Zerodraft Maryland

They were great, the entire staff from Mike, the guy who did the audit and managed the project to the ladies who worked in the office. They were pleasant and easy to deal with. Additionally, the guys who performed the work (they were subcontracted by zerodraft), were awesome as well. Came on time and worked very efficiently and were pleasant as well. Mike, the guy who oversaw the project (from Zerodraft) was awesome. I had several questions between the audit and the work and we was easy to get in touch with and answered all my questions thoroughly and truthfully. I never felt like they were trying to up sell me, just felt like he was giving me honest guidance. Not to mention the finished product looks great!

I got the main attic, addition attic, basement rim joists and a vapor barrier for the addition completed. The work was completed without any major issues. The main attic, rim joists, and addition's attic insulation was completed by a team that was very efficient and specializes in insulation and Mike from ZeroDraft handled the vapor barrier insulation of the addition. There were some minor scheduling adjustments but nothing out of the ordinary and ZeroDraft was very accommodating. If any questions arose they took the time to explain in detail. Overall ZeroDraft was very professional and I am very happy with the service performed.

Mike Havrilla was the point man on the job and was professional and took the time to explain the process and answer any questions we had. He was also helpful and available during the initial contracting process to answer any questions about the suggested work to be performed. The work was completed over three days with the first two days including the new fan installation, removing the old insulation, air sealing the attic and basement and adding the new insulation. The last day was dedicated to aerosealing the ductwork. All of the work was completed by Zerodraft with the exception of the insulation and some air sealing which I believe was subbed out to another company. There were no issues with the subcontractor however. All of the various crews cleaned up after themselves each day and everyone was very polite and professional. The last day Daniel Reinholtz was the last man on the job and completed the final test out and went over the results and answered any remaining questions. All in all a great experience and would recommend or use Zerodraft again.

Contract and paperwork very helpfull

Our house was lacking insulation which we knew from the time we purchased it and was not very comfortable during extreme weather. We wanted to bring it up to standard and found them through BGE's Smart Energy program. We set up an appointment in order to do a Home Energy Audit. Mike H. and his associate showed up on the appointed date and basically did the equivalent of a home inspection but more in terms of where we are leaking air, how much energy we are using etc. The audit definitely opened my eyes to the fact that we need to get some work done. Not only did Mike put together a complete report and prioritize our work, he also offered tips such as check your window caulking and fix it up. Our bathroom vent was not correctly installed and he also ensured that that will be taken care of. Once we set out to get the job done, Mike came over with his folks and took care of the insulation, and fixed up the vent. They also conducted a post work test and inspection. The folks who did the job didn't even leave a trace of any material and left the house cleaner than what it was before they even came in ! Per the numbers, we ended up with a significant reduction in the leakage of air (more than what was the minimum requirement). The house definitely feels more cosier and with the winter still on, it was a good investment. Fantastic job done by Mike and his team !

Very good job. Ed Abell at Zerodraft Maryland was incredibly thorough. After performing the audit he went over everything and took me around my house so I understood more clearly. He also took pictures of places that I wouldn't have been able to see (drop-ceiling, attic). I didn't bother shopping around for my upcoming insulation work because I was so impressed with the company's professionalism and trust them to do a good job.

Very well - They were prompt, efficient and took great care. They wore shoe covers to protect the floors - which we greatly appreciated.

Provide a comprehensive home energy audit, and lists out the order you should accomplish them, explaining how it will save you in the long run. Very professional, great customer service.

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Service was good and on time. Mike was very professional and courteous. Report of the audit was sent on time. However, the follow up questions I asked were not really answered.

Zerodraft inspected my house and gave a reasonable estimate for the job. It was easy to schedule the work with them. They showed up on time and did a good job. They cleaned up after the work and were professional.

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The energy audit went very well. It was insightful and very helpful in understanding how to increase our home's energy efficiency.

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It went much better than I could have ever imagined. I have two HVAC units (one for 1st level and one for second level). I paid to have the 1st level HVAC system Aerosealed to seal all gaps throughout the duct work to hopefully improve efficiency. The crew tested the unit prior to the Aeroseal application and tested again after the Aeroseal was complete. They were able to improve the efficiency of the unit by 85%!! This is equivalent to 77 refrigerators full of air loss per hour! I was hoping for a 30% improvement which would have been worth the $2,500 spent. Needless to say, I am planning on getting the other unit sealed this Spring. Kurt Pfund and Rafael Fuste arrived on time, worked efficiently and cleaned up very well upon the job's completion. They also educated me throughout the process and made me feel really good about the investment. I would HIGHLY recommend them and Zerodraft to anyone who would like to improve energy efficiency in their home.

I received an email on Sunday telling me they had to cancel my Monday appointment. Offered to come out a little under two weeks later to do the audit. I declined. If you cancel on me, you better be out there the next day. I had to push back a handful of sub contractors and incurred at least $50 in cancellation fees.

Rafael was very helpful during the home energy audit. He was able to explain what he did and what would need to be done to improve the insulation of our home He scheduled the service between his team and an outside contractor. Rafael and his team were always on time and very responsible. The contractor that was used to remove and then pump in the insulation were late both days they were scheduled to do work.

We worked with Rafael Fuste. It was a pleasure doing business with him. Rafael is a walking encyclopedia of home energy efficiency knowledge. And he's able to explain what he's recommending and why in clear terms. He was also very patient and willing to answer dozens of questions to make sure we were on the same page about what services he was going to perform and why. In our case, he told us the improvements made may not lower our energy bill very much - but we'd notice an immediate change in comfort. That's proven to be true. He sealed up a few pesky drafts that were making our second floor cooler than the first floor. And he was able to diagnose and fix an insulation issue in our attic. Another thing I like about Rafael is - he's well organized. He responds to text messages and puts all his appointments on a Google Calendar - so you're always aware of what's happening and when. We didn't price shop, since we wanted to get the job done before winter. But I feel the price he charged was fair. And he was helpful in showing us how to claim the biggest possible rebate from BGE - which wound up paying for a significant chunk of the bill.

