Blower Door Test

Blower door test during a home energy audit.

Blower door test.

While a blower door test does not evaluate how well a structure is insulated it can reveal drafty walls and air bypass situations that could undermine otherwise well insulated wall assemblies. Professional energy auditors use blower door tests to help determine a home s airtightness. It can also be used to measure airflow between building zones to test ductwork airtightness and to help physically locate air leakage sites in the building envelope. During this test a calibrated fan is installed in an otherwise sealed door or window while all the other openings to the exterior are closed.

Since blower door testing is a standard tool used during an energy audit it is helpful for inspectors to understand how the test works. These are some reasons for establishing the proper building. A blower door test is a way to check how air tight a structure is. Knowing a bit about the outside factors that can influence the results will ensure that the test is performed correctly.

To conduct a blower door test an infiltrometer or blower door fan is placed in the main entry doorway to depressurize the house or suck out air from the interior. It is designed to check for air leaks in walls attics and mechanical penetrations. Holtkamp heating a c inc. Beginning with the 2012 iecc a maximum air leakage rate is defined and each new home must meet this tightness level verified with a blower door test.

A blower door test is used on buildings in order to quantify the amount of air leakage through its enclosure. Understanding blower door test results. A blower door test is performed to measure the exact air tightness of a home. Blower door tests are performed by trained and certified energy auditors but a homeowner can conduct a mini test to help pinpoint leaky areas of the home.

Simply put a blower door is a diagnostic tool used to measure how much air infiltration air leakage occurs in a house. There are three primary components to a blower door. 1 a calibrated variable speed fan capable of inducing a range of airflows sufficient to. Last year we built an energy star home for a customer and we used a blower door test to evaluate the houses air infiltration performance.

The blower door test. This process will cause outside air to be drawn into the house through leakage points. As the fan is running a technician can move from room to room throughout the house to detect.