Infrared Thermal Imaging is an incredibly useful tool for home inspectors, and it’s a side of home inspections that many homeowners don’t even know exists. Particularly useful for first-time homeowners, infrared thermal imaging helps to identify potential problems that aren’t immediately obvious to the naked eye.
What is Infrared Thermal Imaging?
In a nutshell, infrared thermal imaging utilizes specialized cameras that can identify temperature changes throughout the home. For example, when looking through the ‘lens’ of one of these cameras, hot lighting fixtures will appear orange or yellow, while dimly lit hallways or basements will appear blue or purple.
How is Infrared Thermal Imaging useful?
These specialized cameras have a wide variety of useful functions. At the simplest level, when our infrared thermal imaging cameras come up ‘hot’ or yellow when things should be ‘cool’ or purple – or vice-versa – we know there’s a problem. A short list of how this might come in handy would include:
- Identifying hot spots in the home’s wiring or electrical components
- Identifying missing insulation and heat loss
- Identifying mold and water leaks
- Finding pests like rodents
Here at Certified, our infrared thermal imaging tools have certainly come in handy. For instance, we’ve used these specialized camera to identify a pattern of missing insulation in Crown Point. This of course points to a specific contractor – or several – who have been cutting corners.
Although not necessary for every home inspection, utilizing infrared thermal imaging can be an incredibly useful tool in identifying a home’s hidden problems. At Certified Home Inspections, we take great pride in our thorough inspection process, so you and your family can be happy in your home for years to come.