The District has a large stock of row houses and those tend to be energy inefficient, full of old drafty windows, little or no insulation, and outdated heating systems. My wife and I own a 100 year old row house on Capitol Hill (shown on the left). In May we had an energy audit of the house to identify energy losses and solutions to correct them. 
These audits are offered free through the District government and ours was conducted by PEG, an environmental services company in Dunkirk, Maryland, one of the firms the District retains for the audits. It’s a fairly popular program; roughly 1,400 audits were conducted in the District in 2008, and, out-of-pocket, would cost in the neighborhood of $300.Josh, a certified home inspector from PEG, conducted our energy audit (with much help from our cat). Josh first headed to the basement to examine our ancient heating system (the original cast iron hot water boiler) and our water heating system. He then moved through the house to inspect the various household appliances (washer, dryer, dishwasher, and refrigerator) for their energy ratings (ok there) before heading upstairs to check for attic insulation.
Josh then followed-up with a visual inspection around the house to point out obvious air leaks. 
Some air leaks were embarrissingly obvious. If you can see daylight underneath your basement door, for instance, you may want to tack a sweep at the bottom of the door. Cobwebs above our living room windows were a clear sign of air flow and indicated an area that needed to be sealed.
Josh then set up the main diagnostic test, the blower door to check for air leakage. The device, shown below, sucks air out of the house to expose leaks and determine the overall tightness of the house. Here, Josh attached a red canvas frame with a round hole to the open front doorway. A fan attached to the hole pushes air out of the house and a monitor calculates air exchanges in the house per hour. This is a measurement of how many times in one hour the entire volume of air inside the house leaks to the outside. Leakier houses have higher air exchanges per hour and, therefore, higher heating and cooling costs. 
The District Department of the Environment (DDOE), which manages the home energy audit program, notes that reducing air leaks can save up to 30 percent of the energy consumed in a home. The blower test essentially creates a 20 mile per hour wind flowing through the house, which is about 50 Pascal of pressure. This test is quite a revelation. A well-sealed house would clock-in at about 7 air exchanges per hour; we scored 19.9 and air currents seemed to be moving from every light plate switch, window frame, crack and crevice in the house. Fortunately, inexpensive caulk, expansion foam, and well-placed door sweeps can help remedy many of these leaks.
Also, the federal government currently offers tax credits for home energy efficiency improvements. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), for improvements made in 2009 and 2010, homeowners can get an income tax credit of up to $1,500 for installing efficient new windows, insulation, doors, roofs, and heating and cooling equipment. The tax credit amount is now 30 percent of the cost of the measures, including installation costs for heating and cooling equipment, but only product costs for windows, insulation, and other parts of the building “shell.” Essentially, the tax credit cuts 30 percent off of the cost of home energy efficiency improvements up to $5,000 in expenses.
The District Department of the Environment (DDOE), which manages the home energy audit program, notes that reducing air leaks can save up to 30 percent of the energy consumed in a home. The blower test essentially creates a 20 mile per hour wind flowing through the house, which is about 50 Pascal of pressure. This test is quite a revelation. A well-sealed house would clock-in at about 7 air exchanges per hour; we scored 19.9 and air currents seemed to be moving from every light plate switch, window frame, crack and crevice in the house. Fortunately, inexpensive caulk, expansion foam, and well-placed door sweeps can help remedy many of these leaks.
Also, the federal government currently offers tax credits for home energy efficiency improvements. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), for improvements made in 2009 and 2010, homeowners can get an income tax credit of up to $1,500 for installing efficient new windows, insulation, doors, roofs, and heating and cooling equipment. The tax credit amount is now 30 percent of the cost of the measures, including installation costs for heating and cooling equipment, but only product costs for windows, insulation, and other parts of the building “shell.” Essentially, the tax credit cuts 30 percent off of the cost of home energy efficiency improvements up to $5,000 in expenses.
Josh later prepared a 14 page report for identify problems found in the audit and recommended actions. The report even ranked problems and solutions based on cost and priority. Aside from attacking the house with caulk and expansion foam, one of the report’s main recommendations was getting the attic properly insulated. This was a fairly simple project and we had this done right away by having 900 pounds of R-49 Climate Pro insulation blown into the attic. This provided about a foot and a half of insulation.
We’ll work our way through the report’s recommendations in the coming months. More storm windows are coming this fall, plus additional caulking and sealing. We’ll see how this winter’s utility bills compare to last year’s.
