i

Table of Contents
1.0 Abstract......................................................................................................................................1
2.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................1
3.0 Literature Review......................................................................................................................2
4.0 Data Collection..........................................................................................................................3
4.1 Water and Energy Usage Bills...............................................................................................3
4.2 House Dimensions.................................................................................................................4
4.3 Building Materials.................................................................................................................5
4.4 Lighting..................................................................................................................................7
4.5 Electrical Loads.....................................................................................................................8
4.6 Heating and Cooling Systems................................................................................................8
5.0 Measurements............................................................................................................................8
5.1 Blower Door Test Results......................................................................................................9
5.2 Thermal Camera Results......................................................................................................11
6.0 Analysis...................................................................................................................................13
7.0 Recommendations....................................................................................................................14
8.0 Conclusions..............................................................................................................................15
9.0 References................................................................................................................................17
Appendix..........................................................................................................................................I

List of Figures
Figure 1: Front View of 54 Fireside Dr...........................................................................................2
Figure 2: Log Plot of Blower Door Test........................................................................................10
Figure 3: Calculated Results from the Blower Door Test.............................................................10
Figure 4: IR Camera for Bedroom 3..............................................................................................11
Figure 5: Bedroom 3 IR Image South Floor Corner......................................................................12
Figure 6: Bedroom 3 IR Image SE Ceiling Corner.......................................................................12
Figure 7: Master Bedroom 3 IR Image NE Ceiling Corner...........................................................13
Figure 8: RetScreen Fuels and Schedules......................................................................................13
Figure 9: RetScreen Facility Characteristics.................................................................................14
Figure 10: RetScreen Summary.....................................................................................................14
Figure 11: 2019 Electrical Consumption (kwh) vs. Time (months).................................................I
Figure 12: 2019 Natural Gas Average Daily usage (m3) vs. Time (months)...................................I
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Figure 13: Wall System of House and Effective R-value...............................................................II

List of Tables
Table 1: 12 Month Water and Energy Usage - 2019.......................................................................3
Table 2: Height of the House...........................................................................................................4
Table 3: House Dimensions.............................................................................................................4
Table 4: Volume of the Heated Space.............................................................................................5
Table 5: Window Dimensions.........................................................................................................6
Table 6: Summary of Doors in House.............................................................................................6
Table 7: Height Above Grade..........................................................................................................7
Table 8: Summary of Lights............................................................................................................7
Table 9: Summary of Appliances in House.....................................................................................8
Table 10: Blower Door Measurements............................................................................................9
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1.0 Abstract
The purpose of the project is to determine the energy efficiency of a residential home and
find ways to minimize the energy usage of the building. The study will be done by completing
the following steps: data collection, measurements, analysis and recommendations. Data
collection and measurements will be performed by a site visit to survey the layout of the
building, insulation, construction, damages, and other factors that affect the energy usage in the
home. Devices like a blower door and infrared camera will be used. Analysis will be conducted
by using TECTITE program, FLIR tools, handwritten calculations and an extensive cost and
payback period analysis will also be conducted. RETScreen will help with modelling energy
usage of the building, evaluate the data found and the difference the potential changes can make.
Once the analysis and results are completed, recommendations will be made to the homeowner
to improve the energy efficiency of the building to save the homeowner money from the reduced
operating costs.

2.0 Introduction
An energy audit was conducted on February 11th, on a 3800 square foot private residence
located at 54 Fireside drive, Breslau, Ontario. The purpose of this audit is to determine the
energy efficiency of the residential home and to find ways to minimize its energy usage through
educated recommendations. This audit could lead to potential savings when the conservation
measures and plan of action are implemented. The comprehensive plan was developed with
regards to the details of the house and its current energy consumption. The detached home was
built in 2014 and consists of 2 floors and a finished basement with an attached garage. The
basement and main floor display an open concept while the 2nd floor consists of a small hallway
with 2 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms and a large closet as can be seen in Figure 2.1 below. The
building acts as a household facility to 6 residents. The upstairs is used mainly in the evening and
at night for sleeping with little energy consumption except for in the 2 existing bathrooms. The
main floor is used during all hours of the day for leisure activities which use electronic devices,
cooking using common household appliances and laundry using a washer and dryer frequently.
The basement contains energy consuming devices such as the water softener and the
instantaneous heater. The current energy consumption utility cost for the home per year is $3145
 2

which was determined by observation of utility bills. Using these home observations along with
the utility observations economic evaluations were completed.

