Course List

(0.5 CEU) WAP's goal is to increase the energy efficiency, reduce energy expenditures, and improve their health and safety. In this module, we’ll learn about the way the program is structured and how it has worked for more than forty years to improve dwellings owned or occupied by income-eligible persons.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the training on Developing Scoring Criteria. In this module, we’ll practice creating scoring criteria that can be used to make objective decisions when evaluating proposals. You’ll hear why developing meaningful criteria is an important part of getting the best possible product or service at the best possible price.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the Draft and Issue a Solicitation Training. In this module, we’ll provide an overview of what to include in a well-written solicitation, as well as some best practices for managing solicitation responses.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the training on selecting a subcontractor. In this module, we’ll practice selecting the best subcontractor for the job.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Crossing the Finish Line. In this module, we’ll provide an overview of the essential elements that WAP Administrators need to include in an effective subcontract to stay in compliance with regulations. We will also discuss the potential issues that may arise if a subcontract contains an ineffective Scope of Work.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the Client eligibility training: Meet Your Clients. In this module, we’ll practice determining eligibility and identifying what makes a building a good candidate for weatherization services. We’ll also cover how to apply the Department of Energy’s priorities for service.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Coach Your Intake Staff. In this module, we’ll identify strategies to support staff as they handle the more challenging aspects of client intake.

(0.5 CEU) It’s a Deferral, What Next? Welcome. In this module, we’ll explore a range of challenges - and solutions - that WAP Administrators face when dealing with applicants who may need to be deferred. We will practice determining when a deferral is necessary and how best to support clients through the process.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the “House as a System Training.” In this module, we’ll explore how the systems and occupants of a house interact. Specifically, we’ll equip you with information that will help you both answer clients’ questions and clearly explain why certain energy conservation measures are installed.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Understanding the Savings to Investment Ratio or SIR. In this module, we’ll learn about how cost-effectiveness is measured in the Weatherization Assistance Program, or WAP, and what can affect the cost-effectiveness of a measure and a job. This knowledge helps you more accurately respond to client questions.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the Federal Statutes, Regulations, and Grant Guidance training. At the Weatherization Assistance Program, we are committed to improving the energy efficiency, health, safety, and comfort of our clients, while adhering to applicable laws and regulations. Each of us shares the responsibility of meeting these requirements. Maintaining compliance is an important part of everyone’s role.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to “Is Your Work Order In Order?” In this module, we’ll practice reviewing the administrative aspects of a work order before a job begins.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to: Show Me the Money! Reconciling Invoices. Although the installation may be complete, a job isn’t done until all invoices have been reconciled and the project has been closed out. In this training, we’ll practice reconciling invoices with the work order.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to the Managing Assets and Inventory training. In this module, we will take a closer look at how Weatherization Assistance Program, or WAP, administrators can effectively manage assets, such as materials, supplies, tools, vehicles and equipment used in weatherization projects.

(1 CEU) Welcome to Basic Employee Management for Weatherization Directors. Have you or someone you know been thrust into the role of director with little (or no) experience managing people? In this module, you will learn the basics of motivating and maintaining high-performing staff within the context of the unique challenges and rewards of WAP.

(0.5 CEUs) Welcome to the training on how to Support Quality Work with Training and Technical Assistance (T&TA) Funds. Improving work quality is a key focus for administrative teams, and can be achieved by identifying and addressing training needs. And to do this, program administrators must know how to properly allocate T&TA funds to support investment in WAP staff and contractors. In this module, you will learn how to articulate the value of training as you address common objections to staff and contractor training.

(1 CEU) Welcome to the training about how to Request the Right Training for Your Agency. Knowing how to draft a Scope of Work for training makes sure that WAP agencies get training relevant to your needs, rather than off the shelf training that may not support your training goals. In this module, you will learn how to draft a Scope of Work tailored to your agency’s specific training needs, informed by work quality data and other metrics.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Managing Subcontractors. [pause] In this module, we’ll learn how to respond to common issues with subcontractors through effective communication and subcontracts.

(0.5 CEUs) Welcome to “Identifying Work Quality Issues.” In this module, we’ll practice determining the root cause of work quality issues. Creating a system to identify and evaluate such issues forms the bedrock of a continuous improvement process for your program. If you would like information on how to navigate this course, select the Navigation Tutorial button. Otherwise, select the forward arrow to begin.

