Lake Fong, Post-Gazette David Defide and Juanita Gee, right, of Conservation Consultants Inc., show Jeaneen Zappa, center, the gap in the back door at her home in Crafton. Click photo for larger image.

On the workbench in her basement, Jeaneen Zappa keeps color-coordinated caulking guns, white for the kitchen, brown for the windows and clear for other parts of the house. For five years she has been using them to fill the gap and holes in her 100-year-old house in Crafton. But she knew it wasn't enough.

So when a friend suggested she get an energy audit from Conservation Consultants Inc., she put down her caulk and reached for the phone.

Utilities, insulation companies and others also offer energy audits, which show homeowners how to make their homes more energy-efficient. But South Side-based CCI is a nonprofit organization offering an impartial evaluation inside and out, basement to attic, without an interest in selling a particular product. The fee is $125.

On a recent fall evening before dusk, Juanita Gee and CCI's chief operating officer, Dave Defide, arrived at Zappa's home, carrying tools, measuring devices and a packet of information. Gee circled the house while calibrating her "gas hunter." Noting small filled-in holes in the mortar between the brick, she observed that cellulose insulation had been blown into the walls. Gee also commented on the handsome appearance of the 23 replacement windows.

"That is a major improvement," said Defide, "but not one that we recommend to our clients because of the cost. There are other ways to save energy that bring faster cost savings."

Defide said later that outside storm windows are a good, less expensive option, or interior storms if exterior installation is difficult. Flexible plastic and weatherstripping kits are also available, he said.

By the time the group entered the kitchen, the "gas hunter" was calibrated, and it sniffed for carbon monoxide and gas leaks. Gee then turned to the biggest energy hog in the house, the refrigerator, and attached a device that would measure the energy used during the time of the audit, about an hour and a half.

Zappa led the way to the basement, pointing out that the main water line freezes frequently. She had wrapped the line in electric coil. Gee suggested using expandable foam around the spigot.

"Plumbers often make holes larger than they need," she said. "It's easier that way, but sometimes they don't plug them up afterwards."

Using her eyes, fingers and tools to find gaps and holes, Gee examined the area around the sill plate -- where the foundation and house meet -- and the basement windows and overhead pipes. On the first level, she probed crevices around the windows, front and back doors and points in the floor where radiator pipes pass through.

"These long fingernails are good for something," Gee said as she pushed caulking into place.

Both Gee and Defide stressed the importance of sealing up the house.

"We are creating a thermal envelope in our homes," Defide said. "If you insulate an entire house but you don't air-seal, you create a vacuum."

"Fiberglass insulation material is designed to stop the transfer of heat but it doesn't stop the flow of air. That's where the caulking, weatherstripping and expandable foam comes in."

If you combined all the cracks and gaps in the average house, he said, you'd have the equivalent of a 4-foot-square opening, letting heat or air-conditioned air rush out continuously.

As the group walked through the house, Gee carried an instrument that measured the temperature in each room.

"We're looking for consistency," said Defide. "That tells us a lot about the insulation, and the measurement is accurate in the summer as well as the winter."

They complimented Zappa on her use of paddle fans in several rooms, and on her habit of bleeding the radiators before winter sets in.

"That displaces the air so that water can come in and hold the heat better, " said Defide. "Jeaneen is already doing many things to save energy."

The attic

The last stop was the attic, where Gee went into the "knee walls" or dormered areas of the finished bedrooms. She was able to measure the depth of the insulation, and gathered the results in a summary presented to Zappa at the end, as they sat the dining room table.

The news from the attic was good; the insulation was adequate. From her probing, Gee had determined that the vertical areas of insulation had an R-13 value, the R standing for resistance to heat flow, and the horizontal insulation was R-38. Both values are considered adequate.

However, she also advised Zappa to insulate the heat pipes on the floor within the knee wall area, and replace the shaggy-looking fiberglass on the door of the dormer with foam board or plastic-covered fiberglass, and do some weatherstripping around it.

The first floor

On the first floor, Gee suggested that Zappa add more caulking around windows and where the radiator pipes meet the floor. She also noted that plastic weather-stripping that had been installed on the front door was not a snug fit and should be replaced.

"If you can see daylight through the door, it's not a good fit. To do it right, work from outside, with the door locked, and push the weatherstripping close against the door."

The living room fireplace, one of three in the house, was working but its flue was permanently open, resulting in significant heat loss. Gee advised Zappa to call a heating contractor to find a convenient way to close the damper. On the second floor, Gee suggested that Zappa put caulking around the metal fireplace covers on the unused fireplaces.

To make the house's radiators work better, Gee suggested that Zappa make reflectors using foam board covered with aluminum foil.

"They can be slipped behind the radiator and don't show too much. If they are not aesthetically pleasing to you, it's not necessary that you take that step."

And what about that energy-hogging refrigerator? Gee said her measurements showed it costs about $8 per month.

"If it were $13, we would recommend that you replace it with a more energy-efficient appliance."

The basement

In the basement, she suggested that Zappa do some air-sealing around the sill plate, then add fiberglass insulation. She spoke again of the expandable foam use for the spigot, and suggested that she wrap the copper pipes, both cold and hot, coming from the water tank, to a length of 6 feet.

		Learn more For information on Conservation Consultants Inc., call 412-431-4449. Dave Defide is at ext. 240.

"With the newer hot water tanks, it's not necessary to wrap the entire tank, only that portion of the pipe in which the water is held."

If Zappa had required outside contractors, CCI would have provided a list of recommended contractors. After the work is completed, CCI will come back to inspect it at no additional charge.

Zappa was pleased with the audit, because it affirmed what she had already done, and guided her toward measures she had not considered. She expects she'll only get better with her caulking guns.

"I need to improve my technique. My angle isn't so good," she said with modesty.