The
Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index
is a measurement of a home's energy efficiency, based on detailed
modeling of the entire building and its systems. They are used to ensure
homes meet current efficiency standards, and are flexible enough to
allow trade-offs in ways that previous prescriptive codes couldn't.
Vestal Energy is a
RESNET
certified HERS Rater, providing builders and contractors with the
ratings required for Stretch Energy Code compliance and other energy
efficiency programs. More and more municipalities are adopting
performance-based energy codes, requiring third-party verification.
Vestal Energy is licensed to perform these ratings, and offers
professional guidance on how to achieve the necessary scores.
Most
communities in Massachusetts
have adopted the Stretch Energy Code, which requires either a HERS
Rating or Passive House certification for new homes. With the
2023 updates
now in effect, the target rating scores are lower, and a HERS Rating is
the only allowed pathway for large additions and major renovations.
Additions that are over 1,000 SF or that exceed 100% of the existing
floor area now need a HERS rating, as does any
Level 3 Alteration
(over 50% of building area).
There are additional codes and programs that rely on HERS Ratings and
HERS Raters, including tax rebates and other incentives in
Massachusetts, New York,
Vermont,
Connecticut, and
New Hampshire. Vestal Energy can provide the ratings to take advantage of the
programs in these and other states.