(0.5CEU) Welcome to The Basics of Multifamily Weatherization. Incorporating low and mid-rise multifamily buildings into your production can offer opportunities to expand your program and serve many additional clients. In this module, you will explore the resources and procedures to build your program’s capacity and start weatherizing multifamily buildings

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Weatherization Budget Basics. Managing a complex budget and accurately along with DOE grant funds is necessary to ensure that weatherization projects remain fully funded through the project’s completion. In this module, you will practice categorizing expenses and identifying restricted budget categories that may impact how to allocate certain funds.

(0.5 CEUs) Welcome to Effective Production Planning. In this module, we’ll identify factors that can impact production and cause delays. And, we’ll practice forecasting the number of jobs to be completed in the program year based on allocations and spending thresholds.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Managing Multiple Funding Streams. For weatherization agencies, success depends on knowing when to accept additional funding to extend weatherization services and leveraging the flexibility of funding sources to maximize the number of homes to be served. In this module, you will learn how to evaluate funding from different sources and match available funds to expenses while remaining in compliance with all funder requirements.

(1 CEU) WAP Directors may need to modify contracts with the Grantee in response to changes in production capacity or adjust budgets to align with actual expenditures. To accomplish this in compliance with all regulations and requirements, you’ll need to understand the process to modify a WAP contract and budget. This includes understanding when funds can be transferred between budget categories.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to Track Production Budgets. Among the many tasks of weatherization directors, keeping an up-to-date account of the production budget is one of the most important. Having a current account of job costs contributes to steady workflow and meeting production targets. In this module, we will practice updating a job tracking spreadsheet and calculating the average cost per unit, so that you can proactively identify potential issues before they significantly impact your production goals.

(0.5 CEU) Subcontractor or Employee? Which makes the most sense. Welcome. In this module we’ll consider what goes into making the decision to hire in-house crew or subcontractors and determining what might be best for your agency.

(0.5 CEU) Welcome to “To Purchase or Not to Purchase.” In this module, we will practice making purchasing decisions using the requirements that guide use of WAP funds.

(2.0 CEU) Learn how to identify HVAC appliances, like air conditioners, heat pumps, roof HVAC units, and their major parts.

(0.5 CEU; 25 minutes) This 7-minute video explains the process of evaluating and servicing a typical residential HVAC system. The focus is on troubleshooting and logical progression of tasks.

(1.5 CEU) Understand how to locate the air barrier’s air leaks and explore techniques to correct common air-barrier problems.

(1.5 CEUs) Pressure is a physical principle that describes the difference in density, elevation, temperature, concentration (or some other measurement) between one place and another. Flow and pressure are related to one another. Pressure causes flow, and flow causes pressure. Pressure and flow together move towards equilibrium.

(7.0 CEUs) This lesson explores the nature of an air barrier, how to find air leaks, and how to seal ducts and the holes that ducts create through the building envelope.

(0.9 CEU; 55 minutes)  Airflow and static pressure are directly related to one another. This micro course gives you a quick rundown of how to measure static pressure and to make decisions based on your measurements.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson will help you separate baseload energy consumption from seasonal energy consumption. Monthly baseload consumption stays nearly the same throughout the year and seasonal energy consumption varies with the seasons.

(2.5 CEUs) Most building codes accept ASHRAE 62.2 as their ventilation standard. As a building-energy specialist, you must know what ASHRAE 62.2 requires and how to comply with its requirements.

(4.0 CEUs) Attics are usually the most important building assembly to insulate correctly. Attic insulation saves energy in both the heating season and cooling season.

(1.5 CEUs) Before insulators install attic insulation, they need to prepare the attic. Too many attics are insulated without sufficient preparation. Never insulate in attic without air sealing the attic first. Without good prep work, the attic insulation job won’t deliver its potential energy savings and may create problems. This lesson describes the steps insulators should take before installing attic insulation.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson outlines the most dangerous biological and chemical hazards that we find in buildings and on job sites. We discuss the personal protective equipment (PPE), administrative changes, and other actions to protect workers from these respiratory, hearing, and other hazards. 

(2.0 CEUs) Healthy buildings expel harmful indoor air pollutants through ventilation. Most modern, airtight buildings use mechanical ventilation to exhaust polluted air and replace it with fresh air.

(2.5 CEUs) Building-energy specialists use manometers to measure building air-pressures and blower-door airflow. Your measurement’s accuracy depends how you set up and use the manometer. Manometers have many different settings depending on the building and other factors. You need to know how to set up a manometer before you take a measurement.

(1 CEU) Building-energy specialists need to prepare the building envelope in a consistent way to conduct accurate blower-door tests. This lesson outlines how to prepare the building to energy-industry standards. You’ll learn how windows, doors, ventilation equipment, and combustion appliances affect measurement accuracy.

