After the Home Energy Audit: Skilled Contractors and Taking Action.

I learned a new term at the Energy Retrofits conference in Toronto today: “Resignaction,” The term describes a homeowner after a home energy audit who is presented with such a wealth of options that he is overwhelmed and ends up doing nothing at all. The speaker was John Jeza.  His point hit a nerve. We have talked about the beauty of home energy audits with some regularity here at EnergyCircle, and we’ve been explicit about the need to ensure that you receive a report that is both detailed, and where possible, prioritized.  And let’s say, hypothetically, you get just that.  Are you ready to take action? Is the list enough?

Chances are, the answer is “no.” Which leads to the question, what stands in your way? 

One of the biggest hurdles raised during a thought-provoking session led by Gail Lawlor was that homeowners lack sufficient confidence in renovation contractors. This uncertainty leads to several detrimental impacts. The first is that we might not do the work at all, because we don't know who to get to do it.  (Consult our article on deciding between a contractor and purist for more information about this); the second is that we might hire a contractor with expertise that makes us feel comfortable going after the "low hanging fruit" but not going for deep energy retrofits. In other words, we lose an opportunity to undertake significant retrofits, to save more energy and make our homes more comfortable and more valuable.  From an environmental perspective, we lose the opportunity to drastically reduce our carbon emissions, in favor of incremental reductions. Skilled contractors are the key to homeowners taking that step.

In order for that to happen, contractors need training, and homeowners need a tool to find qualified home performance contractors. As to the first part, opportunities abound for contractors to become trained and certified to provide home energy retrofits. Organizations like the Building Performance Institute (BPI) present training opportunities throughout North America. Once certified, contractors face the task of making their expertise known. As one panelist pointed out, "You are running a business." By which he meant, create a brand. Let people know what you do. Market yourself.

Ultimately, this will benefit homeowners as well. As we become aware not only of what we need to do, but also who is available to help us, we may be able to move from "resignaction" to "eneraction."