DeFuniak Springs, Walton County
Blower Door Testing in DeFuniak Springs, Florida
Blower door tests on new houses in DeFuniak Springs, and the energy code exception for additions.
New homes and additions in DeFuniak Springs
Big Bend Services, Inc. runs blower door tests on newly built houses in DeFuniak Springs, in ZIP codes 32433 and 32435. The Florida energy code requires the test on a new house, and the same code section sets an exception for additions and alterations.
Call (850) 819-6031 or send the form. Our office in Wewahitchka takes requests Monday to Friday, 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM.
Additions
Additions and alterations under the energy code
Section R402.4.1.2 of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation, does not require the test for additions, alterations, renovations or repairs to less than 85 percent of the building thermal envelope. That envelope is the layer between the heated and cooled rooms and the outside: the outside walls, the ceiling under a vented attic and the floor.
A room added to one side
The new walls, ceiling and floor become a share of the envelope, measured against the whole.
A garage turned into living space
Heating and cooling the garage brings its walls, its ceiling and the old door opening inside the envelope.
A porch closed in and air conditioned
Its walls and ceiling join the envelope. An open or screened porch stays outside it.
Work inside only
Kitchens, baths and floors redone without touching the outside walls, ceiling or floor leave the envelope as it was.
Booking
What to send with a DeFuniak Springs booking
Four details set a test date on a new house, whether you call or use the form. The owner of a new house can book directly, without going through a contractor.
Address
The street address of the house.
Permit number
The building permit for the house.
Ready date
The date the house will be ready for the test.
Site contact
The person who opens the house on the day, with any gate code or lockbox needed to get in.
Several houses
A line with these four details for each one, since each house is tested on its own.
When a new DeFuniak Springs house is ready
The code allows the test any time after every opening through the thermal envelope has been made. On a new house, that means the plumbing vents and hose bibs, the outside lights and outlets, the electrical service, the refrigerant and condensate lines, the dryer vent, the range hood duct, the bath fans and the attic hatch are all in. An opening made after the test is not part of the reading, so trades with late work need to know the test date.
The boundary
Where the measured boundary runs on a new house
The attic and an attached garage decide how much of the building sits inside the test.
Vented attic
The attic sits outside the test, and the ceiling below it is the boundary.
Attic sealed at the roof deck
The attic is opened to the house for the test and measured with it.
Attached garage
Outside the test when it is not heated or cooled. The wall and the door between the garage and the living area are measured as part of the boundary.
A room over the garage
When it is heated and cooled and the garage is not, the floor between them is part of the boundary.
Test day
Setting the house up in DeFuniak Springs
These conditions hold for as long as the test runs.
Outside
Exterior windows and doors closed, but not sealed or taped. An open window adds a gap the house will not have, and tape hides one it will have.
Fireplace and stove
Their doors closed.
Dampers
Exhaust, intake and flue dampers closed, as they sit when the fans are off.
Inside
Interior doors open where they are installed, so every room reaches the same pressure.
Equipment
Heating and cooling turned off, since a running air handler pushes its own air against the fan.
Registers
Supply and return registers fully open where they are installed.
How the test is run on a new house
A fan goes into an exterior doorway, set in a frame and panel that fill the rest of the opening. It moves air through the doorway until the house is held at the test pressure, and the amount of air it has to move to hold that pressure is what the reading is built from.
The limit a new DeFuniak Springs house has to meet
Section R402.4.1.2 allows a new house no more than 7 air changes per hour at 50 pascals in Climate Zones 1 and 2, and Table R301.1 of the code places Walton County in Climate Zone 2. A reading at or below 7 is within the limit. Above 7, the leaks are corrected and the house is tested again under the same conditions as the first test.
Scope
What a DeFuniak Springs reading leaves out
The reading is about air leakage through the shell alone.
Insulation
How much insulation is in the walls and attic is covered elsewhere in the energy code.
Windows
Window and glass door energy ratings are not part of it.
Equipment
The size and efficiency of the heating and cooling system are not rated.
Crews in the house on test day
Other work can go on around a DeFuniak Springs test as long as the house stays in the test-day set-up and nobody uses the doorway the fan is fitted in. Tell the trades on site the test date when it is set, so the day is planned around it, and let the person opening the house know which crews will be there.
Finish work
Work that does not hold up the test
Work that stays inside the envelope, or outside the house altogether, leaves the reading as it is, so these crews can work before the test or after it.
Paint and flooring
Wall paint, tile, wood and carpet go on surfaces already in place.
Trim, cabinets and countertops
All of it sits inside the rooms.
Driveway and landscaping
Both are outside the house.
Other services
Other work for a new DeFuniak Springs house
Gutters, a garage door and wire shelving for the same house are booked through the same office.
Gutters
Seamless gutters formed on site to each roof edge, scheduled around the builder.
Garage door
A new door measured to the opening, with a new opener if wanted.
Wire shelving
Closets, pantry and laundry room, supplied and installed.
Same county
Blower door tests in nearby Walton County towns
What to expect
Booking a test in DeFuniak Springs
- 1
Send the build details
Address, permit number and when the house will be ready.
- 2
Test booked
We give you a date for the test.
- 3
Test run
The house is tested once it is ready.
- 4
After a failed test
Corrections are made and the house is tested again.
What does air changes per hour mean?
Is the floor of a raised house part of the test?
Is the limit different in winter or summer?
What does 50 pascals equal?
Does the reading say where the leaks are?
Can the test be run before the drywall is up?
Get a quote
Request a Blower Door Test in DeFuniak Springs
Use the form to book a test on a new DeFuniak Springs house, and the office will follow up.