(3.0 CEUs) Describes the exact process of conducting a blower door test. Building-energy specialists can set up blower door equipment in a variety of incorrect ways. This lesson explains how to set up the blower-door-test equipment the right way.

(8.5 CEU) Blower-Blower doors give you an initial measurement of the leakiness of a building so you can budget the time and money for air sealing.

(2.0 CEUs) Test content: blower-door preparation, set-up, choice of settings, test results, typical problems, air-leakage standards, and manometers.

(2.0 CEUs) Blower door tests are essential to building-energy evaluations. This lesson covers the science behind blower door tests and how we use test results to evaluate building airtightness.

(3.0 CEUs) This course will prepare you to take the BPI (Building Performance Institute) Energy Auditor written exam and field exam. Practice the field exam by taking the 50-question exam in this course up to 3 times. You won't take the exact same exam twice because the 50 questions are taken from a 75-question selection. For the field exam, watch the video and study the reading assignments.

( 9.0 CEUs) Before we spend money on improving the buildings energy efficiency, we need an energy audit. There is quite a bit of math and other evaluation tools involved in an energy audit. You need a wide variety of information to evaluate a home and to write a work order. This topic focuses on improving your ability to evaluate buildings quantitatively.

(0.5 CEU, 30 minutes) This course presents a book summary of Building Expertise, Training For Performance Improvement. This book is an important and valuable guide for trainers, based on research by the University of California on training methods that work and don't work. We summarize the book in an 18 minute video and a two page handout.

Test content: the fundamentals of energy efficiency, building construction, building energy retrofit, building materials, and building construction.

(8.0 CEUs) This building science topic helps you understand how buildings work. Building science also prevents you from believing myths about buildings.

(2.0 CEUs) Test content: math reasoning skills, energy calculations, building characteristics, and knowledge of how professionals evaluate buildings.

(0.6 CEUs; 40 minutes) This micro course provides an outline of the components and terminology of heating, cooling, and ventilation equipment.

(0.5 CEUs; 30 minutes) When matter changes states from a gas to a liquid to a solid it's embodied heat decreases. If it goes from solid to liquid to gas it's embodied energy increases. These two videos  give you a comprehensible introduction.

(1.0 CEUs) Study the principles of combustion safety. Learn why combustion appliances are potential hazards, and how to inspect appliances for combustion-safety problems. Discover what you can do about combustion-safety problems when you find them.

(6.0 CEUs) Learn the basics of combustion safety testing & combustion venting systems, including chimneys, vent connectors and other components.

(2.5 CEUs) This course covers how combustion venting works and how it fails. You’ll learn the main types of combustion venting and their primary components, and how to match combustion appliances with right types of venting system.

(2.5 CEUs) This lesson presents the process of building a single-family home from the foundation all the way up to the roof. The lesson focuses on terminology because it’s important for everyone in the industry to use the same terms.

(0.9 CEUs; 55 minutes) Cool roofs are essential part to reduce electricity use for air conditioning and to keep buildings comfortable during increasingly hot weather. Four videos demonstrate how easy and straightforward it is to take a hot roof and turn it into a cool roof.

1.0 CEUs) This lesson covers the sources of heat gain in buildings. The lesson discusses how your climate influences electricity consumption for cooling. It explains common energy-efficiency strategies that minimize cooling costs by reducing heat gains

(2.0 CEUs) Learn to cool a home with only fans, for example: circulating fans, portable cooling fans, whole-house fans, and evaporative coolers

(1.5 CEUs) Crawl spaces cause many energy and moisture problems. This lesson covers how crawl spaces cause problems, and how you can manage crawlspace problems.

(65 CEUs) The main part of this energy auditing course presents the information you need to pass your third-party energy-auditor certification exam.

(0.7 CEU; 45 minutes) Dense-pack wall insulation is one of the most effective energy savers available to insulators and their clients. This introduction will show you the main tools and methods.

(2.0 CEUs) This lesson discusses the methods and materials of dense-pack wall insulation. Dense-pack wall insulation ensures that the fibrous insulation completely fills the cavity and prevents air circulation within the cavity.

(1.5 CEUs) This course is about retrofitting doors, which requires quite a bit of good judgement along with carpentry skills. You’ll learn about the most common problems with doors and how to fix them. We discuss the types of door weatherstrip and how to weatherstrip doors.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson covers the type of doors and focuses on insulated doors. You’ll learn how to select and install doors. We also discuss thermal resistance and air leakage around doors.

