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Our Rental Weatherization Field Inspections includes inspection and review of the following:
Wisconsin Rental Weatherization Program Starting January 1, 1985, most residential properties in Wisconsin have had to meet minimum energy conservation standards at the time of ownership transfer. Private state-certified inspectors are hired by owners to check properties for compliance with the standards. The Register of Deeds in your county will not record the transfer of a property unless: - An inspector has certified the property; or - The buyer has filed a Stipulation to bring it up to Code within a year; or - The property or transfer is shown on the Real Estate Transfer Return to be excluded from the Code; or - The buyer has filed a Waiver with the Department of Commerce stating that the building will be demolished within two years. The standards are the result of State legislation (s.101.122, Wis. Stats.) directing the Department of Commerce to develop energy conservation standards for rental units that have a payback of five years or less. The benefits of these weatherization standards for residential rental properties include: - Overall demand for heating fuels is reduced, thereby helping to stabilize fuel costs for everyone. - Wisconsin’s dependence on imported heating fuels is decreased. (Wisconsin imports over 95% of its energy.) - The utilization of Wisconsin’s weatherization workforce and products is increased. - The burden of energy-inefficient rental units is shifted from tenants, who are necessarily limited in any corrective action, to landlords by requiring them to upgrade their buildings at the time of property transfer. - The cost of upgrading the building to the carefully chosen standards is recovered within five years in lowered heating costs. Thereafter, the savings continue and the building is more valuable. - The following is a summary of the standards contained in Chapter Comm 67 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code. For specific details, consult the Code itself.
WHEN OWNERS MUST COMPLY The code only applies to residential property when its ownership is being transferred and when its use after the sale will be rental. “Transfer” means a transfer of ownership by deed, land contract or judgement. In the case of a land contract, transfer occurs when the contract is entered into, not when the deed is transferred. Ownership conveyance also includes transfer of a controlling stock or controlling partnership interest or an interest in a lease in excess of one year, which was contracted after January 1, 1985. The Code applies to rehabilitations even though buildings may be vacant during the period of renovation. It also applies to buildings purchased for resale. If buildings are not resold within one year, they must meet the standards of the Code.
THE WEATHERIZATION STANDARDS The following weatherization standards are code requirements: - WINDOWS must be double-glazed or equipped with storm windows. Exempted are windows in doors and furnace rooms. Windows located in basements, which are not habitable rooms may be permanently sealed and insulated to R-5 in lieu of double-glazing or installing storm windows. - PATIO DOORS AND INWARD-SWINGING EXTERIOR DOORS must be insulated and double-glazed; or be equipped with a storm door, unless they are provided with a vestibule. Storm doors must have self-closing devices. - WEATHERSTRIPPING must be installed on exterior doors and windows where operable parts meet. - CAULKING must be applied to exterior joints, including around doors and windows for the first three stories of the building, as well as around the sill plate and utility penetrations. The Department will accept blower door testing of the building, per Comm 67.05(4), in lieu of the prescriptive infiltration measures. - MOISTURE CONTROL – Ventilation must be installed in attics and crawl spaces at a rate of 1 sq. ft. of free area of ventilation per 300 sq. ft. of floor area. A vapor barrier must cover the ground in crawl spaces. - INSULATION must be installed in “accessible” areas to the levels shown in Tables 67.05-A through C of the Code. “Accessible” means the space can be reached without removal or alterations of any finish materials of the permanent structure. For example, enclosed wall cavities are considered inaccessible and do not require insulation. However, an unfinished attic with floorboards must be insulated under the boards, if not insulated on top.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT… Wisconsin Department of Commerce Safety and Buildings Division P.O. Box 7302 Madison, WI 53707-7302 Telephone: 608-267-2240 Office hours: 7:45a.m. to 4:30p.m., Monday-Friday
The Rental Unit Energy Efficiency Code, Chap. Comm 67, is available on-line from the following website, http://www.commerce.state.wi.us/SB/SB-DivCodesListing2001.html
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