Figure 1: Front View of 54 Fireside Dr.

3.0 Literature Review

Canadian household facilities are a part of the residential sector of national energy use
and Greenhouse gas emissions, which is the largest source of energy consumption in Canada [1].
Currently responsible for 23.8% of total consumption [1] and many Canadian household owners
are unaware of the significant changes that can be implemented to reduce overall energy
consumption and improve home efficiency while reducing ones’ carbon footprint. Household
facilities often contain design deficiencies which lead to the need for more energy, and thus more
money spent on sustaining a satisfying home environment. However, by implementing a
strategic plan of action, energy consumption and utilization can be managed while upholding a
 3

desirable home environment. By conducting an energy audit our team can make
recommendations to help make it possible to transform your home into a place that can prioritize
both energy conservation and overall comfort.

In order to transform your home a diagnostic process is completed using specialized

equipment such as a blower door and an IR camera. Using the observations from this equipment,
analysis using energy management and utilization principles can be conducted to identify causes
of excess energy consumption in order to develop viable solutions for prevention. Our approach
involves producing a systematic representation of your home with specialized software to help
identify corelated energy consuming parameters. The results from this residential audit are
summarized and explained in this report.

By implementing our educated recommendations your home can join the growing
movement towards a more sustainable lifestyle.

4.0 Data Collection

4.1 Water and Energy Usage Bills

The information collected from the energy bills was collected and tabulated in table 1.
Table 1: 12 Month Water and Energy Usage - 2019

Month Electricity Amount Water Amount Natural Gas

Usage Due ($) Usage (m3) Due ($) Gas Usage Charges
(kWh) (m3) Excl.
Taxes ($)
January 520 86.10 37 218.00 441.49 121.73
February 541 87.89 412.79 118.65
March 458 80.18 48 260.66 336.253 100.92
April 474 80.37 199.987 67.45
May 494 81.32 31 193.98 118.620 48.13
June 332 67.06 44.115 31.10
July 945 130.39 46 262.68 39.213 30.63
August 291 63.43 13.725 25.56
September 426 76.62 32 198.56 13.725 25.63
October 520 84.92 65.682 37.61
November 525 87.96 30 194.38 226.456 76.53
December 663 101.86 344.096 104.46
 4

TOTAL: 6189 1028.10 224 1328.26 2256.152 788.4

4.2 House Dimensions

The dimensions of the heated portion of the house is required for the analysis. The
estimated volume and height of the house will be calculated by measuring the thickness of the
floor between levels and the height of the ceiling at each level. Adding them dimensions together
will provide the height. It is critical to note that the attic space and the garage are volumes that
are not temperature controlled and will be subtracted from any volume or height calculation. The
height will begin with the foundation, which is estimated to be 10” thick. The measured floor
joists are 10” by 2”, which will be added for every floor. Refer to the Appendix for a visual of
the wall system. The attic space features the same joists with approximately 14” of blown in
fiberglass. The table below summarizes the information required for the calculation of the height
of the house.

Table 2: Height of the House

Section of House Height (inch)

Foundation 10
Basement 96
Floor 10
Main Level 108
Floor 10
Upper Level 96
Attic Floor 14
TOTAL 344
TOTAL (feet) 20.33

The volume of the house will be calculated by multiplying the measured outside length,
width and height of the house. The measurements of the garage will be used to subtract away
from the volume, as it is not a heated space. A diagram of the garage is shown in the appendix,
along with the rest of the floor plans. The attic is already omitted in this calculation, as it was
already not considered in the height of the house. The table below summarizes the dimensions of
the house.

