Most people are concerned about the amount of energy and how we use it, and that’s where a HERS rating can come in handy. It can be used to measure the energy efficiency of a home or building.
It was developed by the Residential Energy Services Network, or RESNET, to gauge how energy-efficient a new home is. The HERS Index applies specifically to new construction or down-to-the-foundation renovations of an existing home. To determine how energy-efficient your existing home is, you’ll want to get an energy audit.
Luckily, there are more and more organizations that are also interested in seeing homes and buildings succeed at this, too. While the HERS rating is nothing new, it’s certainly getting more attention.
What is a HERS Rating?
A Home Energy Rating System is when your home is assessed to rate our energy usage. It used to be used to make sure the home was meeting the guidelines and standards set out.
It was used to make sure buildings were operating to code and not much else. It was developed by the Residential Energy Services Network, also known as RESNET, to assess how energy-efficient a new home was going to be.
The HERS Index is used to assess new homes being built or a home that has been taken down to the mere foundation to be renovated. While it is voluntary, at least one out of every four new homes being built receives a HERS rating.
What Happens During a HERS Rating?
A professional energy assessor will come to your home to conduct a HERS rating test. They are looking to see how well your new home uses energy and conserves heat.
If they feel it needs improvement, they will then recommend some upgrades or alterations that will help those areas, and ultimately, save energy and money. Of then these upgrades have to do with air leaks, poor insulation, or just in need of a better HVAC system.
It’s very much like an energy audit you may have done on the home you live in but from a different organization. HERS ratings are for new homes and the future energy use of that home.
They have special tools and training to find the problems. They can find where the leak or leaks are located and assess how much air is being let out, or in.
They can test how effective your insulation is for the walls, floors, and ceiling, and whether it will continue to be effective.
They can find problems or benefits of your HVAC system, the ducts, vents, and the system itself.
How well the orientation of the home works in conjunction with the sun and the directions each area faces.
The efficiency of your windows, and if there are solar panels or other types of energy-generating tools in place.
What’s The Best HERS Rating?
Ideally, you want a low score. The lower scores are used as a guide for builders on future homes, to give them a goal of hitting that low score, if not even lower.
A home that has been given a great, low score saves energy and money. In the future, people will be asking for a HERS rating when considering buying a home.
For more information or an assessment of your energy use, call us here today at Live Smart Construction. We specialize in sustainable building practices that create the ultimate retreat. Live Smart will help you save money, reduce your energy reliance, invest in your future, and do your part for the planet.