(1.5 CEUs) Learn The most effective methods to test leaky duct systems. Study how to locate air leaks in different types of ducts, and how to seal and repair the ducts permanently.

(5.0 CEUs) The duct blower measures duct leakage in two ways and pressure-pan testing helps to evaluate duct leakage and locate duct leaks.

(2.0 CEUs) A duct blower is a generic term for a device that is also called a Duct Blaster or a duct tester. Duct-airtightness testing can be a challenge, even for experienced building-energy specialists. This lesson discusses industry standards for duct-airtightness testing in detail.

(1.5 CEUs) Excessive duct leakage causes major energy and comfort problems in many buildings. This lesson covers why and how building-energy specialists test duct-system leakage.

(1 CEU) Ducted airflow, duct air leakage, duct heat transmission, and duct location are all affect the energy efficiency of forced-air HVAC systems.

(5.0 CEUs) This course explores the many aspects of duct energy efficiency, including these: duct air sealing, duct insulation, and airflow through ducts. The purpose of this course is to help you think about ducts holistically and to understand how ducts affect heating and cooling efficiency.

(1.0 CEU) Ducts located outside the conditioned space need duct insulation. Without insulation, ducts outside the thermal boundary waste energy and don’t deliver conditioned air to inside spaces efficiency. This leads to comfort problems, condensation problems, and high energy bills.

(0.7 CEU; 45 minutes) Building pressures cause the infiltration of outdoor air and the exfiltration of indoor air. Unbalanced airflow between supply and return ducts can cause positive pressures in some rooms and negative pressures in others. Duct air leakage in intermediate zones can make the building pressurized. 

(0.8 CEU; 45 minutes) Window shading is a vital energy retrofit for saving electricity on air conditioning and for providing acceptable comfort in buildings. This micro course introduces the three most economical options for shading windows. Exterior window treatments are far superior to interior window treatments (with the exception of window films).

(0.5 CEU; 30 minutes)This micro course contains a variety of information on the most common electric circuits found in buildings. We present electric circuits in two videos. The questions in the exam are based on the two videos. We also include two optional readings for some auxiliary information about electricity use in buildings.

(1.5 CEUS) Electricity has become an essential for our civilization. You need to know a little about electricity, how it creates heat, how it operates and controls devices, and how we generate it.

(0.5 CEU; 25 minutes) Electricity peak load is one of the world's most challenging energy problems. In the summer heat, the energy users of a particular utility company all need electricity at the same time. This peak load drives up the cost of electricity to consumers, our economy, and the environment. This course explains the problem of peak electrical load and how air conditioning contributes to that problem.

(0.5 CEUs; 25 minutes) Even though we depend on electricity for so many essential functions of our civilization, our understanding of electricity tends to be incomplete. This course is a good place to improve your understanding of electricity and how it relates to power and energy. The focus of this course is on units of measurement and how they relate to the way we use electricity and combustion in our modern world.

(65 CEUs) The main part of this energy auditing course presents the information you need to pass your third-party energy-auditor certification exam.

(65 CEUs) The main part of this energy auditing course presents the information you need to pass your third-party energy-auditor certification exam.

(3.0 CEUs) Test content: building science, building evaluation skills, heating, cooling, baseload energy, ventilation systems, and moisture management.

(0.9 CEU; 55 minutes) This course explores the contrast between homes in warm climates and cold climates, both in their seasonal energy use and their baseload energy use. This micro course also talks about how the percentages of electricity and gas usage varies throughout the year. This is important information for energy auditors and professionals who analyze energy bills.

(1.5 CEUs) HVAC airflow problems are difficult to diagnose and fix. Poor HVAC airflow can dramatically reduce building energy performance, even if the building is otherwise energy efficient. Never assume that HVAC airflow is sufficient for good HVAC efficiency. This lesson covers the causes and solutions of common HVAC airflow problems.

(0.9 CEU; 55 minutes) Storm windows are an underrated energy-conservation retrofit, especially since energy specialists have been installing low E storm windows. Although there may be some low E acrylic glazing, glass is really the only low E glazing currently used for storm windows. Acrylic glazing allows more infrared radiation out through interior storms during the heating season compared to glass.

(1.5 CEUs) Fibrous insulation is the least expensive as well as the most commonly used insulation. Fibrous insulation encompasses different materials and products. Wise selection and correct installation are important. This lesson covers the different materials and product types of fibrous insulation and their most important characteristics.

