Advancing retrofit assessment in disadvantaged communities: A multimodal framework for evaluating low-budget weatherization programs

Abstract

Energy burden poses a significant challenge for disadvantaged communities, exacerbating health issues and hindering efforts for preserving legacy homeownership. While many residential energy efficiency programs and incentives exist, they often fail to reach their target audiences or achieve their intended impact. A procedure for identifying the extent of weatherization’s impact and the effectiveness of diverse strategies aimed at capturing that impact needs to be developed. Therefore, this research study utilizes data collected through a low-budget pilot weatherization program, implemented in 16 households in Atlanta, to evaluate retrofit effectiveness across four different metrics: (a) blower door test results or airtightness of a building envelope, (b) infrared thermography or visual evaluation of building envelope, (c) energy consumption through weather-normalized utility bills, and (d) surveys and interviews with participants. These metrics are standardized using percent differences calculated from pre- and post-retrofit data, resulting in the following observations (a) 25 % decrease in air leakages, (b) 79 % decrease in building envelope anomalies, (c) 9 % decrease in energy consumption, (d) 92 % increase in indoor comfort. While the blower door test and utility bill analysis provided the most reliable indicators of the impact of weatherization on energy consumption, survey results more effectively captured the effect on thermal comfort. Post retrofit analysis revealed greater thermal comfort improvements in initially poor condition households, despite some remaining “leaky”. Four out of six interviews conducted 4–5 months after retrofitting reported reduced utility bills, resulting in a decrease in energy burden for participants.