Table 3: House Dimensions

Part of House Dimension Description Measurement (inch)

Total Outside Perimeter Length 600
 5

Width 444
Length of South Wall 444
Length of Back Wall 115
(Deepest Point in Garage)
Length of North Wall (In 212
Back Corner)
Garage Length of Wall with Entrance 101
to Inside
Length of North Wall (In 232
Front Corner)
Length of Garage Entrance 216
Height of Garage 131

Utilizing the measurements in the table above and the height calculation will be useful in
calculating the approximate volume of the house. The table below summarizes the final results.
Table 4: Volume of the Heated Space

Section of House Volume (inch3) Volume (feet3)

Total, excluding attic 91 641 600 53 033
Garage 9 758 452 5647
Total Heated Space 81 883 148 47 386

4.3 Building Materials

Since the house is newer, the building envelope for the house is modern. It is estimated
that the concrete foundation for the house is 10 inches, as it is the standard. The construction of
the walls has 0.5” sheet of drywall covering the inside, 5” thick fiberglass insulation spaced
between 2” by 6” studs, with a vapour barrier to reduce moisture. The outer part of the wall is
covered by a sheet of plywood and covered by the outside brick. The plywood on the outer
portion of the frame and the brick are assumed to have a 1” gap between them to prevent
moisture build up [2]. Figure 13 in the appendix shows the components of the wall. The attic is
insulated with 14” blown in fiber glass insultation. The insulation in the attic was observed to be
evenly distributed and constant to the 14” measured height.

The house is full of double pane windows that have aluminum spacers, air in the gap, and
low e coding on them. The windows vary by either being fixed, double or single door types.
Using Table 9-6 from the heat and mass textbook gives an overall U-factor of 3.37 W/m2C for
the double or single pane double door type window and 2.67 W/m2C for the fixed window [3].
The summary for the windows in the household are shown in the table below.
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Table 5: Window Dimensions

Floor Window Windo Length of Height of Number of Total Area

Location w Type Window Window Windows of the
(Inch) (Inch) with these Windows
Dimensions (Inch2)
Basement DP, SD 29 15 4 1740
Living Area
Basement
Basement DP, F 47 39 1 1833
Stairwell
Living DP, SD 71 35 3 7455
Room
Dining DP, SD 83 67 1 5561
Room
Beside DP, F 67 27 1 1809
Main
Front Door
Above DP, F 69 11 1 759
Front Door
Stairs to DP, F 47 47 1 2209
Upper floor
Master DP, SD 35 47 2 3290
Bedroom
Master DP, SD 47 39 1 1833
Bedroom
Bedroom 1 DP, SD 55 47 1 2585
Upstairs Washroom DP, SD 34 23 1 782
Bedroom 2 DP, SD 83 27 1 2241
Bedroom 3 DP, SD 55 54 1 2970
Bedroom 3 DP, SD 47 51 1 2397
Bedroom 3 DP, F Semi-Circle with radius 1 2463
of 28
TOTAL: 21 39 927
*DP = Double Pane, F = Fixed, SD = Single Door

The house has three doors to access the inside. The entrances to the house are the front
door, the door to the garage, and the backyard door. It is also important to note the attic hatch, as
it serves as an opening as well. The summary of the door sizing and the U value for each door is
shown in the table below.

Table 6: Summary of Doors in House

Door Door Widt Heigh Door Door R-value U-Value

Location Material h t (inch) Area Thickness (m2°C/W) (W/m2°C)
 7

(inch) (inch2) (inch)

Front Wood, 69 80 5520 1½, ¼ 0.33, 0.289 1.300
Door Zinc
Door to Wood 31 80 2418 2 0.44 1.695
Garage
Door to Double 32 80 2560 1½, ¼ 0.529 1.473
Backyard Pane 1 ¼”
air space
Attic Fiberboard, 18.5 27 499.5 ½, 4 0.12, 2.82 0.324
Hatch Expanded
Polystyren
e
*Thermal resistance of outside surface = 0.030 m2°C/W and inside surface = 0.12 m2°C/W

Lastly, the height above grade will was considered. This calculation was conducted by
taking the height above grade in each corner in the house and taking an average. The table below
summarizes the measurements and calculation.

Table 7: Height Above Grade

Corner of House Height above Grade (inch)

North-West Corner 13.5
South-West Corner 14.5
North-East Corner 11
South-East Corner 11
AVERAGE 12.5

4.4 Lighting
The number of lights in the household was recorded based on the floor. All lights in the
household are LED. The quantity of lights and their electrical properties are tabulated in table 8.