(2.0 CEUs) Air leakage is one of the largest sources of heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer. Learn about common air-leak locations found in residential buildings. If you can recognize these building characteristics, then finding the air leaks is simple.

(2.0 CEUs) Air leakage is one of the largest sources of heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer. Learn about common air-leak locations found in residential buildings. If you can recognize these building characteristics, then finding the air leaks is simple.

(1.5 CEUs) Foam-board insulation comes in different products that have different R-values and other varying characteristics. This course explains how to identify foam board insulation and how to use it.

(0.5 CEU; 25 minutes) This important 13-minute video discusses Fraud, Waste and Abuse by comparing good purchasing and hiring practices with bad practices. This video is relevant especially to government agencies and non-profits.

(6.0 CEUs)Study the operation of furnaces, space heaters and hydronic boilers. Learn to recognize the different types of gas heating appliances, to understand how they work. Choose simple decisions to make gas heating systems safer and more efficient.

(2.0 CEUs) Learn the different types of burners and venting systems, and gas-combustion. Study gas-combustion equipment types, and common heat-distribution systems.

(1.5 CEU) Gas furnaces come in a variety of designs and sizes, with efficiencies that range from 50% to more than 90%. This lesson covers the three main furnace types and the factors that most affect their efficiency.

(2.0 CEUs) Gas heating equipment comes in all many types and models. An energy auditor should be able to correctly identify these systems and explain how they work. This lesson covers the types of gas-burning appliances, their major features, and how to identify them.

(1.5 CEUs) Buildings are composed of parts that have geometrical shapes. That’s why we must know a little bit about geometry, especially for determining areas and volumes.

(0..5 CEU; 30 minutes) Includes a demonstration video on a home health and safety inspection and an overview of health and safety hazards. Materials include a few very informative reading assignments. Saturn's approach to home health and safety is to identify the most statistically significant hazards and to focus on them rather than making an endless list of things to be afraid of.

(2.0 CEUs) People need space conditioning systems because the outdoor temperature is different than the temperature that people prefer indoors. This lesson explains basics of how buildings gain and lose heat according to the season.

(0.5 CEUs; 30 minutes) Wall insulation is more challenging than floor or ceiling insulation because walls are vertical and experience the kind of chimney effect. This means they are more likely to have convection currents that reduce their thermal resistance, compared to horizontal building assemblies.

(7.0 CEUs) Identify different types of heating-and-cooling systems. Energy specialists must know how to provide safety and efficiency for HVAC equipment and to understand the basics of equipment service and replacement.

(7.0 CEUs) Identify different types of heating-and-cooling systems. Energy specialists must know how to provide safety and efficiency for HVAC equipment and to understand the basics of equipment service and replacement.

Tests knowledge of gas heating, air conditioners, heat pumps, the refrigeration cycle, combustion venting, & equipment identification.

(1.0 CEUs) Occupants experience discomfort, sub-optimal health, and reduced productivity in buildings that don’t provide adequate comfort. Learn how the thermal envelope, HVAC systems, and occupant behaviors affect the heating and cooling performance.

(CEUs; minutes) Heating load is a term that describes the capacity of a heater. Annual energy consumption determines how much energy a heating system uses in a year, and from that you can determine the annual cost of heating a building.

(0.3 CEU; 20 minutes) The video in this micro course provides you with a mental map of home-energy usage. The reading informs you about the relative amount of energy that the energy consumers use. Together, the two should help you realize the different ways of saving energy and the approximate value of each way.

(0.9 CEU; 55 minutes) Human comfort is what we try to achieve in buildings with heating and cooling systems. This micro course explores how the human body responds to heating and cooling systems. Some HVAC systems provide adequate comfort and some don't, depending on their operation and the human beings in the building.

(8.0 CEUs) Understand how HVAC systems work, and what you can do to improve their efficiency. This is our most advanced course on HVAC. This course for energy auditors and inspectors or anyone that needs a detailed introductory course.

(2.5 CEUs) Study the refrigeration cycle and how HVAC refrigeration systems work. Learn about problems that reduce refrigeration efficiency, and how to recognize refrigeration problems.

(0.6 CEU; 40 minutes) The HVAC refrigeration cycle is a very important concept in building science and HVAC. This micro course is a good introduction or a good refresher course, in case you haven't thought about refrigeration in a while.

(1.0 CEU) HVAC systems are expensive to replace. When we solve HVAC problems without replacing the system, we benefit our client. This mini course covers how to improve existing HVAC systems through retro-commissioning. Retro-commissioning evaluates the functioning of HVAC systems through measurement and adjustment.

