Industry News
Building Performance News and Discussion
By Quinn Korzeniecki
BPI News
Do you want to be featured on the future new BPI pros website? BPI wants to feature you and your work on the new website! Please send high resolution/quality images of your team doing home performance work to qkorzeniecki@bpi.org for consideration. It's great press for your company - your information will be featured with the image!
Industry News
Industry pros seek to strengthen and spread Residential PACE across the nation, beginning with creating a set of consumer protection standards to ensure that homeowners reap the full benefits of PACE.
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in partnership with The U.S. Department of Energy Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) will host the 2017 National Home Performance Conference in Nashville, TN in March 2017. Weatherization and home performance professionals will join together for training, education, and networking at this dynamic conference.
As HVAC veterans retire, training and hiring women could help meet the estimated 115,000 new HVAC workers needed by 2022, as estimated by the U.S. Department of Labor and explained in this article.
Federal, State, Local News
Portland, Oregon passed an ordinance requiring Home Energy Scores for single family homes listed for sale, in an attempt to help the city’s consumers save money on energy while creating more jobs for its home performance contractors.
180,640 energy efficient homes were built or retrofitted in North Carolina from 2007 to 2015, according to the North Carolina Building Performance Association's (NCBPA) Second Annual Inventory Report.
Tech Talk
Should you choose fiberglass, cellulose, or foam insulation for your current job? Check out this post comparing the different types of insulation based on a variety of factors.
'Tis the season to break out the humidifiers, but are they hurting a home's indoor air quality (IAQ)? Dr. Allison Bailes answers this question in his blog.
About the Author
Quinn is the Senior Communications Associate for BPI. Would you like to write articles to engage homeowners about home performance? Contact Quinn to contribute to BPI's Homeowner Blog.
Partner News
Health Benefits of Energy Efficiency
By E4TheFuture
As you may know, home energy upgrades can provide significant health benefits by improving indoor air quality. A November 2016 E4TheFuture paper reiterates this point and provides clear evidence of health benefits of energy efficiency beyond energy bill savings.
The E4TheFuture paper, Occupant Health Benefits of Residential Energy Efficiency:
- Summarizes studies of residential energy efficiency and ventilation upgrades;
- Discusses ways programs monetize occupant health co-benefits;
- Identifies research gaps; and
- Highlights innovative programs combining energy efficiency and health-focused home repairs.
Click here to download and read the paper.
About the Author
E4TheFuture is a nonprofit energy efficiency advocacy group. E4TheFuture aims to increase access to relevant data that can support inclusion of health impacts as a public benefit of energy efficiency. The nonprofit seeks to collaborate and explore integrated approaches to improving indoor air quality that combine health and energy efficiency industry action.
QMS Toolbox
How to Handle Multiple Jobs at Once
By Jaclyn Crawford
If you've spread the word about your business, utilized lead generation techniques, and have loyal customers, it's likely that there may be a time that you must juggle multiple jobs at once. While the income is great, a small mistake can ruin your reputation with the customer or impact the overall project.
Taking on more than one job at a time takes careful planning, attention and communication. If you're finding yourself in this situation, we have a few tips that may help you stay organized and be successful.
Take Notes
When juggling multiple jobs, the last thing you want to do is confuse projects or customers. Take clear and extensive notes on the project, labeling them appropriately. Ask the customer questions about project scope and be clear with them about your timeline. The more notes you have to reference later, the better.
Time Management
Having great time management skills is vital when handling multiple jobs at once. You not only deliver on the final product, but you need to deliver on the agreed upon timeline. Be sure to clearly communicate if there's been a change in plans and use a few time management techniques in your day to day work.
Scheduling
It's important to plan a schedule in advance and stick to it. Depending on the project, this can vary by week. If you're moving from project to project during the day, leave yourself extra time so you're not running to the next job and risking a late arrival. Be cautious not to have your scheduled work overlap.
Work and Rest
Anyone who is working multiple jobs must know when to work and when to rest. If you don't you're risking burnout. Plan time for lunch breaks and know your days off. Spend time on projects and hobbies you enjoy. This will help you keep a clear mind and do the best work possible.
Ensure Quality
Sometimes when you're busy, the quality of work you produce may suffer. While getting as much work done as possible is a great thing, if it's not done well, you could be losing business. Always double check your work during and after the project. This is especially true if you plan on hiring subcontractors.
One thing that may get lost is providing excellent customer service. Never let your schedule change the way you interact with your customers. Respond professionally to any questions they may have and always show up on time. Providing great service is key to gaining a loyal customer service and even referrals at the end of a job.
Having multiple jobs at once can be a great thing for your business. However, it's how you handle them that makes all the difference. Focus on managing your time well and product quality to be truly successful.
Stump the Chump
Let's Play Stump the Chump!
By BPI
We had an influx of great responses to last month's stumper and all were very close to being on point!
As a reminder, last month’s stumper came from homeowners living in a 1,150 square foot 1930s Cape with a warm air furnace in Keene, NH. The house contains a bare dirt floor basement with a single layer of gravel on top. The couple mysteriously suffered through a miserable winter. The kitchen was always too cold, the bedroom too hot, and all of the air coming out of the vents smelled terrible.
Congratulations to Mark Jackson of Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity, Inc. (PCCEO) in Peoria, Illinois, for getting closest to the right answer! Mark says, “Sounds like a case of ductwork leakage or a possible disconnect resulting in smelly air from the basement being pulled into the system. Air leakage is also causing an imbalance in efficient circulation of hot and cold air going to the rooms that are uncomfortable.
To fix the issue, the couple’s contractor closed off the return grille cut into the plenum with cardboard and metal foil tape. To equalize the heat in the two colder rooms, the contractor adjusted the two duct distribution system dampers so each was opened halfway.
Thank you to all who sent in responses.
This month’s stumper came from a contractor located in northwest Ohio. They did a small addition on a two-story home earlier this year. When the contractor was in the attic, he discovered that a second floor dryer vent had come apart and was blowing openly into the attic. They told the client and fixed the vent by reinstalling it directly up through the roof.
After two months, the customer called and said it was taking 3+ hours to dry a load of towels. They had the appliance repair man out and he said that the two year old dryer was blowing the correct temperature air out of the back and to get the ducting checked.
Our contractor returned and took apart the metal duct expecting to find a clog or lint all over, and, instead, found nothing. Clear and free. Total length of the run is 15-20 feet.
What could be a possible explanation?
Send us your answer to this month's stumper! Email qkorzeniecki@bpi.org to enter to win the contest, and be featured in the next issue of BPI's Performance Matters.
JOIN THE DISCUSSION! Each month's Stump the Chump challenge will be featured as a topic on BPI's discussion page on Home Energy Pros, the home performance industry's very own social networking site. To send your answer there, and discuss with other Stump the Chump fans, simply visit BPI's discussion page and click on the right-hand 'Sign Up' box to create a profile, then add your comment.