Air Tightness Testing

A new PVC door showing up as warped and allowing air permeability at edges - Thermal Imaging by McClean Thermal Imaging, Co. Donegal, Ireland

Air Infiltration on Side Attic Door displayed in thermal imaging survey by McClean Thermal Imaging, Co. Donegal, Ireland

Air Infiltration at Skirting displayed in thermographic image by McClean Thermal Imaging, Co. Donegal, Ireland

Is your house colder when it is windy outside?
Are your fuel bills higher than other similar houses / households?
Do rooms seem to cool very quickly if you switch off or turn down your heating?
Do you have problems pinpointing the location of draughts in your home?

An Air Tightness Inspection - or Air Pressure Test - is a quick and efficient way to find the cause of draughts in your home using Blower Door technology.

The climate of Ireland only occasionally suffers extremes in temperatures, but is particulary exposed to extremes in wind pressure, making draught location a crucially important stage in building insulation.

Air Tightness Inspections are also combined with Building Heat Loss Inspections to find areas of poor or missing insulation in new or existing dwellings.

New Builds

Since June 2008 an Air Pressure Test is a compulsory requirement for Building Energy Rating (BER) Assessments for new builds. An air tightness test is used to calculate an air permeability rating for the dwelling and this rating that must meet the latest Building Regulation standards.

Testing a building for air tightness is an important step in identifying problems and preparing a snag list - identifying faults, defects and pitfalls - that can be remedied before you buy your house or sign off a new build. It ensures that you have identified any cosmetic problems that builders and developers may have overlooked.

Draughts in the Home

An average of 20% of energy consumption is wasted due to draughts allowing uncontrolled air leakage from buildings. The main sources of draughts include:

Gaps around window and doorframes
Spaces around attic hatches
Cracks in suspended timber floors allowing draughts to come up from underneath the floorboards
Gaps around pipes penetrating external walls, floors and ceilings.
Air leakage through voids left by poor workmanship and finishing on masonry and plasterboard construction

Draught Proofing

Draught proofing is one of the cheapest and most efficient ways to save energy in any type of building. Having located all the sources of draughts in your home using an Air Tightness Test, draught sealing presents an inexpensive way of reducing heat loss and improving comfort.

Contact McClean Thermal Imaging for a quote for an Air Tightness Test or avail of any of our other diagnostic and energy reduction services.