As Maine home builders strive to enhance energy efficiency in new home construction, blower door testing is being utilized as a valuable tool to measure how effective we are at air sealing to eliminate unconditioned air from entering the building envelope
A Simple Concept
With all windows, doors, and other pathways for outside air to enter closed, the blower door temporarily seals itself into an exterior door opening, blows air out of the house at a controlled rate, and measures how much replacement air is entering the house.
Often, a test may be conducted before the installation of insulation so that air leaks can be identified and corrected while there is access to areas that will be inaccessible after the insulation has been installed. An additional test may be conducted after insulation and drywall have been installed to measure the final results.
Some municipalities in Maine are now requiring blower door testing as a condition to receive a certificate of occupancy. While test results can vary widely depending upon the goals and construction details of the project, blower door testing can benefit all new home construction in Maine.
