EcoEnergy audit - is it worth it?

PHEW MAN, I'm tired!
It's been a hectic two weeks, since we came back from NJ.
I was planning to do a post about this, and then our Slovenian friend in Maribor who stood us up in Murska Sobota sent me an email asking what's going on - no posts.
So here's what's been going on.

Monday (2 weeks ago)
HVAC vendor #1 quote for high eff furnace and AC. Our furnace was 29 years old. And although working fine. We were playing russian roulette with this thing. It's sure to stop working on the coldest day of winter.





Tuesday
EcoEnergy audit being done. Tresa's godmother was planning to get her furnace done since it was 26 years old. I found out through her (from what the furnace installers were telling her) that mid-efficiency furnaces were no longer going to be sold in Canada as of Dec 31, 2009. Knowing that when we will need to replace our furnace we may have no choice but to install a high eff furnace (92% AFUE) and since we wouldn't have a choice, would there be a rebate? Why would there be if you have no choice?
Right now you get between $1500 - $2000 dollars in rebates (some installers are able to provide additional rebates your eco energy auditor will tell you that) if you upgrade your furnace to a high efficiency and AC unit to a 14 SEER AC unit. Basically the rebates bring the price of a high eff down below a mid eff unit.

Also since we were already doing our windows. That's $60 dollars ($30 from FED + $30 from ONT gov't, which basically matches per dollar what the FEDs give) back for every window and/or door your replace.

Originally I wasn't going to do an audit, because 1) I figured we'd get a mid-eff system, cause that's all we needed. And 2) I figured they'd tell me stuff I already knew.
After getting some prices for both mid and high eff furnaces, and since mid-eff systems were going to be banned by Dec 31, 2009 (you can check the NRCan site yourself - got confirmation about this from the gov't) we did it.
And when they came and did their blower test (creating negative pressure in the house) he showed the windows were leaky which we knew, but he also showed me leaks in the middle of the house! I couldn't believe it. Walls in the middle of the house connect to the attic. If the tops of the walls aren't properly sealed up there - you get air leaks.


Wednesday
- HVAC vendor #2 quote, which was higher than the first.
- new windows being installed starts finally!
- called the first furnace vendor (Converible Air) to move forward with the install for Monday. The new AC unit is almost 2x as tall as the original green rat trap. Slightly smaller footprint, but taller. So we opted for a nicer AC model to offset the sheer size of the unit.






Thursday
window installation continued, will need a third day

Friday - nothing (rained out)
Saturday
Went to Home Depot to get 10 bags of insulation to put in the attic and finished putting the insulation in the attic Sat evening. Getting my attic R-value up from where it is currently to R-50 gets me $600.00 in rebates from the government.


Sunday - Anne's baby shower, went to Lowe's to pick up some supplies and did a little sanding and prepping of the windows


Monday AGAIN.
Furnace & AC installers show up early to start on the furnace. Within a few hours they have the old one out and the new one in.
And they tell me that we have a rat problem. They show me two dead rodents in our AC. Electrocuted. Attracted by the warmth of the wires. All it took was a nose on one wire and tail on another. Zappo! Then his buddy was wondering where he went off to and followed suit. ZAPPO! Kentucky Fried Rat.

I notice that only 1 pipe outside is installed - that's the exhaust (top pipe). They told me I didn't need the intake pipe. Since the room is open - the furnace would take air from the surrounding room. This ends up creating negative pressure in the house. So cold air comes in where there a leaks. But if your house is tightened up. You could starve your furnace. It's better to have that second pipe. Otherwise what's the point in buying a high eff furnace.

They drilled the second hole and installed the intake.

Window installers finish up. I help them put in the two front windows. We carry the 8ft x 4-1/2 ft window up to the 2nd floor inside the house. I was skeptical about getting it through the house, but we did it. Nothing damaged too. I was very impressed by these guys.

Furnace vendor #3 calledand left a message to say he couldn't make it. WHOOPS!
Which was a good thing because these guys were almost done and I forgot to cancel this appt.

Tuesday
Furnace & AC installer finish. Everything looks good. Everything works. I checked the airflow to the 2nd floor and it's so much better than before! We'll be actually warm this winter in our house and cooler in the summer. WOO HOO!
My pocket book is also feeling a little warm from all the bills. BOO HOO!

