What does an accurate Energy Rating Report look like?

One of the biggest issues we find in the home and commercial building energy rating industry is the huge discrepancy in pricing and turn-around times for a report. Energy rating businesses can take advantage of a lack of industry regulation and marketplace understanding around what a good energy rating should deliver.

This bears the question: What should an accurate and helpful Energy Rating Report look like and detail?

Unfortunately, not all energy rating reports are created equal. We are often contacted to review reports after designers and builders discover issues that result from recommendations not being viable. This may mean extra costs because of un-buildable specifications.

Below we detail what you should expect from a good energy rating report that has helpful and buildable specifications that will deliver long-term energy savings and occupier comfort.

This should also, hopefully, provide clarity as to what’s a reasonable price and timeframe to undertake the work.

What our Energy Rating Report details

At Floyd Energy®, we have two energy rating reports – Standard and Premium.

Our Standard Energy Rating Report is usually 6 pages of information plus the energy rating that will be achieved if followed.

This includes:

Our Premium Energy Rating Report includes all the above but with an extra page of further detail and analysis of the thermal elements pertaining to your project, such as glazing, insulation, shading, ventilation, thermal mass. This provides you with a greater understanding of how and why we’ve achieved the energy rating and the recommendations to deliver greater energy efficiency.

We’ve detailed a good report, we need to also discuss an unhelpful one.

We’ve seen them time and time again; a simplistic one-page report that only details the requirements for a home or commercial building to reach a minimum 6 star rating. That’s it.

They usually only detail one recommendation for each energy rating criteria (windows, ceilings, walls, slabs, etc) irrelevant of whether the material specifications can be sourced or built with your specific design and/or plan.

The biggest issue, usually, is the lack of material options for different locations of the home/building. For example, one window recommendation regardless of the building positioning.

There’s no clarity what method is used to calculate the rating or why. There’s no clarification of the starting (submitted) design/plan and what rating these would deliver. There’s no clear recommendations of how to increase the star rating to achieve the minimum 6 star rating requirement.

We must clarify that this type of report will meet a building permit application requirements, but is unlikely to be helpful in delivering a house or building that is actually energy efficient. 

What's the value in an accurate energy rating report?

If your quote is offering a report at a low cost and delivery time within 24 hours, consider what you’ll receive - what can possibly be analysed and assessed for that cost & time. Then consider the extra spend now on an accurate rating report and how that will save you in the long run and ultimately increase the value of the property itself.

If you're interested in the latter, we'd love to hear from you!

Passive House – For greater energy savings & occupier wellness & comfort

As part of the continual improvement and development of the Floyd Energy® team, Senior Thermal Performance Assessor & Production Manager, Kristin Rurade, attended a three-day introduction course on Passive House.  Kristin says it was “an inspiring insight into how buildings can be constructed better to improve the health and comfort of internal building environments, and making buildings low energy and more resilient”. (more…)

How to build an energy efficient, 6 star energy rating home

Why Passive Design is key to building an energy efficient, 6 star energy home

When we conduct an energy rating report, our thermal performance assessors will do more than input numbers into a software program to assess your home or commercial building’s energy efficiency. We understand there are a number of design and building practises that work together to deliver an energy efficient home and we always refer to what’s called Passive Design principles for the minimum 6 Star Energy Rating. (more…)

Why window selection is important for an accurate energy rating

How much emphasis should be on window selection when assessing a building design for a 6+ Star Energy Rating Report?

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Who is the Ultimate Client of a House Energy Rating Report?

Asking who the ultimate client is for a house (or building) Energy Rating Report is a question we ask all prospective Floyd Energy® employees in our selection process.  And, it usually leads to some blank looks and very interesting responses. (more…)

How to know if your energy rating report is correct?

Have you ever received an energy rating report that didn’t read quite right? How would you actually know if the advice you've paid for is correct or not? (more…)