The Pacific Northwest has been struggling with another week of record high temperatures and let’s face it, you are miserable! You haven’t been sleeping well, and your home is simply hot and uncomfortable. The few comfortable moments you experienced recently were when you went to the freezer section at the grocery store… or maybe when you picked up the kids at the neighbor’s new, swanky air-conditioned house!

Here in the Portland Metro area most of the homes are older, un-insulated, and simply not updated. Many of these houses don’t even have air conditioning installed at all. As a sweltering homeowner, you are wondering — "why did I pay so much for this house that is so uncomfortable most of the summer."

It leads to this week’s question…. Should you finally break the piggy bank and get one of those fancy new air conditioners?

Most of Portland is saying "YES, PLEASE!" But wait, speaking metaphorically, are you treating the disease or just the symptom?!  Before investing thousands of $$$, or applying for financing while interest rates are rising, it might just be a good idea to talk to a Home Energy and Comfort Advisor to complete a holistic home evaluation. 

I have heard the same story from my friends and neighbors repeatedly —"the upstairs of the home is extremely hot in the summer, and the A/C (if you are lucky to have it) doesn't seem to make a dent in the hot second floor. "

What should do (or not do…)?  A typical solution would be to go to Google, find a heating and cooling company with an abundance of 5-star reviews, and call up “Lowest Bidder Handsy Randy A/C LLC ". Randy comes to the home and upsells an outdated 4 Ton A/C unit which is not properly sized for the home and has been sitting in the back of the warehouse for 2 years. This antiqued AC unit still cools the downstairs, but the upstairs is still hotter than Satan’s armpits. Randy didn't fix the problem, Randy simply put a band aid on it. To make matters worse, he didn’t even look at the home’s duct system which is leaking 30% of that newly conditioned air into your crawlspace. And finally, you receive your first electric bill after the new AC unit was installed and its hundreds of $$$ more than your last month’s bill, yikes!

After visiting well over a thousand homes in the Portland Metro area, and unfortunately this story as all to common. Randy is not a bad guy; he simply does not have the time or the training to look at the home holistically. Homes are complex systems that require a multitude of assets to work together to make you and your family comfortable. Everything from insulation, air-barrier, humidity, volume, windows, mechanical systems, etc… all play an important role in your utility bills, air quality, safety, and especially your comfort.

What should you do instead? If you have the time, you can read up on home weatherization and building renovation to get a better idea of what is making your home so uncomfortable. There are many great building science websites and podcasts including Energy.gov, The Energy Collaborative Show, The Green Building Advisor, and more to help guide you through identifying common problems, retrofitting your home, and even provide many low-cost DIY solutions.

Or… save time and contact a Home Energy and Comfort Advisor to evaluate your home and identify the source of the home discomfort and temperature imbalance. This will include analysis of the root causes and provide the most cost-effective solutions to save you time and money. Contact us at nwenergycollaborative.com.

Thank you for reading and let us know if you have any comments or questions.

One more thing… Have you heard of the “The Inflation Reduction Act” that passed in congress recently. This bill will provide billions of $$$ for home weatherization, tax incentives for heat pumps and energy efficient appliances, a 30% credit on your taxes for solar and battery storage (do the math; $20,000 with of solar will equate to a $6,000 tax credit!) and much more.