>> Coming up, on Home Diagnosis.

We all love a good flip, right?

But really-- >> If you haven't addressed the performance problems, then you will end up living in an old, leaky house that has new makeup.

>> My wife's in a nursing home, and I just wanna know if I should leave it like it is and sell it for what I can get.

>> Building, and renovating, is hard work.

>> And I'm sure it can be done, but again, it's the cost.

>> If we didn't give them the right information, they could totally go down a very long and expensive path.

>> Home Diagnosis is made possible by CPS Products, provider of indoor air quality products and test tools.

FLIR, maker of infrared thermal cameras for homeowners and building professionals.

And by Hayward Score, and Healthy Indoors magazine.

And by generous support from these underwriters, and by viewers like you.

Thank you.

>> Welcome to Home Diagnosis.

>> Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably heard about flipping a house.

But there's a lot more to it than what's normally portrayed on TV.

>> Yeah, if you are flipping a house or you're buying one, you need the home performance metrics to make sure you're setting yourself up for success.

>> In Rochester, a father-daughter team reached out to us to get the facts before they flipped.

>> Hi, I'm Corbett.

>> And I'm Grace.

>> Since we met, we've been partners in everything.

>> In work, in life, and in love.

>> Fast forward to now, we've created careers in home testing, building science-- >> And started a family.

>> We also built a tiny lab.

>> To get people thinking about their home's problems dynamically.

>> We use scientific testing to diagnose a house's problems.

>> Because more than comfort, energy, or safety, it's about gaining control of your home.

>> And with two cats, two kids, and 200 square feet-- >> We know this intimately.

[music] We all love a good flip, right?

New countertops, maybe knock out a wall and open it up, but really-- >> If you haven't addressed the performance problems, then you will end up living in an old leaky house, that has new makeup.

>> In Rochester, Michelle reached out to us because her father, Ken, was thinking about selling his home.

>> And they wanted to know what performance benefits it already had that they could market, also what they should do before they put it up for sale.

>> So Ken, you've lived here for 30 years, Michelle is your daughter.

Why have you called us here today?

>> Well, I was just wondering if insulation is enough, and the house is air-tight.

And see if I can find some way to cut down on the utility bills.

>> They wanted to know if they should hire a contractor to come in and try and flip the house, or if there was anything that they could do on their own.

Michelle, what are your concerns with this house?

>> So, I had my house done with air sealing.

It was air sealed top and bottom, basement and attic.

There was nothing in it before.

And I know the difference between a house that has been done and a house that hasn't been done.

And I'm so much more comfortable, I feel better, and I'd like the same for my dad.

>> What have you done to the house over the 35 years that you've been here?

>> Oh, gosh.

First thing we did was put a porch on.

And then we remodeled the bathroom, put new carpets all through the house.

I love it.

If it wasn't so big, I would probably stay, if I put a tiny house right here.

You know?

>> How long are you guys planning on staying here?

>> Well, I've been here 35 years, and, uh, my wife's in a nursing home, and I'm wading around in here like a ping-pong ball.

So, I'm thinking of downsizing.

And I just wanna know if I should put more into the house, to get more out of it.

Or if I should leave it like it is and sell it for what I can get.

>> Home performance testing can help you maximize your value when it comes to buying and selling, or flipping a house.

>> As evidenced by this show being on your TV, people are learning more about this.

And if you're selling and you don't know what somebody with a little infrared camera in their pocket might find when they come to inspect your house, you're in a bad position.

Likewise, if you're buying a place, you have no idea how it's gonna perform, you're doing your family a major disservice.

>> This is the kitchen.

It's all been remodeled.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> When we moved in, we had all antiquated cabinets in here, and not enough cabinet space.

And that whole wall over there was flat against where the door is.

>> Okay.

>> And the wife wanted a powder room in there.

>> Sure.

>> We tore out all the cabinets, everything.

The dishwasher didn't work, so we put in a brand new dishwasher, all new cabinets.

>> So, you did your own flipping of this house when you got it, and remodeled quite a bit.

>> Yeah.

>> When it comes to flipping a house, there are a lot of misconceptions out there.

First of all, that if it looks great, it's gonna be great.