(1.5 CEUs) HVAC systems are expensive to replace. If we replace an existing system, we should make it the most efficient systems that the client or organization can afford. This course covers how to make the best choices to either service the existing system or select and install the most efficient HVAC system the customer can afford.

(1.5 CEUs) HVAC systems are only effective if they distribute the right amount of airflow. Forced-air HVAC systems are notorious for air-distribution problems. You’ll learn how static pressures, equipment maintenance, and duct design affect airflow into rooms. You’ll also learn methods to improve forced-air distribution and solve airflow problems.

(1.5 CEUs) The pollutants that we discuss in this lesson are a risk to both workers and building occupants. Here are the most important pollutants: bioaerosols, lead dust, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and combustion products.

(1.5 CEU) This course will show you how to identify air leaks, missing insulation, and thermal bridging using IR scanner. An infrared “IR” scanner allows us to see heat transmission, thermal bridging and air leakage in buildings.

(0.3 CEU; 15 minutes) A factory-trained expert shows you how to install one-part and two-part foam as insulation and air sealing on new or existing buildings.

(1.5 CEUs) Insulation resists heat gain and heat loss in buildings. This lesson discusses the different types of insulation and how installers use those different types.

(9.5 CEUs) Know about the materials and equipment used in the insulation trade. Explore the most important characteristics of insulation materials and the most common ways to install insulation.

(2.0 CEUs) Test topics: fibrous insulation, foamboard insulation, spray foam insulation, installation methods, equipment, tools, and PPE.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson covers the most important installation issues you’ll encounter when inspecting insulation. This lesson covers how to evaluate the performance of installed insulation. Insulators should install insulation using established procedures that optimize its effectiveness. However insulators often install insulation incorrectly.

(2.0 CEUs) The Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) is a federal program created by Congress in 1979. Since then, WAP has weatherized millions of low income homes, pioneered many innovations, and trained hundreds of thousands of workers.

(2.0 CEUs) Lead poisoning in children has changed the way that we retrofit buildings. Whenever we disturb lead paint inside buildings, we need to follow rules established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

(1.5 CEUs) Electric lighting consumes a lot of electricity in buildings. This lesson covers the principles of lighting design and the impact of lighting selection on electricity consumption.

(0.5 CEU; 25 minutes) This micro course gives you a summary of low-cost cooling options including: shade trees, window treatments, whole house fans, evaporative coolers, and other options to minimize air conditioning costs.

(1.5 CEUs) Learn how to use low-energy cooling to minimize the amount of time that air conditioners operate. Strategies include cool roofs, window treatments, circulation fans, whole house fans, and evaporative coolers.

(8.5 CEUs) If we reduce heat gains, air leakage, and internal gains, we can use air circulation and nighttime cooling to reduce air-conditioning costs.

(1.5 CEUs) This course will refresh your memory about how addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division work together to solve math problems.

(0.2 CEU; 20 minutes) This 14-minute video explains how scientists measure the thermal resistance of insulation, using a guarded hotbox.

(9.0 CEUs) Mobile and manufactured homes are different in many ways from site-built homes. Insulation levels in the roof, walls, and floors are minimal. You will learn of variety of air-sealing, insulation, and repair methods in this course.

(1.5 CEUs) Air leaks into and out of mobile homes through predictable locations. Blower door testing helps energy specialists to evaluate the existing air leakage and to plan the air sealing work. Air sealing mobile homes is no more difficult than air sealing site-built homes and is often easier.

(1.5 CEUs) We begin this course by showing you how mobile homes are built. This lesson will explain how workers assemble the home in the factory, starting from the steel trailer up through the roof. The construction sequence and methodology is quite different from the methodology of building a site-built home.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson explains how to do major duct repair and duct air sealing. For example, sometimes the furnace and the main duct aren’t well connected, causing the worst air leak in the home.

(1.5 CEUs) Mobile home factories frame floors from 2 x 6 lumber. The floor cavities are usually uninsulated. The manufacturers insulate the floor with a long and wide blanket underneath the floor joists. A waterproof fabric or asphalt impregnated fiber board protects the insulation and subfloor for moisture and damage. Insulators blow fiberglass insulation into the floor cavities, using a variety of methods.

(1.5 CEUs) Older mobile homes have minimal amounts of roof insulation. There is usually room in the roof cavity to roughly double the insulation’s R-value.

1.5 CEUs) Mobile homes lack overhangs to shade windows. The roof colors of mobile homes are often a dull grey or a dark color of shingles. Learn about shading structures, solar screens, window films, blinds, and cool roofs.

