Lesley Cowie

Becoming a BPI Certified Energy Auditor

lcowie — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:16:28 +0000

Anyone can become a BPI Building Analyst after sufficient training. However, it is an added bonus for those who have existing businesses somewhat within the energy efficiency industry. These kinds of businesses include insulation companies, HVAC contractors, window/door companies, general contractors, remodelers, and weatherization contractors.

Also, if you are in the communications and marketing departments of an energy efficiency company, it may be beneficial for you to sit through the training so that you can appropriately discuss and advertise the information.

There are all kinds of reasons why one may take a BPI training course. Those working in the industry will be able to add the BPI certification to their list of services and possibly gain more work because of it.

BPI Technical Standards

lcowie — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:14:33 +0000

When you take the BPI Building Analyst or Envelope Professional exams, you are allowed to take the BPI Technical Standards with you. The standards fill about six pages and contain various charts. If you enroll in a BPI training course, your instructor should provide you with the packet. This information is also available at the BPI website.

Information regarding the Building Airflow Standard, N-Factors in New York, and combustion safety are included in the BPI Technical Standards. You should browse through the packet prior to the exam so you know where to look when you are under pressure.

The testing screen should also provide you with equations and a digital version of the technical standards. You will locate this information by clicking on the blue question mark.

If you pay attention during your BPI training course, complete the practice questions, and familiarize yourself with the BPI technical standards, you should breeze through the BPI Building Analyst and Envelope Professional exams without too much of a problem.

Learn More about BPI

lcowie — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:12:38 +0000

The Building Performance Institute (BPI) is a nonprofit organization devoted to energy efficiency within existing residential homes. I have been looking for information regarding the organization’s history, and I have not been successful. I’m interested in learning when the organization began, who started it, and how it become one of the leading educational institutions for green building and energy efficiency.

I find it strange that there is no Wikipedia page for BPI and that the official BPI website has no mention of its history. I think certified BPI energy auditors should be interested in learning more about the organization they, somewhat indirectly, represent. It’s amazing that so many people have respected BPI and its standards, yet know so little about the organization. This goes to show that the BPI standards make sense and provide credible advice on energy efficiency. There is no faulting the organization on its ability to do good.

Leave a comment if you have some information regarding the history of BPI. I’m interested in simply learning more about the organization!

BPI Practice Exam Questions

lcowie — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:10:56 +0000

One of my favorite parts of my BPI training course was the practice questions. You don’t know how much you understand until you are put to the test. I found myself nodding along to the instructor’s points at times when I wasn’t entirely sure I understood. Fortunately, we were given practice questions at the end of each training module to test how much we grasped. There were usually between six and 15 questions, which was really beneficial for testing us.

Also, at the end of the course, there was a practice test with 75 questions. I used that as a study tool the night before the written exam. I scored surprisingly well. The questions weren’t as hard as I thought they were going to be, so that gave me confidence that the actual exam was going to be easy.

The concepts heavily pressed on us in the class were, in fact, on the test. My instructor made sure to emphasize that 3.5 cubic feet of blown cellulose is considered densely packed. I thought it was strange that he kept repeating that part. Sure enough, there was a very direct question asking how many cubic feet of blown cellulose is considered densely packed! These BPI training instructors know what they are doing.

What kinds of learning tactics did your BPI training instructor use? Leave a comment with some of the strategies that helped you learn all the BPI Building Analyst concepts. Practice questions and repetition worked well for me.

The Next Steps after BPI Training

lcowie — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:08:59 +0000

Once you become certified by the Building Performance Institute (BPI), lots of doors will open for you. Not only will you be able to conduct home energy audits, but you can also become an exam proctor (so long as you attach yourself to a BPI affiliate).

It’s very easy to become an exam proctor. You just have to fill out an application and read the code of ethics. Sign off on that information and send to BPI.

Being a BPI exam proctor should be pretty easy. It’s just like being a proctor for any other institution. You just make sure that the students are not using unacceptable notes (BPI Standards are ok) and that they do not exceed the time limit.

I won’t mind being a proctor. Most people would probably dislike having to be silent for so long. I’m happy to be contributing to BPI any way that I can!

The only problem is that my certification expires in three years. The proctor will once again become the student. I wish BPI Certification lasted a lifetime, but I bet you have to re-test in order to stay current on building trends, which makes sense. I’m not too worried about it; the written test wasn’t that hard.