Second, that drywall can fix everything, and third, that it's gonna be cheap and easy, you're gonna make more money when you do it.

>> This room is connected to the garage, and then we also have outside.

Do you ever feel any comfort issues in here?

>> No.

>> No?

>> No.

>> The garage helps keep that door warm?

>> Yeah, it's cold.

It's actually-- it should be a fire door.

And they didn't catch it at closing.

>> So, that's something that you might have to do before you sell.

>> Right.

And I had a guy appraise the house already.

He says, "That's one thing "they're gonna want "is a fire door."

And that whole section right there, from the door, it was an add-on.

They had a one-car garage there, but when they put the add-on, to make the kitchen bigger, the car wouldn't fit.

>> So, this is a beautiful front room.

>> It is.

It's a real nice front room.

>> So, how is this room heated?

>> Well, from the same furnace that heats the whole house.

>> Okay.

>> Forced air.

No baseboard heat at all.

>> I see a little bit of water damage right here.

>> Yeah.

>> What's that from?

>> There was a vent up on the roof, and when it snows, and it blows hard, it blew right up underneath the vent and dropped right into the blind attic.

>> Wow.

>> And I had a guy come out, he had to cut a hole on the end of the garage to get into the blind attic, and he took out two five gallon cans of snow.

>> Wow.

That's a lot of snow up there.

>> Yeah.

>> Ken has a very typical American home.

It's called a split-level ranch.

>> All split-level ranch houses have the same feature which is so important for the performance.

It is the split wall.

The split-level ranch has this feature of a wall that separates a two-story house, from a one story house with a little crawlspace underneath it.

The crawlspace is connected via this split-level wall, with the attic on the other side.

So, this pathway becomes a major issue when you're trying to control the enclosure.

This split wall separating the two halves of the house is gonna be the source of a lot of performance problems, because it's a big breather to the attics.

There are two different attics, and both of them are gonna have access to this wall, so we're gonna really wanna test and find out whether that's a problem, or whether that was already fixed.

So, finding a home that has some very clear architectural opportunities, the split-level ranch element-- >> You have three bedrooms up here.

>> Three bedrooms.

>> That's always magical because those are the big juicy parts that we can improve.

>> This is master bedroom.

>> Okay.

So, in here, you-- you said it does get cold.

>> Right.

There's a heater run over there.

>> Uh-huh.

>> There's one behind here.

>> Okay.

>> It's gotta come all the way up from downstairs, to run through on the outside of the walls.

So, it's cooling the heat down before it even gets up here.

>> I see.

So, what do you do in the winter when it's cold in here?

>> Add more blankets.

>> Ken had lived in this house for many years.

They had raised their children in it, and whatever home performance problems had presented themselves, Ken had adapted to them.

>> But his daughter, Michelle, when he said he was thinking about selling, thought, "There might be some problems "for potential buyers here."

Let's figure out what they are, so we can know the score.

>> One of the charming parts of vintage homes, are built-in cabinets.

Now, built-in cabinets are super cool, right?

They're great to have, except for it's a box, and this goes all the way up to the top of our enclosure, so it's gonna cause some performance problems, and not only does it go into the enclosure, but it also houses two plumbing stacks, because you have one, and two.

>> We love finding what we call opportunities for improvement, that a homeowner might think are problems, but really to us, it's all like, "Wow, this is "a magical playground "where we can really use some "things to make it better."

>> All right Ken, so this is the downstairs level.

You have a laundry room, a bathroom, and you have a stove.

>> Yes.

>> So, what would you do to this room if you were gonna renovate before you move?

>> Well, I wouldn't do anything to it.

Because there's too much money involved, because the heat runs are all in the floor, and all the pipes run underneath the floor, so consequently by the time the heat gets from the furnace over there, you lose all the heat.

>> Some of our biggest fears with helping Ken and Michelle were helping them achieve this goal of deciding whether or not to flip the house.

>> So, the ducts are in the slab?

>> Right.

>> The drop ceiling changes level.

Why?

>> Because this is the cool air return.

It goes to the furnace.

What they would have to do is run the heat runs over through the ceiling, somehow.

And I'm sure it can be done, but again, it's the cost.

>> If we didn't give them the right information, they could totally go down a very long and expensive path.

