Bigger or unusual job? Compare bids from local pros and you pick who does the work.
The service
What home energy audit is, what a visit covers and where the line is.
The short answer
A home energy audit is a walkthrough by a trained pro who looks at how the building holds heat and cool air. Home Energy Audit in Palo Alto is booked through pros who cover its 6 ZIP codes, in neighborhoods such as Old Palo Alto, Crescent Park, and Professorville. In Palo Alto, the dry season from late spring to fall is the easiest time for outside work, and the fall calendar fills before the first big rain. The audit identifies and ranks problems and does not do the fixes.
What a home energy audit visit includes
What is included depends on the jobs you pick and on how each pro sets up their visit and timing. You see the exact scope with each pro's price before you book.
- Whole-home walkthrough
- Thermal-imaging scan
- Insulation, window, and duct review
- Ranked list of fixes with payback
- Written report in your portal
Pick what is on your list
Tick what you want done, or add your own. Your list goes under the booking card and to the pro you choose, and you can describe anything else when you book.
Thermal and air leakage
Tick what you want done. One visit can cover several.
Tick jobs above, or add your own. Your list goes under the booking card and to the pro you choose, so they see exactly what you need before they arrive.
What shapes a home energy audit job
These are the things that make one job different from another. Mention them in your notes so each pro can scope your job properly.
What you receive
A home energy audit normally ends with a written report and a prioritized list of improvements. Each pro sets what they provide, including which tests are part of the visit.
- A written summary of the building shell, insulation, windows, ducts and equipment
- Thermal images that show heat loss and missing insulation, where the pro takes them
- Air leakage results, if a blower door or similar test is part of the visit
- A ranked list of improvements, with general notes on expected benefit
- Safety notes on combustion appliances, ventilation or moisture seen during the visit
- Suggestions on who to hire for each improvement, without doing the work
What is not part of home energy audit
Knowing where the line is keeps the visit on track and keeps you safe. When a job belongs to a specialist, NorTech tells you before you book.
- Installing insulation, sealing air leaks, replacing windows or repairing ducts. Those are separate services for the right pro.
- HVAC replacement or refrigerant work, and electrical upgrades. Pros who hold the matching license do that regulated trade work.
- Any job where labor and materials together reach $1,000. A licensed contractor takes that work on, and you are told before you book.
- Guaranteed savings on your bills. Estimates are informed but depend on usage, weather and how upgrades are done.
- Permit applications, rebate paperwork or program enrollment, unless the pro offers it.
- Opening walls or ceilings to see inside. The auditor reports what is visible and what imaging shows.
- In Palo Alto, city of Palo Alto requires permits for structural and electrical work. NorTech's handyman scope stays under the exemption threshold.
Plan your visit
How booking works, how to get ready, and what to expect where you live.
How booking home energy audit works
Say what needs doing
Add your ZIP and a few words about the job.
Compare pros near you
Each pro sets their own price and warranty. NorTech does not pick for you.
Book the pro you pick
Add photos and details on their page. Your card is held and only charged after the work and the photos.
Photos and a warranty
Your pro backs the work with a workmanship warranty — if covered work is not right, your pro makes it right, free.
Before you book home energy audit
Quick things that save a trip. Tick them off as you go; none of it is required to book.
Collect your recent energy bills
Gather 12 months of electric and gas bills, or download them from your utility. Seeing winter and summer use side by side helps the auditor check the findings against real consumption.
List the rooms that feel wrong
Note rooms that are too hot, too cold, drafty or stuffy, and when it happens. Comfort complaints point the auditor straight to problems like missing insulation or duct leaks.
Clear access to attic and utility areas
Make sure the attic hatch, crawlspace door, furnace closet and water heater can be reached. Move stored items away from walls and ceilings the auditor needs to scan.
Keep the house at a normal temperature
Run heating or cooling as you normally do on the day before and the day of the audit. Thermal imaging is easier to read when there is a steady temperature difference across the walls.
Photograph problems you have noticed
Take pictures of frost on windows, ice at the roof edge, drafty outlets or damp spots, with the date. They give the auditor clues that may not show during the visit.
Ask what tests are included
Thermal imaging, a blower door test and duct testing are not always part of the base visit. Ask each pro what they offer so quotes compare equal scopes.
Say where in Palo Alto you are
Add your neighborhood, for example Old Palo Alto, Crescent Park, and Professorville, or your ZIP code to your notes. Pros choose the neighborhoods they cover, and it tells them how far they have to travel.
How where you live changes home energy audit
Best time to book home energy audit
Thermal images are clearest when the inside and outside temperatures differ by a good margin, which is the coldest and hottest parts of the year. Pros often prefer the cooler part of a winter morning or the heat of a summer afternoon. In Palo Alto, the dry season from late spring to fall is the easiest time for outside work, and the fall calendar fills before the first big rain.
Often booked together with home energy audit
Book several services with one pro. Pros set their own bundle discounts.
Adding or topping up insulation is the most common fix an audit recommends.
Sealing gaps around windows, doors and penetrations addresses the drafts an audit finds.
Leaky or uninsulated ducts waste conditioned air and often show up in audit findings.
An equipment check shows whether the furnace or air conditioner is operating as it should.
Around Palo Alto
Where in Palo Alto the work happens, and the cities close by.
Home Energy Audit across Palo Alto
Pick your neighborhood to see what homes there tend to need. Pros choose the neighborhoods they cover, so enter your ZIP code to see who covers yours.
Cities near Palo Alto
Pros often cover more than one city. The rings show 5 and 10 miles from the center of town.
Other services in Palo Alto
Each one has its own page for this city.
Eichler interiors with their wood paneling and floor-to-ceiling glass demand careful, low-disruption painting that preserves the home's mid-century character.
See pros in Palo AltoPopular with the engineers and founders across Midtown and Crescent Park who want integrated thermostats, cameras, and lighting dialed in correctly the first time.
See pros in Palo AltoMany Eichlers run radiant heat under the slab, so providers approach floor replacement with the extra care those concrete-embedded systems require.
See pros in Palo AltoIdeal for pre-listing prep in Old Palo Alto and Professorville, where small fixes and a polished finish matter in a competitive market.
See pros in Palo AltoFrom craftsman bungalows near University Avenue to newer builds, clean drywall patching restores walls before a sale, refresh, or smart-home install.
See pros in Palo AltoA focused, written condition report on your home's plumbing — supply lines, shutoff valves, fixtures, and drains checked and rated, with photos of anything flagged.
See pros in Palo AltoTrust and answers
What backs the work, who is licensed and insured, what customers say, and your questions.
Backed by your provider’s warranty. If covered work fails, your provider makes it right, free.
Palo Alto homeowners
Home Energy Audit reviews in Palo Alto
Verified home energy audit reviews from Palo Alto homeowners will appear here.
Be the first home energy audit review in Palo Alto
Your pro backs the work with a workmanship warranty — if covered work is not right, your pro makes it right, free. Book with confidence and tell Palo Alto how your pro did.
Book Home Energy Audit in Palo AltoFrequently asked