Faulty furnaces cause deadly explosions, and create poisonous spillage of combustion gases, but can be prevented through Home Performance Testing by BPI Certified Professionals
CHICAGO, Nov. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Home Performance Expert Corbett Lunsford (BPI Certified Professional, Trainer, and owner of Green Dream Group) expressed regret about the deadly explosion that occurred in Indiana over the weekend. "The real tragedy is that if this was a faulty furnace it could have been prevented. Cleaning and servicing your furnace is not a bad idea, but it doesn't give you the full picture of your home's performance, particularly if your home could come close to killing you quickly or slowly."
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121114/PH12395 )
Despite millions in government spending put towards training energy auditors and building energy efficiency infrastructures, the government-funded programs have failed to market to consumers about the added benefits of health, safety, and comfort. The argument is being made that this explosion could have been prevented had there been better consumer education, but unfortunately Home Performance Testing is not a common sense practice for homeowners and most people, regardless of class or education, don't know what the industry even does, how much to pay for the services, nor where to find them.
To use an incredibly simple comparison, your home is like your body. If you have a stomach ache, you visit a Doctor for a diagnosis before asking a surgeon to have your appendix removed. The same is true with homes: if a home has comfort or energy problems, you should call a Home Performance Professional to analyze the problems before seeking bids on upgraded appliances or window replacements. Just as your appendix might not cause your stomach ache, the appliances or windows are likely not a realistic solution to increasing your home's comfort, energy efficiency, durability, and safety.
How does a Home Performance Analysis prevent a deadly home explosion? BPI Certified Professionals are trained not only to pinpoint how best to prioritize your home improvements, but more importantly to ensure there are no safety issues before or after the improvement. In fact, the motto of BPI (the Building Performance Institute) is "Do No Harm" because many common home improvements can actually create fire hazards and carbon monoxide poisonings. "Every homeowner should have a comprehensive Home Performance Analysis. Not only will you get a complete understanding of your home's systems, you'll be able to solve immediate problems like combustion safety and gas leaks (which we find in over 1/3 of homes) while still planning for improvements through the life of the home AND, more importantly, protecting your own life," states Lunsford.
About the Home Performance Pro: Corbett Lunsford, author of Home Performance Diagnostics: the Guide to Advanced Testing (http://buildingperformanceworkshop.com/homeperformancediagnosticsbook), is the founder of Green Dream Group's Chicago Home Performance division in Chicago ), serves as Executive Director of the Illinois Association of Energy Raters & Home Performance Professionals ), hosts the Building Performance Podcast, and is the YouTube authority on diagnostic demo videos. (http://www.youtube.com/greendreamgroup).
In addition to performing hundreds of comprehensive home performance assessments and new ENERGY STAR Home certifications in Chicago, Corbett presents at home performance conferences across the U.S.
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