What is the difference between a home inspection and a home energy assessment?
Traditional home inspections do not inspect, model, or report on the energy efficiency of a home. A home assessment looks at the whole house with a scientific approach to determine how all of the systems work together in contributing to the home’s energy performance. A trained professional uses infrared thermography, blower door testing, energy modeling software and other diagnostic tools to focus on improving the health and performance of a home.
Why can’t I just add more insulation or replace my furnace?
Quite simply new insulation or a new furnace may not fix your problem. Without a home assessment to pinpoint issues, one solution may not reduce utility bills at all. If hot or cold air is escaping through a crawl space or attic for example, then more insulation and a new HVAC system would not help an uncomfortable or drafty home with high energy consumption. A trained professional should identify the home’s issues and outline how to fix each issue and the impact to the home’s energy performance. Our assessment reports outline the cost of each solution and the expected energy savings of implementing that solution, so the homeowner can pick and choose what measures to implement immediately and what can be postponed.
Why choose VIS VIVA?
Our team has the industry training, certification, and expertise to provide the best possible service to Atlanta homes. We know the climate and what products work best here to provide you with the best performing home possible. Our services increase your home’s value and provide you with a guaranteed healthier and more comfortable home.
We work with you to finance payments whenever possible (100% no interest financing for qualified Customers) and submit all necessary rebate and incentive paperwork on your behalf to receive rebates of up to $6,000 for home improvements. There’s simply no better solution in Atlanta for improving your home’s performance – no one more experienced, no one more knowledgeable, and no more straightforward solution than our one-stop-shop.
We also provide jobs in the local community and work whenever we can with local products and vendors. Our company benefits our Customers as well as the community and environment as a whole, so you can feel good about working withVIS VIVA.
What is the difference between the numerous types of insulation?
Spray foam insulation adheres to nearly any surface and can be used in vertical application. It is extremely fire retardant and can be used when multiple knee walls or vertical walls exist in an attic or crawl space.
Spray Foam
Spray Foam offers the best of the three major areas of concern- performance, durability and environmental protection.
1. Spray Foam sticks to everything and has tremendous expansion capabilities so as it is sprayed in it will expand to provide unequaled coverage.
2. Spray Foam does not deteriorate over time, so it offers you tremendous life-cycle value.
3. And, most importantly, Spray Foam offers the highest thermal and air infiltration values of any option on the market.
Where possible, Spray Foam is a VIS VIVA top recommendation.
Cellulose
Cellulose Insulation is an easy addition to an existing space. Cellulose insulation is a non-toxic natural product made from at least 80% recovered, post-consumer paper fiber, reducing landfill waste.
Cellulose Insulation is sprayed or blown into place. This process alone helps it achieve a greater coverage area. While Cellulose does not offer the highest R-Values of the insulation types it does offer one of the most consistent transitions through the application range.
Cellulose has excellent fire retardant properties that can increase a wall’s fire resistance by 30% or more. Cellulose also offers excellent noise cancellation properties.
Fiberglass
Fiberglass insulation is the most affordable and widely used material on the market. Fiberglass offers ease of installation and a high thermal barrier quality.
Fiberglass can be laid in or sprayed in. It has a high density property which is why it performs well as a thermal barrier.
Fiberglass Insulation is also a key contributor to the space’s overall indoor air quality acting as a filter for the air circulating through the space.
What is a HERS rating?
For new homes: A HERS rating allows us to take the home plans and predict how well the home will perform vs standard new construction. Once we establish the baseline, we can run unlimited combination’s of mechanical equipment, windows, doors, insulation and upgrades to determine the lowest cost, highest return option.
For existing homes: A HERS Rating is a great tool to identify what areas of the home need the most attention during the home improvement process. A rating also tells a prospective home buyer how much less a home will cost to operate over time.
For reference, a standard new construction American home rates a 100 on the HERS Index. ENERGY STAR is an 85 and EarthCraft Homes are typically around 70. Older homes tend to rate much higher (130 on average) and zero energy homes are entirely self sufficient.
VIS VIVA offers certified Home Energy Ratings (HERS) under the RESNET Certification Guidelines.
VIS VIVA offers a wide variety of HERS related products and services, each suited to a customer’s specific need.
What health issues should I be concerned with in my home?
VIS VIVA includes many tests as part of our consultative home assessment process. We test for Radon, Carbon Monoxide and Natural Gas. These tests are extremely important.
Carbon Monoxide (CO): is an odorless, colorless, tasteless gas that can cause illness or even sudden death. CO is a by-product of incomplete combustion and is produced by things like cars, stoves, furnaces and water heaters. We will check your home and appliances CO levels and determine whether or not you and your family are safe.
Radon: is an odorless, tasteless and colorless radioactive gas. Radon is the second leading cause of Lung Cancer in the US. Second only to smoking. Radon kills more than 21,000 people per year. It is estimated that 1 in 15 homes in Georgia are above the EPA recommended levels for an occupied space. We will provide you with test samples to ensure your home is safe.
Natural Gas: if your home has appliances fueled by Natural Gas, you are at risk. Typically, you will be able to smell if you have a gas leak in your home. If you smell gas, get out of the house and call the gas company immediately. Natural Gas can lead to a fire, or even an explosion in your home. We will test your lines for any leaks due to corrosion or wear to make sure you have a safe home.
If we find that any part of your home is unhealthy for these reasons above, we will provide you with the proper information and solution to resolve the issue.
Can you complete your work quickly?
We make it our goal to be in an out of a house as efficiently as possible while providing the best quality work we can. Our experienced team can often complete all improvement work within one day once the initial assessment is complete.
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