(1.5 CEUs) Some workers think that insulating mobile home walls is either impossible or not cost-effective. Many weatherization agencies and private contractors insulate mobile home wall successfully, nonetheless. This course demonstrates two ways to insulate mobile home walls.

(2.0 CEUs) This test requires you to know how mobile homes get built in a factory, and their air leakage and insulation shortcomings. Test content: mobile-home construction, air sealing, duct sealing, along with roof, wall, and floor insulation. Our Mobile Home Weatherization Course is good preparation for taking this test, and you might not want to take the test without that course, unless you are very experienced working with mobile homes.

(1.5 CEUs) Moisture is most potent destructive force affecting buildings. Moisture moves through buildings in complex ways that are difficult to understand and control. This lesson discusses how moisture affects human health and building durability. Because moisture can damage buildings, how do we manage moisture to prevent this damage?

(8.0 CEUs) Learn about: moisture theory, vapor retarders, water barriers, site drainage, and crawl space problems

(2.0 CEUs) Some airborne moisture helps prevent dryness in a person’s mouth and sinuses. However, when there’s too much moisture in the air, that causes condensation on cold surfaces. Condensation damages buildings and encourages pests that cause respiratory problems.

(08 CEU; 40 minutes) Multipoint blower door tests are useful for harvesting a variety of diagnostic data that single-point test can't provide. This micro course presents two videos and several reading assignments on multipoint blower door testing with and without software.

(0.5 CEU; 30 minutes) The noninvasive superheat test lets you estimate the superheat of an air conditioner or a heat pump operating in the summer. Noninvasive means that we don't have to connect of refrigeration manifold and performing this test doesn't require a refrigeration license.

(1.5 CEUs) The pressure pan measures duct pressures during a blower door test. If you measure pressure at a duct register during a blower door test, that indicates that outdoor air is leaking into or out of the building.

(1.5 CEUs)Study the most important tools and methods insulators need to install insulation the right way. Learn about the blowing machines, hoses, power tools, hand tools, protective equipment, and work vehicles, used to install insulation in existing buildings and new ones.

(0.8 CEU; 50 minutes) Professional installers spray foam on surfaces and inject foam into cavities. Sprayed and injected foam are excellent choices for some applications. This micro course shows you a few examples. Spray foam is by far the most common of the two installations. And you can observe the coverage of spray foam. Injected foam is more of an unknown because installers inject it into closed cavities. Injected foam's success depends on experience and knowledge of the installers. Both types of liquid foam require a precise mixture and a narrow range of installation temperature. Shrinkage, voids, and cracking can be a problem.

Tests you on the knowledge, training, and experience of an energy auditor who’s been on the job between for at least five years.

(1.5 CEUs) This lesson discusses a wide variety of baseload energy uses. Home electronics and entertainment have grown to be a major electricity user over the past 25 years. Besides the basics, this lesson also discusses pools and spas.

(6.5 CEUs) Baseload energy includes water heating, lighting, and and refrigeration. Baseload energy may be up to half of the total energy that a building uses, especially in mild climates. Learn about the behavior changes, retrofits, and equipment replacements that save baseload energy.

(1.5 CEUs) Most attics and roofs require ventilation to protect the roof from ice damming, moisture damage, and excessive summer heat. This course covers important strategies to keep roofs and attics dry and cool.

(1.5 CEUs) What we call “pressure diagnostics” is a group of tests and observations that help us diagnose and locate air leaks. We do pressure diagnostics during a blower door test. We take measurements of pressure and airflow, which help us to know how leaky a building is so we can budget time and money for air sealing.

(35 minutes) This 10 minute video explains how to use manometers during blower door tests to find clues about the performance of air barriers. We call the tests contained in this video: simple pressure diagnostics. Find your reading assignment under the Materials tab. A short quiz will evaluate your retention of the important information presented in this video.

(1.0 CEUs) Ground water is one of the main causes of moisture damage to buildings. Buildings that direct ground water away from their foundations avoid moisture damage. This lesson covers design details that keep exterior water from wetting the foundation.

(2.0 CEUs) Many builders choose spray-foam insulation for their energy-efficient building projects. Spray foam has advantages over fibrous insulation materials, but it also has disadvantages.

(0.8 CEU; 50 minutes) This micro course outlines the most important concepts to understand how steam and hydronic heating systems work along with the problems that in fact these systems.

(2.0 CEUs) The most effective cooling strategy stops heat before it enters the building. Learn how heat enters buildings and the best strategies to stop heat gain. You’ll learn to limit heat gain in buildings, including: solar heat, air leakage, internal heat gains, and heat transmission.

