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    • HERS RATER WRITTEN EXAM >
      • Section 1 Building Science Fundamentals >
        • 1a. Basic Terms & Definitions >
          • 1. Airflow in Buildings
          • 2. Equipment Efficiencies
          • 3. Power and Energy
          • 4. Effective Leakage Area
          • 5. Area Weighted R-Value
          • 6. Baseload / Seasonal Energy Use
          • 7. Driving Forces (Including Natural and Mechanical)
          • 8. Behavior of Radiation
          • 9. Thermal Resistance / Transmittance: R and U Values
          • 10. Latent / Sensible Heat
          • 11. Total Equivalent Length
          • 12. Dehumidification / Humidification
          • 13. Convert Pressure Units
          • 14. Thermal Bridges
          • 15. Pressure Boundary
          • 16. Stack Effect
          • 17. Exfiltration and Infiltration
          • 18. Natural / Mechanical Ventilation
          • 19. Net Free Area
          • 20. Input & Output Capacity
          • 21. Peak Electrical Demand
          • 22. Permeability and Perm Rating
          • 23. Standby Loss
          • 24. IAQ (indoor air quality): Moisture, CO, Dust
        • 1b. Principals of Energy, Air & Moisture Thermodynamics >
          • 1. Thermodynamics: Conduction, Convection, Radiation, ΔT
          • 2. Factors That Affect Insulation Performance
          • 3. House Pressurization/Depressurization by Various Forces
          • 4. Heat Gain / Loss
          • 5. Power and Energy
          • 6. Moisture Transport Mechanisms
          • 7. Identify Areas of Highest Relative Humidity
          • 8. Principles of Combustion
        • 1c. Combustion Safety >
          • 1. Combustion Analysis
          • 2. Carbon Monoxide (CO) Testing
          • 3. Combustion Appliance Venting, Draft, Combustion Air & Sizing
          • 4. Understand Combustion Safety Issues
      • Section 2 Buildings and Their Systems >
        • 2a. Building Components >
          • 1. Identify basic duct configurations and components
          • 2. Identify Basic Hydronic Distribution Configurations and Components
          • 3. Identify Basic Structural Components of Residential Construction
          • 4. Thermal Boundaries and Insulation Applications
          • 5. Basic Electrical Components and Safety Considerations
          • 6. Basic Fuel Delivery Systems and Safety Considerations
          • 7. Basic bulk water management components (drainage plumbing gutters sumps etc)
          • 8. Vapor barriers/retarders
          • 9. Radiant Barrier Principles and Installations
          • 10. Understand Fenestration Types and Efficiencies
          • 11. Understand Issues Involved With Basements, Crawlspaces, Slabs, Attics, Attached Garages, Interstitial Cavities, and Bypasses
          • 12. Understand Issues Involved With Ventilation Equipment
          • Understand Basic Heating / Cooling Equipment Components Controls and Operation
          • Understand Basic DHW Equipment Components Controls and Operation
          • Identify Common Mechanical Safety Controls
          • Identify Insulation Types and R-Values
          • Understand Various Mechanical Ventilation Equipment and Strategies: Spot, ERV, HRV
        • Conservation Strategies >
          • Appropriate Insulation Applications and Installation Based On Existing Conditions
          • Opportunity for ENERGY STAR Lighting and Appliances
          • Identify Duct Sealing Opportunities and Applications
          • Understand Importance of Air Leakage Control and Remediation Procedures
          • Blower Door-Guided Air Sealing Techniques
          • Water Conservation Devices and Strategies
          • Domestic Hot Water (DHW) Conservation Strategies
          • Heating & Cooling Efficiency Applications
          • Proper Use of Modeling to Determine Heating and Cooling Equipment Sizing and Appropriate Energy
          • Understand the Use of Utility History Analysis in Conservation Strategies
          • Appropriate Applications For Sealed Crawlspaces Basements and Attics
          • Identify / Understand High Density Cellulose
          • Appropriate Applications for Fenestration Upgrades Including Modification or Replacement
        • Comprehensive Building Assessment Process >
          • Determine Areas of Customer Complaints / Concerns in Interview
          • Understand / Recognize Need For Conducting Appropriate Diagnostic Procedures
          • Interaction Between Mechanical Systems, Envelope Systems and Occupant Behavior
        • Design Considerations >
          • Appropriate Insulation Applications Based On Existing Conditions
          • Understand Fire Codes as Necessary to Apply Home Performance in a Code-Approved Manner
          • Understand / Recognize Building Locations Where Opportunities for Retrofit Materials
          • Understand Climate Specific Concerns
          • Understand Indoor Environment Considerations for the Environmentally Sensitive
          • Understand Impact of Building Orientation, Landscape Drainage, and Grading
          • Opportunity Potential Renewable Energy Applications: Geothermal, Photovoltaic, Wind
          • Understand Impact of Shading on Heating / Cooling Loads
          • Awareness for Solar Gain Reduction / Solar Gain Opportunities
          • Understand Need for Modeling Various Options For Efficiency Upgrades
      • Measurement & Verification of Building Performance >
        • Measurement & Verification of Building Performance >
          • Air Leakage Test Results
          • Understand Building Shell / Envelope Leakage
          • Apply Fundamental Construction Mathematics and Unit Conversions
          • Calculate Building Tightness Levels (Minimum Ventilation Requirements)
          • Calculate Heating Degree Days and Cooling Degree Days
          • Identify Proper Appliance and Combustion Appliance Venting
          • Ventilation calculations and strategies
          • Proper methods for identifying / testing fuel leaks
          • Blower door setup, accurate measurement and interpretation of results
          • Combustion Appliance Zone (CAZ): depressurization, spillage, draft, Carbon Monoxide (ambient and flue)
          • Carbon Monoxide (CO) evaluation: ambient
          • Proper applications and use of temperature measuring devices
          • Pressure pan and room to room pressure diagnostics
          • Recognize contributing factors to comfort problems
          • Inspect for areas containing moisture or bulk water in undesirable locations
          • Understand and inspect for basic electric safety (e.g. frayed wires, open boxes, etc)
      • RESNET HERS RATER National Standards & Project Specifications >
        • Understand applicability content and intent of BPI National Standards – Do no harm, make buildings more healthy, comfortable, durable and energy efficient
        • Recognize need for a professional local/state/national codes evaluation
        • Be able to specify appropriate materials and processes needed for building performance projects
      • Analyzing Buildings Systems >
        • Recognize need for air sealing measures and their impact on other building systems
      • Conduct and Communications >
        • Conservation strategies
        • Conservation strategies
    • HERS RATER FIELD EXAM >
      • How To Put The House Under Worst Case & CAZ
      • What's What? Pa, CFM, CFM50, CAZ, Draft, Room Pressure
      • What To Know In The Attic
      • What To Know In The House
    • BLOWER DOOR TEST >
      • Manometer Setup
    • RESNET STANDARDS >
      • RESNET Standards Decoded
  • ESSENTIALS
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    • COMMON AUDITOR / CREW MISTAKES
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Buildings and Their Systems