Then after everyone was done and I figured I could relax a bit, then a city works worker comes by handing out a notice that the city is shutting off the water main for the street (no water for estimated 7 hrs) in order to replace a pipe where the fire hydrant is at house #2 on our street.

So I rush out to buy a replacement shutoff valve to replace the main shutoff that doesn't shut off in our house. And I borrow a torch and do a practice run with the neighbour. Saves me the $ that the city bills you for calling out a city worker to shut off the valve to your house.


Wednesday
I keep checking for the city guys to come and shut off the water. The city doesn't arrive to do the work, instead they will show up Thursday. They said they had an emergency somewhere else. Probably at some bar or donut shop.

I do some sanding and scraping of the sills.

Thursday comes around and I see the truck and the lights at the top of the street. They showed.
I have all my stuff ready and I called our good friend Billy to let him know that I've got 2 hrs to get the valve put in and I've started bleeding all the water from the house.. 15 mins later he shows up at our door. 5 mins later he brings in his torch. 20 mins later, he's done replacing the old valve with the new one I just bought. He's a pro man. And he's so neat and solders were perfect! I wanted to do it myself, but that's a critical piece in our plumbing. If I screwed it up. There'd be a huge mess in our basement.

30 mins later I had to jump to my meeting.
Thanks Billy. We owe you.

Just last Friday
Windows look great from the curb (the awing will get replaced in a year or so). They're aluminum clad wood frame windows that we got from Lowe's. They come primed on the inside so you can paint them whatever you want. The window installers were saying that if they had a choice they would put wood windows on their house. They had installed vinyl (or how Antonio says it - 'vee-nil' - ask him what he said to the DJ at the Guverment one time - are you spinning 'vee-nil') but they said that it's a bit flimsy, wood at least has structure.

The double-sided tape from the past 3 years of putting up plastic has damaged our sills. So I have to get the wood filler out and start prepping and priming the sills. And I have plastic sheets hanging from the ceilings to keep the dust down.

I also went to get paint supplies and brushes and start the prep work for a weekend of painting and inhaling fumes.

Saturday (2 days ago)
Tresa gets ready and loads the car to do a garage sale at our old Daycare ladies house. While I watch Kieran and feed him breakfast and bring him over later. My sister comes to the garage sale to pick up Kieran to sleep over so he's not brain damaged from the fumes. I continue to tape the windows and begin painting.

I put together the attic access door.
This is it. It's two 6 inch pieces of styrofoam. Glued together, to a 3/4 inch plywood and another thin piece of wood that was the original access door.


In this pic you can see that thin piece of wood.
This was part of the recommendations on what I could do to tighten the house.
Because there was cold air on the other side and warm air on the inside, condensation was forming in the winter and creating mold. I painted the door with Zinser mold paint and then oil based paint.
Also the attic hatch frame was really poorly constructed, it had gaps everywhere. I had to caulk it and seal it from the inside of the attic and I'll do it from the inside of the closet too. Just to be sure. It's no wonder dust was coming through and dirtying Tresa's clothes.

We have dinner (Queen Thai) and take home some coffee and timbits for a few more hours of painting before going to bed at 3am.

Sunday - finished painting the last 4 windows. Thank GOD!
Monday (today) - touch up and remove the tape.

Tresa says it's like we're moving into a new house. The windows are really nice. You can feel the air flowing through the house when they're open and it's tight when they're closed.
After years of toughing it out through the winters. We've got a new furnace which should save us some money (rising fuel costs) and there was another 100.00 rebate from the gas company if you install a new furnace. Plus 15.00 for a new programable thermostat.

I am DONNO!

Well I thought I was done.
Then Tresa thought of some other things to do while the house was upside down.
Oh well. The windows are in. I waited 2 years for windows. We did lots of homework, but it was worth it. Furnace and AC are done. Attic is done. There's a whole list of stuff that can get you back quite a bit of money. The attic insulation only cost me 300.00. I get back 600.00. It was worth the 2 days of having itchy arms.

Go to the NRCan site to find out more. But you need to get an audit done. After our experience, I would recommend it if you are planning to do renos.