BELLEVUE, WA -- 07/28/09

On July 23, 2009 the Zero Energy Idea House built by Shirey Contracting in Bellevue, Wash. underwent pressurized blower door test conditions and subsequent thermal imager inspection on its building envelope and found that it is more than three times as efficient as the standard for Energy Star homes. The tests were performed by energy audit professionals from Fluke Corporation in cooperation with the Washington State University (WSU) Extension Energy Program.

"We are encouraged with the thermal imaging test results and think we may have built the most energy efficient home in the Pacific Northwest," said Donna Shirey, owner of Shirey Contracting. "Reducing airflow in a house is one of the best ways to conserve energy, and here we have built a home that exchanges air only twice every hour. Compare this to the average new construction home which exchanges air about 10 times an hour; an old home which has about 20 air exchanges per hour; even an Energy Star qualified home needs to be just under 7.0. At 2.0 we think we are looking really good."

"We are excited about the findings, some expected and some not," said Mike Lubliner, Building Science Specialist, WSU Extension Energy Program. "All of the unexpected areas of potential energy loss were found using thermal imagers and we believe with minor modifications, even greater energy savings will be recouped because of this technology."

While the Zero Energy Idea House performed at an extremely high level of energy efficiency, there were a few areas where improvements could be made. Preliminary results:
-- Indicated that some minor unwanted air infiltration was occurring around various windows and doors. These areas should be easily fixed with expanding foam insulation, or other sealants. -- Discovered unexpected air bypasses requiring further investigation and diagnosis, including: 1) West-facing loft wall near an electrical lighting box. 2) Southwest corner of the house where a support beam meets the back wall. 3) Downstairs in the southwest room (in the space between the ceiling and the floorboards above). 4) North wall of the north bedroom where a support beam had been enclosed near the ceiling.

"Finding air leaks in a home this efficient is not simple," said Michael Stuart, Sr. Product Marketing Manager at Fluke and certified Level II Thermographer and infrared energy auditor. "But the sensitivity to temperature variation provided by thermal imaging technology makes little things much more apparent. Without an imager, it would be much more difficult to find all the leaks and nearly impossible to accurately document them."

An additional negative pressure test, a positive pressure test and a follow-up infrared inspection will be planned in the early Fall, once the minor corrective repairs and adjustments (found in this inspection) are made.

After repairs, Shirey Contracting is shooting for a new milestone -- an air exchange rate of 1.5 or better.

"This would be a great result," said Lubliner. "Build tight, ventilate right will help us all down the road to increased energy efficiency."

How the test was administered
Approximately twenty-four hours prior to the inspection, all known penetrations in the building envelope were closed (including windows, doors and vents). Shirey Contracting then placed radiant space heaters inside the closed-up house in order to heat and stabilize the temperature at a high level inside the house, so there would be a sufficient temperature differential between inside and outside by the time of the inspection. (At the time of the inspection, the outside air temperature was 60 degrees F. The interior air temperature was approximately 88 degrees F. Most accepted standards require temperature differences of at least 18 degrees F for best results.)

A blower door was installed on the front entry door, and the house was depressurized, blowing the interior air out through the front doorway. As a result, cool air from outside the house entered the building envelope through other areas, trying to fill the vacuum created by the process. When this happened, the Fluke thermal imagers were able to detect where the air was entering unexpectedly. A complete inspection of all windows, doors, and other areas penetrating the building envelope was conducted. Infrared and visible images were captured and saved for the creation of an official report of findings to the contractor, Shirey Contracting.

About Fluke Corporation
Fluke Corporation is the leader in compact, professional electronic test tools. Fluke customers are technicians, engineers, electricians, metrologists, energy auditors, weatherization experts, and building maintenance professionals who install, troubleshoot, and manage industrial electrical and electronic equipment and calibration processes for quality control as well as conduct building maintenance and diagnostics services. Fluke is a registered trademark of Fluke Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
About Shirey Contracting
Shirey Contracting specializes in custom residential homes, commercial facilities and remodels, and is a national leader in building with structural insulated panels (SIPs). The award winning company provides innovative design-build solutions for projects of all sizes, focusing on superior workmanship and sustainable building practices. Active within its industry and community, Shirey Contracting has been consistently recognized by its peers for remodeling excellence and their "build smart" philosophy.

About The WSU Extension Energy Program
The WSU Extension Energy Program is a self-supported department within WSU. It receives project funding from federal government agencies, federal power marketing agencies, public and private utilities, the private sector and several other sources. It houses approximately 90 employees in Olympia, Spokane and other satellite offices, and its customers include industrial plant managers, private consultants, commercial businesses, government agencies, national laboratories and utilities.
WSU Extension Energy Program
Sheila Riggs
360.956.2074

Shirey Contracting
Donna Shirey
425.427.1300
Email Contact

Fluke Corporation
Larry Wilson
425.446.5671