Technology
While most issues in a home can be remedied, they require timely identification, prioritization and proper diagnosis first. Moreover, through proper diagnosis and prioritization, unnecessary expenses and health and safety risks can be reduced. When it comes to issues concealed from view, the human senses are not adequate alone for timely identification, prioritization and diagnosis. That's why technology can provide an important breakthrough for homeowners and occupants…
Advanced Sensing, Diagnostics, Evaluation & Analysis
"Home Analysis" and "Diagnostics" are terms we apply to an entirely new field of expertise for the home. It grows from an understanding that many details about the health, safety and economics of a buildings are complex and hidden from view.
"Home Analysis" includes the use of portable sensing instrumentation and data processing --- to form the foundation or technological basis of detailed on-site assessments. These assessments can be for purposes of broad evaluation, or they can focus on specific concerns. They can confirm and certify a building's premium condition, or they can investigate situations or symptoms whose root causes are concealed from view.
Our portable field laboratory/platform and sensing technology is a cost-effective, easy-to-use diagnostic capability that can minimize disruption to homeowners and occupants. For example, we can investigate many common concerns within the home, and can deliver accurate and reliable results with unusual speed. Equally important, we seek to deliver these results by using advanced technology, without disrupting building decorations, walls or structures.
The Benefits of Technology?
Our investment in technology and innovation has yielded several proprietary advances in sensors, information processing and building sciences. These advances can help to improve the health, safety and economics for building owners and occupants. Specifically, we deliver a new type of technological diagnostics related to the building, including evaluation and analysis of potentially risky and "non-visible" conditions & situations:
- Moisture, concealed leaks, and trapped vapor,
- conditions that promote mold,
- hidden wiring defects,
- hidden termites and ants infestation,
- escaping gases,
- exposure to electromagnetic radiation,
- exorbitant energy costs,
- other "hot spots" ,
- economic impacts,
- negotiating tools for home buyers and sellers,
- due diligence,
- a last line of defense, and
- much more
By combining research capabilities in a variety of disciplines, our technology can overcome limitations of traditional building evaluation and inspection. This means that you can be afforded insight necessary to own a safer, healthier and more economic home.
Is there a technical basis for your concerns?
Moisture, Leaks, Trapped Vapor
When its occurs, hidden conditions involving moisture, leaks and trapped vapor can become significant economic and health risks to all home owners and building occupants. Hidden moisture, leaks and vapor can lead to a variety of conditions including: building deterioration, infestation, bio growth, rotting, and other adverse conditions. Moreover, even leaks which are apparent may be difficult to diagnose or trace to their root causes. These adversities can result in ongoing damage, cause health risks and create significant economic loss. When losses are not covered by insurance or when the resultant risks interfere with the quality of life, then it the homeowners alone who must decide how to proceed.
Just like in medicine, early diagnosis and treatment is a key to preventing more serious consequences. For this reason, just like medical science, we utilize advanced sensing technology that enables the collection of data beyond just the surface. Our technology also "peers" into hidden cavities and three dimensional volumes of the structure to search for irregularities. Our portable technology also enables rapid generation of site-specific data and reporting ---- to quickly and cost effectively focus on targeted areas of concern. Simply put, we not only can help to localize the issue, but also we can help shed light on the root cause quickly and efficiently.
Bio-Growth
Despite broad-based concern and confusion about microorganisms, virtually every building has some level of bio-growth such as bacteria, spores, etc. Many of these tiny organisms, though not visible, are a natural and normal part of our living environment. Indeed, when properly balanced or managed, these tiny organisms play vital roles in food digestion, wine production, cheese and yogurt production, waste disposal, etc.
Unfortunately, it can be challenging to detect when so-called "normal" environments become breeding grounds for undesirable concentrations of microorganisms or microorganisms that poste particular health risks. Uncontrolled bacteria, mold, and mildew can leave difficult and costly situations. For example, it can lead to adverse health effects, odors, property deterioration and loss of property value.
The bottom line is that certain hidden conditions such as moisture, temperature, etc. can increase the substantial risks of uncontrolled microbial growth. Early diagnosis, treatment and prevention also can help to minimize the risks to human health, safety and economics. For these reasons, our sensing capabilities include moisture detection and thermal analysis. These capabilities are highly useful for cost-effective analysis and early detection/prevention.
Our on-site analysis and diagnostics includes technology and know-how that "sees" into the building and extends beyond the ordinary human senses. Working with our service partners, moreover, we can assist you in the routine collection of samples for laboratory assay. In brief, these capabilities can provide significant benefits to building owners, occupants and their families.