>> In the sunken lower level, technically a basement, we have floor registers, which means that the ducts are buried in the slab.

Now, since we can't see them, I'm a little concerned and I wanna know what's going on down there.

So, when we take a look, you can clearly see that number one, everything is rusted out pretty seriously.

There are moisture issues.

That means that there are probably holes in the duct work.

We obviously have some moisture problems in this duct system, and we wanna know what it's doing to the house-- if you're gonna bury ducts underground, and then blow really cold air conditioned air through them, or hot air that you want to maintain its heat.

In either case, number one, it's gonna be giving up a lot of its conditioning on the way out here, and number two, it's gonna be picking up a lot of moisture on the way.

So, we're gonna now have to deal with that by installing a dehumidifier in the house.

>> So Ken, what does this lead to?

>> This leads to the crawlspace, with all the utilities.

The furnace, hot water tank.

And a sump pump.

>> And a sump pump.

That's Corbett's favorite place.

[chuckling] >> Out back, there are a few things that you would want to note if you're gonna be buying this house after its flipped.

Number one, air conditioner.

Air conditioner says on the top highly efficient.

Don't believe anything that's printed on the top of an air conditioner.

So, we'll wanna test this to make sure it's actually performing the way that it's supposed to.

Over here, we have what is called a sealed combustion furnace flue.

This is important for two reasons.

Number one, it means that the house was upgraded so that the furnace now is protected from spewing any of its carbon monoxide that's created as part of combustion into the house, therefore your family is safer.

Second thing is, this is probably gonna mean that the house is more airtight than we would assume that it is, because it no longer is having this giant chimney that's wide open to take the flue gases outside.

So, safer and also tighter.

This last thing, though, might shoot that in the foot, because this is a vent between the crawlspace and outdoors.

And here we are on the other side of the vent.

We are in the crawlspace, and crawlspaces are supposed to technically be either connected 100% inside a house, or outside a house.

Well, a vent, is outside, right?

Right beside this vent, we have some insulation, so somebody thought, "No, no, "we need to protect this."

We have duct work.

Now, this duct work is not insulated, so someone thought this was gonna be inside the house.

Above my head, we've got cold water and hot water.

Again, the hot water pipe is not insulated either.

So, a crawlspace.

Do you want it inside the home or outside the home?

Until you do the testing, you're not really gonna know the answer to that question.

>> In our opinion, all contractors should be using testing, because performance metrics make everybody better.

Complicated systems, drywall, that can all be seen behind with the tools and techniques of the 21st century, so make sure that you know what is going on in the house before somebody comes along and tries to prove that it's not working.

Putting of the ducts and the mechanical equipment in a crawlspace is actually a pretty good idea because you've got a lot of room, and that's one of the problems with being an HVAC person is they never give you enough room to put your furnace and your air conditioner and water heater.

So here, we've got the space.

But it also means that we have to take care to protect the equipment.

So, first thing is, you can see here, we have an electric water heater.

Electric ones don't have this flue that's coming out of the top, and you can see here, that is the abandoned chimney.

What used to plug into that was the furnace, which is now a sealed combustion model, which is new and safer.

And if we had not replaced the water heater after it busted, as Ken described, we would have done what's called orphaning the water heater, which means that the water heater would have had to all by itself heat up the chimney, which can be a little difficult if it's this small, and clearly you can't fit a full size water heater in this tiny space.

So, that would've meant that we definitely would've had back-drafting of the combustion bi-products, which means carbon monoxide poisoning, which means moisture in the house, all that stuff that you just don't want.

>> When people hire us, one of the big things that they're always concerned about is the HVAC system, because there's a big notion out there that all duct work is bad.

>> That's not true.

There are plenty of people who can do the calculations and the planning to actually plot out exactly how the duct work needs to be laid out, so that your circulatory system matches up with the heart, which is your furnace or air conditioner, or heat pump.

Over here, we have the new furnace.

Now, the duct system this is plugged into, like Grace mentioned, is not air sealed, or insulated.

But it does have dampers on all of the ducts.

This is such an easy thing to do, and it should always be done because you always wanna be able to dial in exactly how much air is moving through each of these ducts.

