All too often people buy products or services to lower their heating or air conditioning bills that are not the best investments. They may be good products and good services, but they may not the real priority or the best payback for that particular house. But of course any salesman will tell you that what you really need is his product.
Independent Residential Energy Audits which evaluate the present condition of your house are now becoming available throughout Canada. These are like the services of Home Inspectors, but are specialized towards the energy aspects of a house. The audit will check out your house and then give you concrete recommendations, even costs for improving things and of course a clear idea of the payback on investment. This is a most useful service for anyone who is looking at high energy bills. An expert look at the energy performance, or lack of performance of your house is a wise investment because it will assure you that you put your money in the most effective places.
The program is called the EnerGuide for Houses, initiated by the Federal Government and then turned over to the private sector for implementation. The people who carry out the audits are called the "Home Performance Experts". To find out more about this program and to locate someone in your community who would test your house, look up EnerGuide for Houses at the Natural Resources Canada web site: www.NRCan.gc.ca .