    1. 13. Understand Basic Heating / Cooling Equipment, Components Controls, and Operation

Equipment

Furnaces - furnaces use fuel to heat a heating coil and then blow air over the coils to deliver warm air to the home.  Combustion furnaces are either atmospherically vented or sealed combustion furnaces.  Atmospheric furnaces can be either natural draft (older) or fan assisted (newer).  Seal combustion furnaces are the high efficiency furnaces.  
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Click on picture to expand.
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Central air conditioners - central air conditioners use a separate air handler unit (AHU) located in the garage, house or attic to push air to the duct work.  The air handler can be either a furnace system or a heat pump.  

Heat pumps - A heat pump works just like a central air conditioning unit, only it has a reserving value to switch the direction of the refrigerant flow.  You can find the reversing value inside the AC housing.  With the reversing valve the heat pump can provide heating and cooling for the house with solely refrigeration rather than converting natural or propane gas. They are 1-3 times more efficient than electric furnaces.  Heat pumps are not effective in very cold climates like the Midwest, but are designed for 95 degrees and are ideal for places like Phoenix with a small heating demand.  Heat pumps can come as either a split or package system. A split system will have the AHU separate from the compressor.  A package unit will have everything in one unit.  
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The condenser coil is located outside for split systems
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Split system AHU inside the house, notice there are no gas lines or flue pipes for heat pumps
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Package system with all the components in one housing

