The Weatherization Assistant User's Manual (Version 8.9)

ORNL/SPR-2014/696

The Weatherization Assistant

User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

Michael B. Gettings

Mini Malhotra

Mark P. Ternes

January 2015

Approved for public release.

Distribution is unlimited.

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ORNL/SPR-2014/696

Energy and Transportation Science Division

THE WEATHERIZATION ASSISTANT

USER’S MANUAL (VERSION 8.9)

Michael B. Gettings

Mini Malhotra

Mark P. Ternes

Date Published: January 2015

Prepared by

OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY

Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-6283

managed by

UT-BATTELLE, LLC

for the

US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) iii

How to Use This User’s Manual

This manual is intended to be a training manual for new users of the

Weatherization Assistant and as a reference manual for experienced users.

New users should read Chapters 1–4 to familiarize themselves with the

Weatherization Assistant and its basic operation. Chapter 1 presents an overview

of all the features and capabilities offered by the Weatherization Assistant.

Chapters 2 and 3 step new users through the process of installing the

Weatherization Assistant and setting up the software for the first time. Chapter 4

presents a quick-start tutorial on how to enter a new client and initiate an energy

audit for this client, which is the primary purpose of the Weatherization Assistant.

Once new users have installed the software and understand the basic steps needed

to run an audit, they will then need to read other chapters of the user’s manual to

learn about the details of performing an audit. Helpful information on how to

navigate through the Weatherization Assistant’s multiple forms and enter

information into its data fields is presented in Chapter 5. The quick-start tutorial in

Chapter 4 will emphasize the need for a new user to make sure accurate

information is entered into the Setup and Supply Libraries before running an actual

audit on a home for the first time; therefore, a new user will need to read Chapters

14 and 15, which discuss these libraries. A new user will also need to read

Chapters 8–11, which discuss the details of how to enter information into the

audits, and Chapter 12, which discusses the output report generated from running

an audit that provides details concerning the recommended weatherization

measures.

Experienced users can use the manual as a reference guide to obtain information on

operational details of features and details of every data input field found in the

Weatherization Assistant. Five Chapters (Chapters 8–12) discuss the details

associated with the audits themselves. Separate chapters are provided for all the

remaining key elements of the Weatherization Assistant: Agency, Clients, Work

Orders, Setup Library, Supply Library, Preferences, and Data Link. A final chapter

(Chapter 18) provides details on several features that have input fields found on

multiple forms within the Weatherization Assistant. Although the input fields

themselves are described as appropriate in the chapters in which they are

encountered, an overall discussion of each feature is presented in Chapter 18.

iv The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

How to Use This User’s Manual

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) v

Table of Contents

How to Use This User’s Manual .................................................................................................... iii

List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ ix

Acronyms ..................................................................................................................................... xix

Chapter 1. Overview of the Weatherization Assistant ................................................................. 1-1

1.1 Overview of NEAT and MHEA ...................................................................................... 1-2

1.2 Software Overview .......................................................................................................... 1-4

1.3 Program Overview ........................................................................................................... 1-5

1.4 Optional Features ............................................................................................................. 1-8

Chapter 2. Installation and Start-up ............................................................................................. 2-1

2.1 Hardware and Software Requirements ............................................................................ 2-1

2.2 Obtaining the Weatherization Assistant Software ........................................................... 2-1

2.3 Installing the Weatherization Assistant ........................................................................... 2-3

2.4 Network Installation......................................................................................................... 2-6

2.5 Obtaining and Installing the GIS Files............................................................................. 2-7

2.6 Obtaining Manuals for the Weatherization Assistant ...................................................... 2-8

2.7 Accessing Web-Based Training for the Weatherization Assistant .................................. 2-9

2.8 Starting the Weatherization Assistant ............................................................................ 2-10

2.9 The User Log On Form .................................................................................................. 2-11

Chapter 3. Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant .................................................................... 3-1

3.1 Initial Start-up of the Weatherization Assistant ............................................................... 3-1

3.2 Program Setup .................................................................................................................. 3-2

3.3 Importing Information from a Previous Version ............................................................. 3-8

Chapter 4. Quick-Start Tutorial ................................................................................................... 4-1

4.1 Creating a New Client ...................................................................................................... 4-1

4.2 Starting a New Audit ....................................................................................................... 4-4

