Do you want to make yourself a more knowledgeable home inspector? Maybe set yourself apart from your competitors? Education is key. Home performance is generally an add on service to inspections, but having the knowledge to talk about it should be part of your verbal skill set when communicating with clients.
GreenHomes America is the nation’s #1 Home Comfort and Energy Knowledge center for homeowners. They have recently expanded to offer online training for industry professionals looking to develop and enhance their knowledge and skills in all areas of Home Performance.
The online training topics offered at GreenHomes America are an ideal fit for both new and experienced home inspectors. The training topics cover all aspects of the energy efficiency of homes including insulation effectiveness, air-tightness of homes, energy efficient lighting,
mechanical ventilation systems and indoor air quality of homes.
Building a Better Home Inspector
GreenHomes America’s online training provides a better understanding of the key components of a home that impact the home’s energy efficiency, comfort, indoor air quality and utility costs. As a home inspector, you will have a much better understanding of what to look for in a home, what items to add to the inspection checklist and what additional tests are possible to more accurately assess a home’s overall performance.
Codes, Regulations, & More
As part of energy codes and residential programs across the country, the testing of homes for air tightness, duct tightness, combustion safety, insulation quality and mechanical ventilation effectiveness is becoming more common. It is becoming more important for home inspectors to
have a working knowledge of these testing procedures as they apply to new and existing homes. Also, as home buyers become more aware of the issues surrounding healthy homes, having a better understanding of the issues surrounding the indoor air quality of homes is becoming more important. Spot ventilation, whole-house mechanical ventilation, mechanical ventilation controls, HRV’s and ERV’s are just a few of the topics necessary to having a better understanding of indoor air quality as a home inspector.
Certifications & CEUs
For those home inspectors that would like to expand their experience and obtain Building Performance Institute (BPI) certifications in Building Analyst, Envelope Professional, Heating Professional or Cooling & AC Professional, the GHA trainings can help better prepare you for the certification process. Or, for those that have BPI certifications already, GHA’s online trainings quality for BPI CEU’s that will help you become recertified in the future.
Training Topics
The following topics are included in our extensive list of online training courses:
Air sealing techniques
Using spray foam insulation in homes
Analyzing residential utility bills
Air leakage testing of homes using a blower door
Using a micro-manometer to better understand problems in homes
Combustion safety testing in homes for Carbon Monoxide and Natural & Propane Gas Leaks
Understanding the back-drafting of chimneys and how it impacts indoor air quality
Insulating attics, exterior walls of existing homes, crawl spaces and basements properly
Insulating and air sealing problem areas in homes such as:
o Cantilevers
o Common walls in split-level homes
o Kneewalls… and much much more.
Here is the best part. GreenHomes America would love for the opportunity to have the HomeInspectology community try one of their classes for free – Air Sealing and Insulating the Rim Band Joist – a common source of energy problems in homes that is often overlooked. Upon checkout, use code ‘JOIST’ to get the course absolutely free. So head on over to www.greenhomesamerica.com and explore their courses.