Table 8: Summary of Lights

Floor Number of Lights Wattage Per Bulb Total Wattage

(W) per Floor (W)
Basement 15 10 150
Main Floor 49 10 490
Second Floor 33 10 330
TOTAL 97 970
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4.5 Electrical Loads

Table 9: Summary of Appliances in House

Electrical Component Quantity Electrical Consumption

(kWh/day)
Air Conditioner Central 1 3.00
Ceiling Fan 5 2.00
Ceiling Fan Washroom 4 0.50
Clothes Washer 1 0.50
Clothes Dryer 1 1.50
Coffee maker 1 0.26
Floor Fan 2 0.10
Freezer 1 1.70
Game console 1 0.63
Instantaneous Heater 1 6.0
Laptop 4 1.50
LCD TV 40” 1 0.60
Microwave 1 0.60
Mobile Device 6 0.05
Refrigerator 1 4.50
Rogers cable and internet 1 1.00
Space Heater 1 0.75
Stove Oven (Time display) 1 0.05

4.6 Heating and Cooling Systems

The heating system of the house is a Lennox natural gas central heating system. The
furnace requires an input of 66, 000 BTUH of thermal power and outputs 62, 000 BTUH of
thermal power. The heating system in this home is undoubtedly the biggest consumer of natural
gas. This is obvious from Table 1, where the natural gas consumption in the winter months
(December – February) is significantly higher than in the summer months (May – September).

The cooling system of the house is a Goodman 2.5 Ton 14 SEER air conditioning system
with a 3 bladed fan and a cooling capacity of 28, 000 BTUH. It has a SEER rating (akin to COP
rating) of 14.0 and is used occasionally in the household; this is usually in the summer months
when the temperature is above 30°C according to the homeowner.

5.0 Measurements
 9

5.1 Blower Door Test Results

The blower door test was conducted using the A and the B ring with a pre-test pressure of
0.6Pa. The outside temperature at the time of the test was 2.5C and the indoor temperature was
approximated to be 70F. The resulting measurements from the text are shown in the table
below.

Table 10: Blower Door Measurements

Building Pressure (Pa) Flow Ring Air Flow (CFM)

61.5 1442
58.3 1398
55.5 1359
49.1 A 1266
45.4 1213
40.2 1068
35.9 971
35.1 1005
31.1 917
B
25.2 763
20.3 648

The measurements from the blower door tests as well as the volume of the heated space
found in section 4.2, and the approximated squared footage of the house (3800 square feet) was
inputted into TECTITE. The figures below show the results.
 10

Figure 2: Log Plot of Blower Door Test

Figure 3: Calculated Results from the Blower Door Test

 11

The test is valid, as the correlation coefficient is greater than 0.990 and the exponent
value is between 0.5 and 0.9. The test calculates and equivalent leakage area of 125.4in2 with an
exponent value of 0.7, suggesting there is multiple small leakage points. The calculated air
changes per hour was 1.67 which is considered a tight house. This means not a lot of energy is
lost through these leakage points making the house energy efficient. Since the air changes per
hour is below 3, mechanical ventilation is required to provide the house with adequate air for the
occupants inside.

5.2 Thermal Camera Results

IR images were captured and collected in areas of the house where there are potential
drafts, insulation deficiencies, and/or water damage. The IR images collected in the house show
a significant amount of heat loss in Bedroom 3 and the master Bedroom especially in the corners
of walls and ceilings. Most of the images had a maximum heat difference of 5°C between the
warm and cold areas! This is likely due to insulation deficiency since the homeowner affirms
that bedroom 3 and the master bedroom are very hot in the summer, and cold in the winter
relative to the rest of the house.

Figure 4: IR Camera for Bedroom 3

 12

Figure 5: Bedroom 3 IR Image South Floor Corner

Figure 6: Bedroom 3 IR Image SE Ceiling Corner

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Figure 7: Master Bedroom 3 IR Image NE Ceiling Corner

6.0 Analysis
A RetScreen analysis of the house was created to model the walls, floors, windows, and
energy systems. The temperature of the living space (disregarding attic and garage) was kept at a
constant temperature of 18℃ when unoccupied and 24℃ when occupied.

