I utilize Infrared Thermal Imaging, an  Energy Consultation, and the clearest, most comprehensive reference guide available, The Home Reference Book is given to the home purchaser at the end of every home inspection. The easy-to-use manual contains 400 informative pages and over 160 illustrations on homes, and is provided at no additional charge.

Thermal, or infrared energy, is energy not visible because its wavelength is too long for the sensors in our eyes to detect. It is the part of the electromagnetic spectrum that we perceive as heat. Unlike visible light, in the infrared spectrum, everything with a temperature above absolute zero emits infrared electromagnetic energy. Even cold objects such as ice cubes, emit infrared radiation. The higher the temperature of the object, the greater the infrared radiation emitted. An Infrared camera allows us to see what our eyes cannot!

All objects, cold or hot, radiate heat in the form of infrared energy. As an object increases in temperature, it radiates more energy, and the wavelength gets shorter. Infrared radiation, visible light and ultraviolet light are all forms of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum. The only difference is their wavelength or frequency.

The human eye can only see a narrow range of wavelength in the electromagnetic spectrum. These wavelengths range in length from 0.4 to 0.7 microns, a micron is one millionth of a meter. Most of what the eye sees is reflections from objects that high energy from the sun or an incandescent light bulb is striking. If the temperature of an object gets hot enough however, above 525°C, the energy from that object will radiate energy in the visible spectrum and we will see it. This is when we see an object like the burner on an electric stove “glowing” red. In fact, any time an object will emit or reflect energy in the same frequency of our eyes we will see it. Mostly, however we see reflections!