A new high-tech tool is helping Buckeye Rural Electric Cooperative perform energy audits.

The Fleer handheld infrared camera was added to the tool kit of Consumer Services Manager Russ Elliott in early winter. Shaped and sized like a large flashlight, the camera “sees” heat and records color or black-and-white thermal images, which can be transferred to a computer via an USB cable.

A smaller cousin of the infrared camera used by BREC’s Operations Department for several years to troubleshoot substations, transformers, regulators, switches, and power lines, the handheld model will be used to gauge the integrity of household “energy envelopes,” said Elliott.

“When we perform an energy audit or investigate a high bill complaint, the question of energy use often boils down to structural issues. Is there enough insulation in the walls or overhead? Where are the points of heat loss? Are the windows and doors efficient enough?” he explained.

The infrared camera will allow BREC to “see” behind walls, under floors, into ceiling spaces, and other areas where the naked eye might not detect a problem but where heat loss occurs.

“No one has to guess whether a room or an entire home has an energy problem,” Elliott added. “You can see it clearly on the thermal image and record it, along with the temperature variations. It’s been amazing to me how sensitive this camera is and how much it has helped assess energy efficiency.”

Steve Oden, who oversees BREC’s Member Services Department, said a mobile printer has been ordered to allow co-op energy advisors to output the thermal images from mobile offices in their trucks.

“We will leave copies of the infrared photos so folks can have a reference point for making repairs or improvements,” he added.