Figure 8: RetScreen Fuels and Schedules

 14

The data for heating system, cooling system, and building envelope were were inputted
into RetScreen to model the house.

Figure 9: RetScreen Facility Characteristics

The RetScreen results demonstrate a total annual bill of $3, 681 on energy bills.
Compared to the actual total annual energy bill (natural gas and electrical consumption) of
$3, 248, the RetScreen model has a 12% relative error. However, if electrical consumption and
natural gas usage are analyzed individually, a 2.83% relative error is found for Electricity bills
and 16.48% relative error for natural gas bills. The large error in natural gas usage is likely due
to the approximations made for R-values of roof, walls, windows, and floors which heavily
impact the heating consumption of the home. Future iterations of this energy audit should
address using more accurate R-values for the building envelope of the home.

Figure 10: RetScreen Summary

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7.0 Recommendations
The energy consumption of the house was efficient like all newer houses, this was
predicted before the audit began. Since this is a newer home there are not many
recommendations to point out because the house is already efficiently insulated throughout, had
all double pane windows with metal spacers, had high efficiency heaters and coolers, and had
energy efficient lights. However, there is always room to improve the efficiency of the home.
For starters, non-essential electrical loads like the gaming console, coffee maker, laptop, and
mobile devices can be unplugged when no longer in use, this would save 7.19 kWh/day. Another
recommendation is to properly insulate the walls and ceilings where it was seen to cause
unwanted air leaks and airflow into the house. The bedrooms had multiple spots around the
ceilings that showed there was missing insulation, this was seen using an IR camera and later
confirmed with the blower door test. This could be from either the attic or through the wall from
the outside cold air. These spots should be filled with insulation to prevent airflow in and out of
the house, because during the winter months more energy is required to heat the home due to a
cold draft entering the rooms. So therefore, with providing those affected areas with more
insulation to better ceil the home it would save the homeowner money when trying to heat the
house on the colder days. Also, changing the garage and front doors from wood to a fiberglass
material can also increase the energy efficiency. Wooden doors are some of the least efficient
doors on the market, they absorb heat and can even cause heat flow. Fiberglass doors are the
complete opposite they are a poor conductor of heat resulting in an R-value that is approximately
4 times greater than wood. Fiberglass doors are also highly weather resistant resulting in the rate
of heat loss to be meniscal. Lastly, another recommendation is to use sunlight to light the home
as much as possible. This will cut down the cost of lighting the home and power used as much as
possible. These are ways that the energy efficiency of the home can be improved.

8.0 Conclusions

Upon completion of the energy audit it was discovered that the building was efficient in
energy usage. This was because many energy saving practices like double pane windows, LED
lights and top of the line HVAC systems were already incorporated into the house. The blower
door test showed that a leakage area of 125.4in2 was present into the home, suggesting multiple
small leakages throughout the home. With the help of the IR camera these leakage points where
 16

found to be present in the bedrooms especially the master bedroom. Recommendations to

improve the energy usage within the building were to start by unplugging all nonessential
electrical loads, better insulating the bedroom walls and ceilings, changing all exterior doors
from wood to fiberglass material and finally using natural sunlight to light the homes as much as
possible. With the help of these recommendations and incorporating them within the home will
result in the energy efficiency of the building to increase hence the energy bill to decrease.
 17

9.0 References

[1] “Canadian System of Environmental–Economic Accounts: Energy use and greenhouse gas
emissions” Statistics Canada, [Online] Available: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-
quotidien/190910/dq190910b-eng.htm [Accessed: 24-March-2020].
[2] “About Brick Wall Construction,” Rid-O-Mice, [Online} Available:
https://ridofmice.net/importance-weep-holes/ [Accessed: 22-March-2020]

[3] Y Cengel, A Ghajar, Heat and Mass Transfer Fundamentals and Applications, New York,
NY: McGraw Hill Education
 I

Appendix

Figure 11: 2019 Electrical Consumption (kwh) vs. Time (months)

Figure 12: 2019 Natural Gas Average Daily usage (m3) vs. Time (months)
 II

Figure 13: Wall System of House and Effective R-value