it worth the expense to hire a
contractor who shows the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR label
instead of another contractor?
Contractors who present a Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
logo in Wyoming are specially trained and qualified to perform
home energy
audits. They have agreed to third-party Quality Assurance testing
that ensures the home improvements made by these contractors are of the highest
quality available. They must verify that any work performed by subcontractors
is also of the highest caliber. A home that has received Home Performance
with ENERGY STAR improvements actually costs less to own and live in
because customers will spend less on their home's utility bill each
month. These energy savings will generally more than offset any
increase in mortgage payments needed for the improved energy features
and can result in a positive monthly cash flow.
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performance contractor today
Are home improvement loans, financing,
or energy efficiency tax credits available through Home Performance
with ENERGY STAR?
Because energy efficiency improvements can be documented by third-party
home energy raters, HUD, WCDA, and other knowledgeable Wyoming
lenders provide Energy Efficiency Mortgages that will allow you
to finance your home improvements. WCDA also offers the Wyoming
Energy Savers loan as a way to finance certain retrofit features
including insulation and furnaces. Additionally, homeowners may
receive tax
credits for installing certain energy-efficient measures.
Who is allowed to provide Home Performance
with ENERGY STAR services?
Only home improvement contractors who have entered into an agreement with
Wyoming
Energy Council, Inc., the Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
sponsor are allowed to display the
Home Performance with ENERGY STAR logo. These contractors
have gone through in-depth classroom and hands-on field training,
have been mentored, and agree to allow on-going third-party Quality
Assurance inspections of their projects to maintain a high level of quality and
provide consumers with confidence in the home improvements they receive.
Find a home
performance contractor today
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