Experts recommend taking a thermal imager with you when inspecting a country house or cottage before buying. The device can be rented, ensuring that it is calibrated. However, the use of a thermal imager can be justified under certain conditions.
A thermal imager can be a great help in understanding where the house is freezing and where heat leaks have started. However, for high-quality thermal imaging, there needs to be a certain temperature difference between the outside and inside of the house.
“It is important that the temperature difference between indoor and outdoor is at least 20°C,” says housing construction expert Denis Glavinsky. “Therefore, it makes sense to do thermal imaging either in late autumn or early spring. At other times, it may be useless. It is also necessary for the heating to be turned on in the house. This will not only help identify heat leaks, but also check the condition of the ventilation systems. With a thermal imager, it is essential to check the walls, external corners, junctions like ‘floor-wall’ and ‘wall-floor of the upper floor’.”