Components

Compressor - The condenser is a pump the makes the refrigerant really hot so that heat transfer can take place. 
Condenser coil (outside coil) - the condenser coil releases the heat outside (during cooling season).  This cools the refrigerant line so when it goes back inside, it can adsorb the inside heat again, helping to cool the house.  The refrigerant enters the condenser as a gas but leaves as a liquid.  Note- in the winter or heating season, the condenser and evaporator roles are switched, so the condenser functions as the evaporator and the evaporator functions as the condenser.
Evaporator coil (aka A-coil or indoor coil) - A-coils are found in an AHU box, and used for heat transfer.  It is important to keep the coils clean. Inside the coil, the refrigerant evaporates as it absorbs heat from the indoor air that passes over it.  You can get a nice $200 by cutting out the copper from used AC's and selling it to scrap metal places if you install new units.  AHU fans blow air over the cool (in the summer) indoor evaporator coils, to the duct system.  When taking a static reading, be aware where the evaporator coil is not to damage it with the drill bit.
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Controls

All gas powered furnaces (propane or natural gas) have shut off valves outside the AHU.  The burners ignite from a pilot light which should always be on or an electric ignition key.  If there is a leak at one of the connections, only a CO detector will tell the occupants of a leak.

Power vented furnaces have a flip switch that can is turned on when the panel is covering the inside components.  When the plate is taken off, the switch is deactivated so the unit does not fire up while someone may be working inside it.

Operation

How furnaces work - gas furnaces are supplied gas which ignites from a pilot light or electric ignition key, the flames will then heat up a heat exchanger. At a specified temperature, the blower will turn on, blowing hot air through the supply ducts. 

How heat pumps work - (for the heating season) the purpose of a heat pump is to adsorb heat from one place and transfer it to another place.  The refrigerant is a heat transfer fluid, adsorbing and releasing the surrounding heat.  Heat exchangers are condensers and compressors.
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Next Section

2a. Building Components
  1. Identify basic duct configurations and components
  2. Identify basic hydronic distribution configurations and components
  3. Identify basic structural components of residential construction 
  4. Thermal boundaries and insulation applications 
  5. Basic electrical components and safety considerations 
  6. Basic fuel delivery systems and safety considerations
  7. Basic bulk water management components (drainage plumbing gutters sumps etc) 
  8. Vapor barriers/retarders 
  9. Radiant barrier principles and installations 
  10. Understand fenestration types and efficiencies 
  11. Understand issues involved with basements, crawlspaces, slabs, attics, attached garages, interstitial cavities, and bypasses 
  12. Understand issues involved with ventilation equipment 
  13. Understand basic heating / cooling equipment components controls and operation 
  14. Understand basic DHW equipment components controls and operation 
  15. Identify common mechanical safety controls 
  16. Identify insulation types and R-Values 
  17. Understand various mechanical ventilation equipment and strategies: spot, ERV, HRV 
2b. Conservation Strategies
  1. Appropriate insulation applications and installation based on existing conditions 
  2. Opportunity for ENERGY STAR lighting and appliances 
  3. Identify duct sealing opportunities and applications 
  4. Understand importance of air leakage control and remediation procedures 
  5. Blower door-guided air sealing techniques 
  6. Water conservation devices and strategies 
  7. Domestic Hot Water (DHW) conservation strategies 
  8. Heating & cooling efficiency applications 
  9. Proper use of modeling to determine heating and cooling equipment sizing and appropriate energy use
  10. Understand the use of utility history analysis in conservation strategies 
  11. Appropriate applications for sealed crawlspaces basements and attics 
  12. Identify/understand high density cellulose 
  13. Appropriate applications for fenestration upgrades including modification or replacement 
2c. Comprehensive Building Assessment Process
  1. Determine areas of customer complaints/concerns in interview
  2. Understand / recognize need for conducting appropriate diagnostic procedures including when to refer to a specialist for further investigation
  3. Interaction between mechanical systems, envelope systems and occupant behavior
2d. Design considerations
  1. Appropriate insulation applications based on existing conditions
  2. Understand fire codes as necessary to apply home performance in a code-approved manner.
  3. Understand/recognize building locations where opportunities for retrofit materials and processes are needed to correct problems and/or enhance performance
  4. Understand climate specific concerns
  5. Understand indoor environment considerations for the environmentally sensitive
  6. Understand impact of building orientation, landscape drainage, and grading
  7. Opportunity potential renewable energy applications: geothermal , photovoltaic, wind
  8. Understand impact of shading on heating / cooling loads
  9. Awareness for solar gain reduction in cooling climate/solar gain opportunities in heating climates
  10. Understand need for modeling various options for heating, cooling and DHW applications, as well as other efficiency upgrades
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