Energy audits & surveys using an infrared camera will provide you with a comprehensive view of the condition of your home or building in terms of energy loss and the expense associated with a leaky building envelope.

Walter H. Liff Building Analyst Professional ID # CAN 11066

My Infrared camera can show you what the naked eye cannot see. The thermographic images will provide you with a "map," showing exactly where there are places in your building that are causing you to lose hard earned heating and cooling dollars to the outside. Here’s an example:

The digital photo on the left shows, older down lights in a bathroom, which look fine. The thermal image on the right shows cold air flowing down from the attic into the room. A simple replacement with an IC (insulated ceiling) light which allows insulation to be packed around it, will immediately stop this air intrusion and heat loss.

If you are staying put in your current home or building and simply want to stop paying for escalating heating and cooling costs that are being wasted because of cracks, crevices or missing insulation, my infrared inspection will show you exactly how to reduce these costs year after year.

If you are planning to purchase a home or building, a proper infrared scan will pinpoint areas of concern. You will know in advance exactly what is behind all those walls and ceilings. My report can be used as a bargaining tool to reduce the selling price, or act as a map to show you where you will need to spend some efficiency dollars after owning the building.

My inspection consists of scanning the interior of your building in a non-invasive way. There is no harm done to any part of the building. The scanning can be done with or without employing a blower door. Whenever an area of concern shows up on the infrared camera, I will take a digital image and an infrared image of that area. You can view the thermal image on the camera’s screen immediately to see the problem area!

The digital images and the same thermal images I have shown you on the camera’s screen will appear side-by-side on a page and will have a description of the image as well as comments as to how the area may be remedied.

The report will allow you to take the needed corrective steps without the "hit or miss" approach, which would waste time and cause unnecessary expense. For items you cannot fix yourself, you can show the report to the professional you hire, so there is no misunderstanding as to exactly where corrective action should be taken.

Camera:

I use the leading brand of thermal camera, produced by FLIR Systems – the world’s foremost manufacture of infrared equipment. While there are other cameras on the market, I have made it a point to use only the finest equipment available in both my conventional inspections and the infrared inspections.

Just as there are various qualities in equipment, there are varying degrees of knowledge where infrared inspections are concerned:

• There are some inspectors who just purchase a camera, fiddle around with it, and call themselves thermographers.

• There is a course called "Building Science Thermography" which is primarily an introductory course on building techniques and how some parts will show up on an infrared camera. While there is no harm in taking this course, it is akin to taking a cooking course at the Y and then advertising yourself as a gourmet chef.

I have spent twenty years in the building field, so I know the various forms of proper building construction (steel, stick built, & geothermal), including the correct installation of components, systems, and insulation in both residential and commercial buildings. Because of my expertise in this area, it was recommend that this course would be too rudimentary to me.

• Any inspector worth dealing with is at least a CERTIFIED LEVEL I Thermographer who has taken rigorous training at an accredited facility that offers training that meets or exceeds the ASNT (American Society for Nondestructive Testing) Recommended Practice SNT-TC-1A recommendations for training.

  Be wary of any inspector who does not show their certificate and ID number on their website! This is the only way you can check on their credentials. Anyone who claims they meet the qualifications but does not show their certificate, is not being upfront and honest with you.

  I welcome your view of my certificate below, and hope you review my other credentials HERE.

  
  (click on certificate for larger view)