4.3 Running a New Audit ...................................................................................................... 4-8

Chapter 5. Navigation and Data Entry ......................................................................................... 5-1

5.1 Form and Record Navigation ........................................................................................... 5-1

5.2 Entering Data into the Weatherization Assistant ............................................................. 5-3

5.3 Navigating Between Controls .......................................................................................... 5-5

5.4 The Escape Key ............................................................................................................... 5-6

5.5 Required Versus Optional Textboxes and Drop-down Lists ........................................... 5-7

5.6 Field Defaults ................................................................................................................... 5-7

5.7 Field Range Checking ...................................................................................................... 5-8

5.8 Data Sheet and Form Views of Records .......................................................................... 5-9

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Table of Contents

5.9 Copying and Pasting Data .............................................................................................. 5-12

5.10 Deleting Data ............................................................................................................... 5-14

5.11 Entry Errors .................................................................................................................. 5-15

5.12 The Report Block ......................................................................................................... 5-16

5.13 Getting Help ................................................................................................................. 5-18

5.14 The References Button ................................................................................................. 5-19

Chapter 6. Agency ....................................................................................................................... 6-1

6.1 Agency Information ......................................................................................................... 6-1

6.2 Contacts (Agency) ........................................................................................................... 6-4

6.3 Cost Centers ..................................................................................................................... 6-8

6.4 Surveys (Agency)........................................................................................................... 6-13

6.5 Clients ............................................................................................................................ 6-15

6.6 Audits (Agency) ............................................................................................................. 6-17

6.7 Work Orders (Agency) .................................................................................................. 6-19

6.8 Libraries ......................................................................................................................... 6-21

6.9 Status History ................................................................................................................. 6-22

Chapter 7. Clients......................................................................................................................... 7-1

7.1 Client Information ............................................................................................................ 7-2

7.2 Status (Clients) ................................................................................................................. 7-9

7.3 Energy Index .................................................................................................................. 7-11

7.4 Contacts (Client) ............................................................................................................ 7-14

7.5 Audits (Client) ............................................................................................................... 7-17

7.6 Work Orders (Client) ..................................................................................................... 7-20

7.7 Surveys (Client) ............................................................................................................. 7-24

7.8 Photos (Client) ............................................................................................................... 7-27

Chapter 8. NEAT and MHEA Introduction ................................................................................. 8-1

8.1 Starting a New Audit and Accessing Previous Audits..................................................... 8-1

8.2 Audit Information ............................................................................................................ 8-2

Chapter 9. NEAT Building Description....................................................................................... 9-1

9.1 Shell – Walls .................................................................................................................... 9-2

9.2 Shell − Windows .............................................................................................................. 9-7

9.3 Shell − Doors ................................................................................................................. 9-14

9.4 Shell − Unfinished Attics ............................................................................................... 9-19

9.5 Shell − Finished Attics ................................................................................................... 9-24

9.6 Shell – Foundations........................................................................................................ 9-26

9.7 Heating − General Description Data .............................................................................. 9-34

9.8 Required Heating System Details Sub-Form ................................................................. 9-39

9.9 Cooling ........................................................................................................................... 9-54

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) vii

Table of Contents

Chapter 10. MHEA Building Description ................................................................................. 10-1

10.1 Shell − Walls ................................................................................................................ 10-2

10.2 Shell − Windows .......................................................................................................... 10-5

10.3 Shell − Doors ............................................................................................................. 10-13

10.4 Shell − Ceiling ........................................................................................................... 10-16

10.5 Shell − Floor .............................................................................................................. 10-20

10.6 Addition ..................................................................................................................... 10-26

10.7 Heating – Primary, Secondary, and Replacement ..................................................... 10-37

10.8 Cooling – Primary, Secondary, and Replacement ..................................................... 10-43

Chapter 11. NEAT and MHEA Common Elements .................................................................. 11-1

11.1 Status (Audit) ............................................................................................................... 11-1

11.2 Ducts/Infiltration – Air and Duct Leakages ................................................................. 11-3

11.3 Duct/Infiltration – Optional Forms ............................................................................ 11-18

11.4 Base Loads – Water Heating...................................................................................... 11-24

11.5 Base Loads – Refrigerators ........................................................................................ 11-29