In the Tiny Lab, we do have a ductless mini-split, but you can do duct work properly, and that takes planning, so that the person who's installing them does the calculations and design the circulatory system, but when we have changes that happen during construction, the poor HVAC guy shows up on site and says, "Wait, "that wasn't in the plans."

Now this plan is just a piece of paper, it doesn't matter anymore.

So, you have to make it up, and that's when things go wrong.

>> Smart building is always going to include home performance testing.

>> You always wanna test static pressure in ducts.

This is a static pressure probe.

I'm gonna take four measurements, and you should always ask for these measurements when you get your HVAC serviced.

Number one, is here.

Past the air conditioner coil.

The air conditioner coil is right here behind me.

So, this is where that cooling happens.

Number two, is right here between the furnace and the air conditioner coil.

Number three is inside the blower compartment, here.

And number four is past the filter.

Overall, what you're wanting to see is a low static pressure, just like a low blood pressure.

If you have a high static pressure, you're gonna have a heart attack or a stroke.

In this case, the static pressure is probably gonna look great, because we know for a fact, based on our visual inspection, that all of our duct system, our circulatory system, is full of holes.

So, just because we see great numbers on the static pressure, nice and low, doesn't mean that everything is good, and that the system is performing properly.

Because over here, is the hole in the slab where the ducts disappear into the ground, and you can see that they are all rusted out.

So, no matter how great the static pressures are, we know we wanna redo this duct system, and once it's redone, we want it sealed airtight, then we wanna worry about what the static pressure is in the system, and make sure it's nice and manageable.

If you're thinking about improving a home at all, doing performance testing first is a critical step because you wanna make sure that you take advantage of all the opportunities for improvement at once.

If you're pulling permits and having contractors involved, let's actually do some work that's gonna make a lasting difference.

>> And with home performance testing, you're gonna know your prioritized list, which is super important because you don't wanna do B, and then negate A.

>> And also, you wanna make sure that it's not all lipstick.

You wanna make sure that there are actual performance benefits involved.

So, this house's enclosure is from an era that tells us that it's probably a little air leaky, but it's also had some improvements that might have air-tightened it, and overall you just can't be sure unless you test it.

So, blower door.

Zonal pressure testing.

Infrared.

Here we go.

And in the crawlspace, we can clearly see that air is coming in around the gaps in the rim joist.

Now, right up there, it looks like nothing is going on.

Just a normal wall doing normal wall stuff.

But as we can pan down the wall, you can see that air is coming from the attic, down into the wall, behind that picture, and it's going all the way down, down, down, down.

So, if that air is going all the way to the basement, and this is the science that will prove to you whether you have control over your home's performance or not.

We put it in the built-in cabinets, and we get seven.

Now, this built-in cabinet is not any more obviously connected to outside.

It has on exposure on an outside wall, but it does happen to be located on the split wall, which goes straight up a floor and a half to the attic.

So, the air that's coming through this, that I can feel coming out, is coming from the attic.

Weird, but true.

And this is what that built-in cabinet looks like under infrared.

We can see what the house looks like it's doing, and what it actually is doing.

See how incredibly hot that entire split wall is because it has air coming from the attic now, down into the house.

As if we didn't have enough duct problems in the crawlspace, over here, we have a totally disconnected duct, and there's no air moving through it into conditioned space at all.

I wish there was a local hero who could help us solve these problems.

Oh, hey Jeff Flaherty.

>> Hey, Corbett.

>> Jeff Flaherty is an awesome guy, who actually is one of our mastermind students who studied with us for weeks to make sure he was on top of his performance metrics game.

How exactly are we gonna fix this place?

>> We have a lot of work to do.

We definitely wanna bring this crawlspace into the conditioned space of the home.

>> His company, Wise Home Energy, is fun because he's got this owl mascot he's always talking about new ideas for.

>> And Wise Home Energy's up in Rochester, right?

Which is at top of New York, near Niagara Falls, it gets really cold up there.

So, his business has got to be on top of its game.

>> That crawlspace vent is open, so it's leaking air right in from outside.

>> And not just air.

>> It is also leaking water and crud.

>> Gross.

Somebody like Jeff Flaherty also has been in a lot of these split level ranches.