(2.0 CEUs) Learn about the relationship between temperature, heat, sensible heat, latent heat, and how substances release heat and absorbed heat when there state changes from solid to liquid to gas.

(0.7 CEU; 45 minutes) How do we optimize the way we teach? Present summaries in your introductions, work from outlines to stay organized, resist distraction, put your ego aside, welcome trainees that may know as much as you do and ask for their help. Expect that learners can answer difficult questions. Use questions to stimulate discussion. 

(0.8 CEUs; 50 minutes) How do we communicate so that everyone understands us? How do we adopt good trainer behavior and avoid poor trainer behavior? Two videos and some handouts should put you on the right path.

(0.5 CEU; 30 minutes) This 10-minute video breaks down the components of summer heat gain’s including solar gains, air leakage, internal gains, and heat transmission. Understanding how our environment heats our buildings during the summer is essential to creating good summer comfort. Find your reading assignment under the Materials tab. A short quiz will evaluate your retention of the important information presented in this video and readings.

(0.5 CEU; 25 minutes) Thermal mass benefits some climates and building assemblies but not others. Study some scientific evidence on the value of thermal mass.

(1.5 CEUs) Unventilated roof systems or above-roof ventilation are more common in other countries compared to the USA. With conventional US vented roofs, the ventilation air flows below the roof deck. However, the less common solutions in this course have design advantages over the conventional roof ventilation.

(2.0 CEUs) We ventilate buildings to provide clean and dry air to indoor spaces. Without enough ventilation, buildings decay and occupants suffer respiratory problems.

(1.5 CEUs) In most buildings, walls make up the largest surface area of the building envelope. Because wall area is so large, insulators can optimize building energy-efficiency by installing wall insulation correctly. This course covers the following topics.

(5 CEUs) Wall insulation challenges the installer to insulate closed cavities. Learn the materials and methods of installing retrofit wall insulation.

(1.0 CEU) When water leaks into buildings, it damages homes and creates health problems. Learn how to always stop water before it enters a building.

(2.5 CEUs) Study the different types of water heaters, their characteristics, there advantages, and their disadvantages, efficiency, and operation.

(2.0 CEUs) Weatherization Assistant (WA) is a typical kind of software that helps energy auditors do calculations automatically. The Weatherization Assistance Program requires auditors to use the WA software or another software like it.

(1.5 CEUs) This course continues the discussion about types of ventilation systems designed to provide ventilation for the whole building rather than local ventilation for bathrooms, kitchens, and other places that produce pollution.

(8.0 CEUs) As we make buildings more airtight, we must install whole-building ventilation. Learn the building-science principles such as: indoor-air quality, air leakage, relative humidity, and ventilation strategies. Study a variety of different ventilation systems and how to install these systems.

(2.0 CEUs) Good window and door installers pay attention to details that prevent water and air infiltration. This lesson presents high-performance window and door installation techniques. You’ll learn the following window-and-door installation essentials.

(1.5 CEUs) Windows are the most complex topic under the main topic of the building envelope. They are expensive to buy and install. This lesson presents the economic factors to consider when making decisions about windows. We discuss incremental costs and four different ways of measuring cost-effectiveness of window decisions.

(0.9 CEUs; 55 minutes) This micro course provides a good outline and foundation of window performance and the effects of windows on comfort and energy use.

(1.5 CEUs) Windows must meet certain performance factors to deliver acceptable comfort and energy efficiency. Learn to select the right windows based on the performance factors described in this lesson.

(1.5 CEUs) Building owners select window treatments to improve building efficiency and occupant comfort. Window treatments insulate windows in winter and block solar heat in summer.

(9 CEUs) Understand the characteristics, performance factors, and installation procedures of windows and doors. Windows and doors present complex and challenging decisions for energy efficiency.

(1.0 CEUs) An introduction to types of windows, insulated glass, frame types, and the energy considerations of choosing a new or replacement window.

2.5 CEUs) This course outlines the most prevalent accidents, according to statistics, that workers face on the job. For each potential accident, we outline safe procedures for doing the job while avoiding accidents.

(8.0 CEUs) Understand the most dangerous hazards including: air pollutants, falls, back injuries, driving, confined spaces, and electrical hazards.

(0.9 CEU; 55 minutes) Naturally drafting combustion appliances often spill their combustion products and produce carbon monoxide. Worst-case depressurization testing is an accepted way to discover whether a particular heating appliance is spilling or producing CO during worst-case conditions.