Our Infrared Audit: Photos of a Leaky House

"Our house is a very fine house... with cool spots in the eaves..." The thermostat on the right side of this infrared image demonstrates the range of temperatures inside and out. Bottom line - our insulation's insufficient and we are not keeping our heated air inside.  The hot roof near the valley in the center of the photo marks that spot where the ice freezes to make a dam in the winter.

We expected cool spots - along windows and doors, for example. This was a surprise: a really cold spot in the corner of the guest room. If not for the infrared audit, we'd never have known. Now I've caulked that cold corner up with a clear sealant, also invisible to the eye.  All better. (Really!)

More surprises in the living room... cold spots along the beam joist, through a combination of thermal bridging (the result of post and beam architecture) and leaking air.

The view from here: I am standing inside our (warm) living room, with infrared auditor Flemming Lund. The glass over the painting captures our reflection, and the windows get called out by the cold.

We aren't alone. Basement woes, like these air leaks around the rim joist, and uninsulated concrete sucking heat out, are pretty common.

This is the ceiling in our bedroom. You can see streaking air as a result of and old school cold roof structure that completely compromises the insulation cavity.

Our front door, with leaky panels and compromised weather-stripping, isn't doing much to keep the cold out.

Hot dog. Couldn't resist. We had a very cool piece of technology in the house, after all.  (No promises your infrared auditor will think this is entertaining, however). I'm curious though... why the hot legs?

In all seriousness, the audit made me see our house in an entirely new light. It helped me get my Rosie Riveter on, and we've already started to make serious (and dirt cheap) changes to stop wasting conditioned air.