Healthy Indoors Magazine - USA Edition

34 | HOUSE WHISPERER — February/March 2018 A review of The Home Comfort Book: The ultimate guide to creating a comfortable, healthy, efficient and long-lasting home by Nate Adams Nate Adams believes that homeowners and tenants deserve to live in comfortable, healthy and safe condi- tions. So do I. The reality is that most of us accept all the things we hate about our homes as immutable. Cold floors and drafty air in winter. Rooms we cannot occupy in summer. Contractors know this, but most contractors are locked into a business model of selling product solutions – windows, replacement HVAC systems, insulation, heat recovery ventilators, and the list goes on and on – but are not focused on solving the problems their customers are experiencing with their homes. States and utilities offer rebates to lure customers into making home energy efficiency upgrades. They have been doing this since the 1970s after the Arab Oil Em- bargo forced the U.S. to change its energy policies to reduce dependence on foreign sources of energy. With the incentive programs came demands by public utility commissions to ensure a return on the incentives invest- ed in efficiency improvements. The regulatory demands for ROI eliminate consideration of the factors consum- ers care about most. These are called the non-energy benefits of comfort, health, safety and building durability. Amory Lovins famously quipped that all Americans really want is "hot showers and cold beer." He added, "People don't want raw kilowatt-hours or lumps of coal or barrels of sticky black goo." What these incentive programs often deliver is products that are on the acceptable list defined by the regulatory agency. What customers don't get in return for their investment is improved comfort, health and safety. In addition, many contractors, including Nate Adams, complain that the administrative burdens placed on contractors by these programs drives them away from profitability and a sustainable business model. Let's face it: the cost of energy is not a significant factor for most consumers. Most people are not pouring over their energy bills trying to figure out how they can eke out some additional savings each month. Fracking, off-shore drilling, tar sand development in Canada and incentives for coal production have combined to keep energy prices stable and mostly off the radar screens of most consumers. But that doesn't mean they are more comfortable in their homes. My home is my castle so why doesn't it feel that way? This is the dilemma most people feel about their homes but are not equipped to solve. The Home Comfort Book gives people who are willing to control their home and their family's destiny a powerful set of resources to chart a course of action that will lead them to gain control over the comfort, health and safety of their homes. A positive side effect is, of course, lower utility bills. Most peo- ple claim they don't have enough free time to learn this stuff. Yes, they do! They know they need enough information to become an informed buyer. Besides, they find the time to learn ALL the details relating to their electronics purchases, so why not their home comfort? In fact, consumer interest in home performance is growing. With sponsorship funding, Grace and Corbett Lunsford are launching a consumer-ori- ented Home Diagnosis TV show later this year. In most cases controlling the parameters of comfort, health, safety and durability of a home is NOT a do-it- yourself (DIY) activity and Adams provides 191 pages of reasoning why this process should be left to a Home Performance Specialist (HPS). Anyone who thinks this is a DIY activity should READ THIS BOOK prior to launching into weekend warrior projects. A little bit of knowledge can be dangerous. The HPS process is like sending your home to the doctor. Describe the symp- toms, aches and pains to your HPS and let him or her di- agnose problems using building science equipment and recommend a course of action. This is a consultative process and will involve establishing a series of scenar- ios for getting the home upgraded. The scenarios allow the homeowner to determine what course of action is most effective for them within their ability to pay. It will also establish a roadmap for future activities as funds become available. There are two business models involving the HPS. In one, the HPS serves as a consultant in diagnosing the problems and establishing solutions. In this model, the HPS recommends contractors and provides quality con- trol on the work performed. More common is the model in which the HPS serves as the general contractor and tests in before and tests out after the work is completed much like your auto mechanic does. Either way, take charge of the comfort, health, safety, durability and energy efficiency of your home. Live better. READ THIS BOOK! Larry Zarker is the Chief Executive Officer of the Build- ing Performance Institute based in Malta, NY. Buy This Book! And Give it to Your Customers.

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