HERS Rater UPDATED ACTUAL Questions
and CORRECT Answers
What do HERS Providers provide? - CORRECT ANSWER - They provide software,
oversight, marketing assistance, and quality assurance for the Rater.
What role does a HERS Trainer play? - CORRECT ANSWER - The Trainer trains Raters
on how to perform HERS ratings.
What are some of the responsibilities of a HERS Rater? - CORRECT ANSWER - The
Rater's responsibilities include inspecting and testing the minimum rated features of the home,
entering the data into a RESNET accredited software tool, and providing the client with reports
generated by the software.
Why was RESNET created and by whom? - CORRECT ANSWER - RESNET was created
to use a scoring system that could compare the energy use of different houses with each other on
a level playing field. It was created to oversee the HERS industry, provide standards for
accreditation of Raters, Providers and Trainers, ethics and protocols for inspection, testing and
software analysis. It was created by the National Association of State Energy Officers (NASEO)
and Energy Rated Homes of America.
What are the minimum rated features of a home? - CORRECT ANSWER - The minimum
rated features of a home include but are not limited to the foundation, walls, roof-ceiling, rim
joist, doors, windows, skylights, air infiltration, heating and cooling equipment, heating and
cooling distribution system, duct leakage, domestic water heating, passive solar design, and solar
water heating.
Can any energy analysis software be used to produce a HERS rating? - CORRECT
ANSWER - No -- The software must be a RESNET accredited software tool.
Is a Home Energy Rater required to verify compliance with the local energy code? - CORRECT
ANSWER - No - The rater is not required to determine compliance with regulatory
requirements such as construction codes.
, If a Rater enters an existing home to perform inspections and testing and the owner's 9 foot
Burmese python is loose, does the Rater have to complete the inspection and testing? -
CORRECT ANSWER - No - The Rater is not required to enter any area or perform any
procedure that is likely to be dangerous to the Rater.
Is a Rater required to perform Manual J load calculations? - CORRECT ANSWER - No -
The Rater is not required to offer or perform HVAC system design or sizing consultation.
What is a British thermal unit? - CORRECT ANSWER - A British thermal unit (Btu) is the
amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water on degree Fahrenheit at
sea level when the water is 39.2°F.
A homeowner has paid for 17 CCF of natural gas on their monthly bill. How many Btu's did they
use? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF = 102,000 Btu's
17 CCF = 17 x 102,000 = 1,734,000
How many therms? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF of natural gas = 1 therm
17 CCF of natural gas = 17 therms
How many kWh are in 14,000 Btu's? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 kWh = 3,413 Btu's
14,000 Btu's / 3,413 Btu's = 4.1 kWh
How many therms are in 18 CCF of natural gas? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF of
natural gas = 1 therm
18 CCF of natural gas = 18 therms
What is the building envelope? - CORRECT ANSWER - The building envelope is an air
barrier and thermal boundary that are continuous and touching and separate conditioned space
from unconditioned space or the outside.
and CORRECT Answers
What do HERS Providers provide? - CORRECT ANSWER - They provide software,
oversight, marketing assistance, and quality assurance for the Rater.
What role does a HERS Trainer play? - CORRECT ANSWER - The Trainer trains Raters
on how to perform HERS ratings.
What are some of the responsibilities of a HERS Rater? - CORRECT ANSWER - The
Rater's responsibilities include inspecting and testing the minimum rated features of the home,
entering the data into a RESNET accredited software tool, and providing the client with reports
generated by the software.
Why was RESNET created and by whom? - CORRECT ANSWER - RESNET was created
to use a scoring system that could compare the energy use of different houses with each other on
a level playing field. It was created to oversee the HERS industry, provide standards for
accreditation of Raters, Providers and Trainers, ethics and protocols for inspection, testing and
software analysis. It was created by the National Association of State Energy Officers (NASEO)
and Energy Rated Homes of America.
What are the minimum rated features of a home? - CORRECT ANSWER - The minimum
rated features of a home include but are not limited to the foundation, walls, roof-ceiling, rim
joist, doors, windows, skylights, air infiltration, heating and cooling equipment, heating and
cooling distribution system, duct leakage, domestic water heating, passive solar design, and solar
water heating.
Can any energy analysis software be used to produce a HERS rating? - CORRECT
ANSWER - No -- The software must be a RESNET accredited software tool.
Is a Home Energy Rater required to verify compliance with the local energy code? - CORRECT
ANSWER - No - The rater is not required to determine compliance with regulatory
requirements such as construction codes.
, If a Rater enters an existing home to perform inspections and testing and the owner's 9 foot
Burmese python is loose, does the Rater have to complete the inspection and testing? -
CORRECT ANSWER - No - The Rater is not required to enter any area or perform any
procedure that is likely to be dangerous to the Rater.
Is a Rater required to perform Manual J load calculations? - CORRECT ANSWER - No -
The Rater is not required to offer or perform HVAC system design or sizing consultation.
What is a British thermal unit? - CORRECT ANSWER - A British thermal unit (Btu) is the
amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water on degree Fahrenheit at
sea level when the water is 39.2°F.
A homeowner has paid for 17 CCF of natural gas on their monthly bill. How many Btu's did they
use? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF = 102,000 Btu's
17 CCF = 17 x 102,000 = 1,734,000
How many therms? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF of natural gas = 1 therm
17 CCF of natural gas = 17 therms
How many kWh are in 14,000 Btu's? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 kWh = 3,413 Btu's
14,000 Btu's / 3,413 Btu's = 4.1 kWh
How many therms are in 18 CCF of natural gas? - CORRECT ANSWER - 1 CCF of
natural gas = 1 therm
18 CCF of natural gas = 18 therms
What is the building envelope? - CORRECT ANSWER - The building envelope is an air
barrier and thermal boundary that are continuous and touching and separate conditioned space
from unconditioned space or the outside.
