Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 — what each one is, and which you are being sold.
Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 — what each one is, and which you are being sold.
ASHRAE defines three levels of commercial energy audit and the definitions are worth knowing before you buy one, because the word "audit" on a proposal can mean any of them.
Level 1 — walkthrough. A site visit and an analysis of utility bills. Output is a benchmark, a list of low-cost measures, and an indication of whether a deeper study is justified. Cheap, fast, and genuinely useful as a screening tool across a portfolio.
Level 2 — energy survey and analysis. A detailed survey, a breakdown of energy use by end use, and measure-by-measure savings, costs and paybacks with enough rigour for a capital plan. This is what most buildings actually need and is the level most incentive programmes are written around.
Level 3 — detailed analysis of capital-intensive modifications. Adds sub-metering, data logging and a calibrated model. For measures large enough to need financing-grade certainty.
If a proposal does not say which level it is, it is a Level 1 being sold at Level 2 prices. Ask.
Whichever level the decision actually requires, stated explicitly in the proposal.
Anyone comparing commercial energy audit proposals.
Licence 9E
A measured EnerGuide evaluation by a registered advisor, a report you can act on, and an honest answer about which programmes are open where you live.