Hidden Wiring Defects
Fires are among the leading causes of accidental death in the United States today. According to the National Fire Protection Association, about one-third of an average 406,700 residential fires per year are related to electrical distribution or appliances and related equipment. Electrical fires cause an annual average of 860 deaths, 4,875 injuries and nearly $1.3 billion in property damage each year. Our on-site analysis and diagnostics includes technology and know-how that actively tests the wiring for signs of hidden defects, overloading, inadequate grounding, overloading, etc. Our service have shed light on wiring issues in newer and older homes alike.
Heating and Ventilating Efficiency
Heating and ventilating efficiency is core to environmental health, occupant comfort, and economics. You may wonder what the technical basis is to evaluate such questions as the following: Is there missing insulation in my ceiling? Why is one room always too hot or cold? Why is the utility bill too high? Is the HVAC system undersized or wrongly balanced?
Modeling and analysis can lead to better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of your HVAC system. Modeling and analysis can lead to cost-effective adjustments that improve building efficiency and economics. It also can help to improve occupant health, safety and comfort.
We developed proprietary technology to model and analyze the efficiency of a building's heating and ventilating. Our technology can help determine if a building's heating and ventilating is performing adequately, efficiently balanced, and whether or not certain cost-effective adjustments can improve the efficiency of the system and the overall living environment. We can also identify opportunities where small investment in insulation, rebalancing of the system, or other improvements might yield substantial ongoing savings.
Infestation
Infestation by wood destroying pests may not become visually apparent until after significant damages or losses have occurred. We use several through-wall detection technologies to aid in the early diagnosis of wood destroying pests. For our qualitative and quantitative tests, we includes moisture detection and microwave motion detection. Our approach satisfies three important criteria: 1) Assessing when visual signs of infestation are no longer associated with active and present day conditions; 2) Detecting active infestation that is concealed from view; 3) Localizing affected areas of infestation while minimizing the need to invade/destroying non-infested areas of the structure.
Electro Magnetic Field (EMF) Exposure
Elevated exposure to radiation or related fears can result in diminished property value and potential ongoing safety and health risks. In Europe, guidelines to limit certain types of EMF emissions have been adopted despite opposition from industry. EMF exposure can be attributed to a variety of sources, including emissions from power lines, cell towers, cell phones, televisions, wireless networks, etc.
We deploy technology that can test background levels of EMF radiation at a site. Our testing format uses several different data collection points indoors and outdoors at a given location, to obtain an overall understanding of the environment. We can express resulting data in understandable terms (e.g., compared to other routine exposures such as televisions and cell phones).
Should you be concerned or simply rely upon intuition. Our experience shows that EMF exposure cannot be intuitively evaluated. For example, some homes in the vicinity of cell towers and power lines show conditions well within European guidelines (no such guidelines exist in the U.S.) --- and others that appear to be similarly situated also show high levels of background EMF. Some residents of high density areas or buildings (or in locations packed with electronics) may also experience elevated 1evels of EMF exposure.
Our EMF testing capabilities satisfy at least three important customer criteria:
- Providing information to customers who are seeking to evaluate tradeoffs (i.e., properties near power lines and cell towers may be discounted, whether or not the background EMF is elevated);
- Enabling customers to become more comfortable with their living or purchasing environments;
- Enabling customers to adjust or evaluate specific life-style decisions within their own control (e.g., by testing the exposure, if any, due to proliferation of electronics, configuration of wireless networks, home theaters, etc).
Pre Certification Documents
How can this technology help enrich you or your family?
Our technology includes detailed reporting that is cost-effective and understandable. In many situations, our customers can utilize underlying data, reports and certification to help market their home as a premium property. Buyers are willing to pay premium prices for homes they believe to be in good repair. A home certified by Home MRI involves fewer risks to the home buyer, and most buyers are willing to place a premium on risk reduction and convenience. Additionally, a home certified by HOME MRI also involves fewer risks to the seller and their agents, since the seller has taken prudent and well-documented steps to support any obligations for disclosure. Through pre-emptive evaluation, moreover, the seller also can choose to make repairs in advance or to make as-is disclosures and terms of sale. This minimizes the chance that buyers and sellers will become caught by surprise in the midst of completing a sales contract.
Negotiation Support Documents
How can this technology help you to save money and become a savvy purchaser?
Our customers can use more detailed technical information not only for decision making support, but also to achieve substantial economic advantage. Our customer testimonials include customers who have achieved hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings by utilizing our detailed reports to help structure negotiations between buyers/sellers or renovation contractors. We provide technical data, including economic/cost data. This approach helps our customers to move negotiations away from emotions and towards an economic meeting of the mind between buyers and sellers.
