CEC Changes 2005 Duct Testing Rules

You Must Now Use New CF-4R Form and
Apply Slightly Stricter Compliance Rules

Effective immediately, there are two changes that affect all of your duct-testing verifications under the 2005 Title 24 standards:

You must use a recently revised CF-4R form.
Duct leakage tests must be “less than” or “greater than” specified thresholds in order to pass. Before, the compliance criteria was “less than or equal to” or “greater than or equal to” the stated percentages.

New criteria…	Applies to…
Duct leakage percentage < 6%	New construction or change-out with entire new duct system
Duct leakage percentage < 15%	Change-out, duct system is not new
Leakage to outside percentage < 10%	Change-out, duct system is not new
Leakage reduction percentage > 60%	Change-out, duct system is not new

In general, these changes mean that the maximum allowable duct leakage drops by 1 CFM. For example, for a 1.5-ton cooling system installed in a new home, the maximum CFM used to be 36. Now it is 35 CFM.

The California Energy Commission announced the changes last week, when it issued the new CF-4R form. The revised form incorporates the “less than” or “greater than” rule and makes some wording tweaks to particular measures.

You must use the new CF-4R form and adhere to the “less than” or “greater than” rule for any 2005 jobs you verify from this day forward. The revised rules do not apply to buildings that are permitted under the 2001 standards or to any 2005 jobs you have already verified.

What Every Rater Should Know
About Federal Tax Credits

Only HERS Raters Can Verify Builder Compliance

Thanks to legislation signed last year, builders can get a federal tax credit of up to $2,000 per new home if the home’s energy savings are 50 percent above the International Energy Conservation Code. Only HERS raters can verify builder compliance – making federal tax credits a potential opportunity for you to win new business.

Reaching the tax-credit compliance level is not pie in the sky: It’s doable for California builders. Ken Nittler, a member of California Association of Building Energy Consultants, analyzed the tax-credit energy savings. He found that on average California’s Title 24 standards produce about 28 percent higher savings than IECC – and this number climbs to 37 percent in certain climate zones. Builders start out more than halfway to the tax-credit goal of 50 percent savings just by complying with Title 24.

So what do you need to do to cash in?
First, there are a couple legal hoops you’ll need to jump through. Before you can verify a builder’s tax-credit compliance, you must: 1) carry a professional liability insurance policy, which you can purchase through RESNET, of at least $500,000, and 2) send RESNET a signed declaration that you have the insurance and will accurately verify compliance.

Two, you’ll need to get special tax-credit training and certification. The tax-credit guidelines are more stringent than Title 24, but in most cases, can be reached without going all the way for ENERGY STAR compliance. That means there will be special protocols you’ll need to perform for builders who go after the tax credits.

So what is CHEERS doing to help you?
First and foremost, CHEERS is working with large players in the energy-efficiency and homebuilding industries to increase builder participation in the tax-credit program – and therefore drive more business your way.

Second, we are in the process of developing a tax-credit training and certification curriculum, and updating our computer systems to make it easy for you to perform these verifications.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be giving you more information about the tax credits and how you can get certified to take advantage of this potential new demand for your services.

Registering as a Tax-Credit Rater With RESNET

HERS Mobile Lands Cover of
Mobile Enterprise Magazine

HERS Mobile, the first HERS-verification tool for PDAs, continues to make national news. The innovative technology, which helps raters perform faster, easier verifications, is the cover story for Mobile Enterprise magazine’s June issue.

CHEERS is currently preparing to roll out version two of HERS Mobile, which will enable you to do HVAC change-outs and 2005 verifications right from a handheld device. No more hauling binders and to-do lists into the field, and no more data entry afterward…just more time to grow your business.

CHEERS Rater Liaison:
Your Go-To Guy For Questions

Ever been stumped in the field and wished there were someone you could call for help? Can’t figure out how to enter something into the CHEERS Registry? Don’t understand a new regulation? Meet Keith Telligman, in the newly created position of rater liaison.

Keith joined CHEERS in April. He has nearly 10 years’ experience in technical support, coupled with 17 years in the computer-repair and installation business. Keith has hands-on construction experience from doing general-contractor work, and he has already completed the CHEERS Core Certification training. (In fact, he scored 100 percent on the test.)

You should rely on Keith as your single point of contact for all technical or verification-related questions. If he doesn’t have the answer, he will research your issue and get back to you.

“CHEERS created the rater liaison position because we know how complex the 2005 standards are and how important raters are to CHEERS,” explains Tom Hamilton, CHEERS executive director. “We’re giving raters a single, dedicated source of information. Now you have one knowledgeable person to call when you need help – not a faceless answering machine. That’s one way CHEERS stands out from other HERS providers.”

Contact Keith at 818-407-1500 x. 103.

CHEERS also welcomes Lisa Molina as the new executive assistant. Lisa handles billing, training-class registration and general office support. She’s also the friendly voice on the other end of the line when you call. Lisa has spent the last six years supporting executives at law firms and Fortune 500 corporations. Make sure to welcome her to CHEERS!

Contact Lisa at 818-407-1500 x. 100.