Jun 1, 20232 min read

Leveling Up Existing Homes by Establishing Current Performance

Joe Konopacki, President & CEO of Insight Property Services, Inc., with Mark Wille, and Shaun St Amour discuss how existing homes need to be tested, evaluated, and improved. On the High Performance Build series, Joe speaks about the Building Science Principles course (BSP) to inform home professionals about improving home performance. This is an entry level course that covers the dynamics of air flow, heat flow and moisture flow in homes and how to impact the performance of existing homes. The BSP course is typically an in-person, 8 hour training with extensive interaction. The online version is a more relaxed, self-paced offering where topics can be reviewed multiple times, as necessary.

In addition to covering heat management & insulation and moisture management, both liquid and vapor, building air control is a major point of focus. Tighter homes are more comfortable and efficient, and relatively cheap to accomplish. But these benefits come with challenges. Tighter homes can have combustion safety concerns, and indoor air quality needs to be actively monitored and maintained. A runny nose, headache, or sore throat could be signs that exhaust fumes are spilling into the home. A thorough evaluation and thoughtful work scope can avoid these issues.

Shaun mentions high performance is about balanced interactions between the building enclosure and mechanical systems and that diagnostic testing verifies that the work scope was properly implemented. For existing homes to be relevant for another 50-100 years, we need to level up their performance - making them safer & healthier, more durable, more comfortable, and more efficient. Learning about Building Science Principles is the first step to making homes better.