Answer:

Every home will have a different strategy, because every home is slightly different. It will depend upon the age and condition of the home, location and orientation, existing electrical and mechanical systems, appliances, habits of the occupants and budget. It can also depend upon things external to the house such as neighborhood regulations, the availability and cost of qualified subcontractors, incentives that you may qualify for and local codes.

That’s why we’re not giving you a ‘checklist’ of items to cross off at the outset … It’s no use to advise you to change your windows if they are not at the root of performance problems. (They almost never are!) In fact, without a full building audit at the beginning and testing at end of the process you could create more problems than you solve. By creating your own strategy based upon your home’s unique needs and you can get the most benefit per dollar spent. Every home will have similar steps to create their strategy:

• Begin with a ‘Home Performance Analysis’ by a certified energy rater that includes recommendations to improve the energy efficiency and comfort of your home. Often, you can make dramatic improvements for less than you think!
• Map your own path: state clear, measurable goals. Rank beginning with the most achievable goals in accordance with your budget.
• Engage qualified experts to advise you and carry out the work. You can make upgrades incrementally, but NOT randomly.
• Measure post-improvement performance to track your progress.
• Finally, engage a third party, certified energy rater to verify your home’s performance to take advantage of Federal, State and regional incentives … and to position the market value of your home to the best advantage.