So, how exactly are you gonna encapsulate the crawlspace?

>> We are going to foam up all that area, close up all the crawlspace venting, and insulate the actual walls.

>> Anybody who's a home performance professional will be familiar with the issues that are presented here, and know for sure that there are opportunities to fix it.

That being said, make sure you test, because it's always better to be sure.

Interesting.

Okay, so the cinder block walls are gonna be covered with insulation, that's gonna make this be crawlspace warmer.

What about the rim joist?

>> The rim joist we are gonna spray with a two-part closed cell foam.

It's gonna air seal it completely, and insulate.

We are going to close up all the crawlspace venting, and insulate the actual walls.

>> So, if the client is thinking about flipping this house, and making it a major renovation, as part of aesthetic upgrades, what are you gonna recommend with the rest of the HVAC system?

>> I would be recommending duct work be redesigned that's sitting right in the slab.

We'd wanna get that right out of there because that causes moisture problems, directly vent it right to the living space, air seal the duct work, test that it's air sealed, then insulate the duct work to make a completely encapsulated duct work system.

Now, on this side of the house, there's the front door.

This is the front of the house.

That's where my fresh air intake is located because, duh, if I park my house where my front door is facing something gross, I'm an idiot.

All of the exhaust is happening on the back of the house, which is this side.

Now, you'll notice that there is the exhaust for the stale air, which is through the bathroom, and again, we're gonna show you that.

But also the kitchen is magically on this side of the house.

That was not an accident.

When you're designing your house, you wanna make sure that you're taking an account of all of these geometrical patterns that might influence the invisible dynamics of the house.

>> Flipping a home can be a lot of fun, but it can also be a daunting process.

>> Having proof of a home's performance can make you smarter at flipping, selling, or buying.

>> And like Ken and Michelle found out, can save you from going down the wrong path.

>> That's time and money, which only home performance testing can deliver.

Now that we've tested the house, we have the results for you.

>> The tough thing about Ken and Michelle is, they specifically hired us to get the information and then potentially not use it.

>> Your house does have insulation in the walls and in the attic, because of the split level ranch structure.

This wall right here, the split wall, that is pretty wide open to the attic up top.

As far as the HVAC goes, you're absolutely right.

The fact that the ducts run into the slab, and up outside walls, is a problem.

>> We are coming in to diagnose their problems and give them the prescription for the solution.

>> In all cases, it's always better to know what is going on, and then you can make the educated decisions about making informed investments.

>> So, how do you feel now that you know this information?

>> Well, now that I've got this information, within the year I have to move.

Because money just isn't there.

I'm on a fixed income, and I really don't know that I could afford to do all this.

>> Mm-hmm.

As you get ready to sell this place, in our opinion, you stand to gain a lot by fixing some of the stuff beforehand, because first of all, you can put the performance features of the improvements that you're making onto the MLS.

>> These high performance features that can go onto the MLS, can actually help the realtor sell your home for higher value.

>> In this kind of a scenario, it's always important for us to try and remain as neutral as possible, and give the information and then let them make the decision while not trying to influence them and propagandize them toward one specific way of going.

So, when you're looking for a realtor, look for one who has home performance training.

Who understands how this stuff works.

>> Right.

>> I think it sounds like a plan, dad.

>> Yeah, I think it does.

I think we can work with it.

>> I think it'll pay for itself in the long run.

>> With your money and my money... >> Well, Sue's money dad, who are you kidding?

[laughing] >> If you're buying or selling a home, you know that it's a major investment and every penny counts.

Ken and Michelle were super aware of this fact.

You'll also be using the multiple listing service, and nowadays, home performance metrics are being added to the MLS, so if you want an edge on the competition, be sure to get those numbers.

[music] >> Home Diagnosis is made possible by CPS Products, provider of indoor air quality products and test tools.

FLIR, maker of infrared thermal cameras for homeowners and building professionals.

And by Hayward Score and Healthy Indoors magazine.

And by generous support from these underwriters, and by viewers like you.

Thank you.

>> Home Diagnosis is all about education.

>> Learn more about your own home's performance with our new online course for homeowners, and our Proof is Possible booklet.

You can find both at HomeDiagnosis.TV.