Proposed Addendum 41f amends the MINHERS® Chapter 3 to add an exception for required infiltration testing for homes in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Interim Addendum 41i, which is currently in effect, established the exception and Addendum 41f is submitted for public comment as required by RESNET’s Standards Development Policy and Procedures to make it final through the period designated by the Addendum. HUD is tying recovery funds on these islands to efficiency programs, which creates an opportunity for RESNET to increase HERS® ratings on these islands. However, because the rating infrastructure on the islands is in its infancy, blower doors are an expensive investment. Furthermore, the cost of testing each home outweighs its value in many cases. Due to the extremely temperate weather in these locations, the infiltration rate has a negligible impact on the HERS® rating. For example, in one home in Puerto Rico, the HERS® impact of increasing infiltration from 3 to 10 ACH50 was 1 HERS® point. To overcome this obstacle, we propose adding an exception to the MINHERS® standard allowing Raters doing HERS® ratings in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands to use a very high default infiltration rate of 10 ACH50 in lieu of testing for a limited period of time. DRAFT PDS-01 OF PROPOSED ADDENDUM 41F, TIME-LIMITED LEAKAGE TESTING EXCEPTION FOR PUERTO RICO To submit your comments click on RESNET Amendment Comment Online Form for Draft PDS-01 MINHERS® Addendum 41f Comments are posted real time and you will be able to review comments that were submitted by clicking on Comments Submitted on Draft PDS-01 MINHERS® Addendum 41f Comments will be accepted only on the changes as indicated by the strike/underlined red text in draft PDS-01. The public comment period will be open for 30 days beginning April 15, 2019 through May 14, 2019. After the comment period, the RESNET Standard Development Committee 300 will consider and document each of the comments submitted and make appropriate changes. Any substantive changes to draft PDS-01 will be provided to the public for comment. When there are no more substantive changes the proposed final amendment will be submitted to the RESNET Standard Management Board for final approval.