Rafael spent a lot of time on the phone talking through the scope of work and alleviating any concerns I had about the project. I was especially concerned about any cuts into the plaster or walls. Rafael had many suggestions and alleviated my concerns [we decided the cut into the attic would be through one of the bedroom closests, hidden from view]. The work took place over 3 days. Rafael and two workers did all the sealing on Day 1. Day 2 involved the insulation subcontractor blowing the cellulose into the upper attic and dense packing the knee wall attic. Day 3 saw Rafael return to insulates the backs of all attic door access with foam board insulation, weather strip all doors and install door sweeps as needed. Rafael and both crews were incredibly considerate. They used extensive drop clothes and foot booties. When finished, they vacuumed and ensured the house was as clean as when they arrived. Given the nature of the work there was some dust, but that had to be expected. The final door blow test resulted in efficiencies well over the 30% needed to receive the $2000 BGE rebate. The work was completed about 2 weeks ago but we noticed the results almost immediately. Our first floor is much less drafty and just the commercial grade weather stripping on the front/back doors has made a drastic difference. We used to suffer with cold days/nights and put the thermometer as low as we could stand it. Now -- we are comfortable and the heat is not running consistently. We highly recommend Rafael, his team and his work.

I called Zerodraft to come and measure the consumption of energy in the house and provide me with an estimate to insulate the house. The house is a 90 year old wood frame house which has been divided into two units - one unit is the 2nd floor of the house and the other unit is composed of the 1st floor and basement which has been completely refinished. I spoke to Raphael Fuste and made an appointment for him to perform the service. Raphael neither canceled the appointment or showed up. I called a second time and made an appointment. Raphael did not show up again. A third time I called Raphael, and again he did not show up. Finally I called and said that if he didn't keep the appointment this time, I would call someone else. After four attempts Raphael showed up. He measured the air leakage rate of the 1st floor of the house and basement but failed to measure the air leakage rate of the second floor unit and attic under the roof. A second company came and measured the leakage rate of both units, the basement, and the attic. The charge for this service was $400 of which BGE paid $300 directly to Zerodraft. I would never hire Zerodraft and especially Raphael Fuste to perform any repairs on my house. They are unreliable and do not finish the job completely.

We bought an old house that was very 'leaky' with literally no insulation in the attic or basement. We called a few companies but decided to work with Zerodraft, who provided a $100 energy audit with a complete report of the current energy efficiency in the house, and a follow-up that was suggested based on the energy audit. Rafael Fuste from Zerodraft conducted an energy audit as well as insulation/air sealing work for our basement and attic. He was very knowledgeable, and had good eyes for spotting leaky spots in the basement that needed air sealing, and he noticed things that people from other companies didn't. The energy audit included a door blower test, which provided an objective measure of how much air can flow into the house from outside - i.e., how energy inefficient the house is. We knew that the house was leaky, but it was good to know how bad it was in objective numbers, which also allowed us to see how much improvement was made after the service. The actual insulation/air sealing work included the following: - Air seal rim joint area and basement windows with with spray foam - weather strip basement door - Crawl space: spray foam vapor barrier to wall, and spray foam to the underside of the flooring in the crawl space - spray foam penetrations in the attic - dense pack insulation in the flooring of the attic (sub-contracted to DeVere Insulation) - cellulose insulation in open space in the attic (sub-contracted to DeVere Insulation) - weather strip attic entrance This took 1.5 day, and the blower door test results changed from 5400 to 3700. At the test, we found some leaky spots on the basement wall, and Rafael and his colleague came back the week later to fill that spot as well. They did this with no extra charge; they initially said it would cost extra few hundred dollars, but I insisted that the service proposal said "seal all penetrations", so they eventually did it for free. They also filled some cracks on the basement foundation wall too. So, overall we were happy with the outcome and quality of the service from Zerodraft. I should mention that there was a bit of trouble in communications about appointments; for example, they didn't tell me until the day of service that I needed to be home for the sub-contractors who did the insulation work, so I had to cancel my work at the last minute. Rafael also put a bit of pressure on me to start the energy audit service a little earlier than originally planned, at the very last minute. But I suppose things like this could happen with any service provider. He also said he will send me a written report of the improvement that resulted from their service, but he never sent it to me, though I suppose I can't complain because this type of report was never promised in the original service proposal, and I can probably get the details of e.g. the blower door test results if I really press them.

Both auditors did an excellent job testing my home for air leaks and offering solutions to save energy in my home. Zerodraft handled submitting all the paperwork to BGE so I could get my refund. Great company who was very helpful in reducing my BGE bills. Highly recommended!

Because of the attention to detail and responsiveness, this company was a great choice to perform our energy audit and help our home be as energy efficient as can be . We got a great list of things that would improve our home, some of which were helpful suggestions they happened to notice that the home inspector missed. We took most of their suggestions, and the team did a thorough job plugging the holes and filling in the insulation where we needed it. I also appreciated being able to communicate with them by email, and they always responded promptly. They also assisted with our rebate from the power company and kept us posted with updates. I would not hesitate to contact them again.

The representative was prompt, courteous, and friendly. He even replaced my porch light upon request.

We contacted Kurt via email regarding setting up a home energy audit. Kurt promptly set an appointment with Henry Woolet and Sean from Devere Insulation. Audit was thorough and we are extremely impressed with the detail of the report. Report was received one week after the audit was performed.