11.6 Base Loads – Lighting Systems ................................................................................. 11-35

11.7 Health and Safety ....................................................................................................... 11-38

11.8 Itemized Costs ............................................................................................................ 11-41

11.9 Utility Bills................................................................................................................. 11-49

11.10 Photos (Audit) .......................................................................................................... 11-53

11.11 Measures (Audit) ..................................................................................................... 11-54

11.12 Optional Heating System Details ............................................................................. 11-59

11.13 Optional Water Heater Details ................................................................................. 11-63

Chapter 12. NEAT and MHEA Results ..................................................................................... 12-1

12.1 Running an Audit and Viewing the Results ................................................................. 12-1

12.2 Recommended Measures Report ................................................................................. 12-2

Chapter 13. Work Orders ........................................................................................................... 13-1

13.1 Work Order Information .............................................................................................. 13-2

13.2 Status (Work Order) ..................................................................................................... 13-7

13.3 Measures (Work Order) ............................................................................................... 13-9

13.4 Photos (Work Order).................................................................................................. 13-24

Chapter 14. Setup Library .......................................................................................................... 14-1

14.1 Setup Library Information ........................................................................................... 14-2

14.2 Key Parameters ............................................................................................................ 14-5

14.3 Fuel Costs................................................................................................................... 14-21

14.4 Fuel Price Indices ....................................................................................................... 14-24

14.5 Library Measures ....................................................................................................... 14-26

14.6 User Defined Measures .............................................................................................. 14-31

14.7 NEAT Insulation Types ............................................................................................. 14-42

viii The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

Table of Contents

Chapter 15. Supply Library........................................................................................................ 15-1

15.1 General Information Form ........................................................................................... 15-2

15.2 Materials/Labor Forms................................................................................................. 15-5

15.3 Energy Details Sub-Form .......................................................................................... 15-10

Chapter 16. Preferences ............................................................................................................. 16-1

16.1 General ......................................................................................................................... 16-1

16.2 Range Check and Default Values ................................................................................ 16-4

16.3 Report Sections ............................................................................................................ 16-5

16.4 Features ........................................................................................................................ 16-7

Chapter 17. Data Link ................................................................................................................ 17-1

17.1 Currently Linked Backend Data File ........................................................................... 17-3

17.2 Currently Linked Reporting File .................................................................................. 17-6

17.3 Data Transfer – Import/Export With Another MSAccess Database ............................ 17-7

17.4 Data Transfer – Import/Export Indirectly with Text Files ......................................... 17-15

17.5 Selecting Client Records ............................................................................................ 17-24

Chapter 18. Auxiliary Features .................................................................................................. 18-1

18.1 Digital Photos............................................................................................................... 18-1

18.2 Geographic Information System (GIS) ........................................................................ 18-6

18.3 Status Tracking .......................................................................................................... 18-10

18.4 E-Mailing from Within Weatherization Assistant ..................................................... 18-15

Appendix A. NEAT Weatherization Measures ...................................................................... A-1

Appendix B. MHEA Weatherization Measures ..................................................................... B-1

Appendix C. Reports .............................................................................................................. C-1

Appendix D. Development of Customized Reports ............................................................... D-1

Appendix E. Window Leakiness ............................................................................................. E-1

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) ix

List of Figures

Figure Page

1.1. Design of the Weatherization Assistant. .......................................................................... 1-1

1.2. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.................................................................... 1-6

2.1. Welcome screen. .............................................................................................................. 2-4

2.2. Disclaimer Statement screen. ........................................................................................... 2-4

2.3. Destination Folder screen for a “New Installation.” ........................................................ 2-5

2.4. Destination Folder screen for an “Update.” ..................................................................... 2-5

2.5. Start Installation screen. ................................................................................................... 2-6

2.6. Finish screen. ................................................................................................................... 2-6

2.7. The Weatherization Assistant’s icon for Version 8.9. ..................................................... 2-6

2.8. The Installation ID form. ............................................................................................... 2-10

2.9. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.................................................................. 2-12

2.10. The Weatherization Assistant Log On form. ................................................................. 2-12

3.1. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.................................................................... 3-2

3.2. The Agency Information form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ..................... 3-3

3.3. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ........................................ 3-4

3.4. The General Information form under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library” button. ......... 3-5

3.5. The Setup Library Information form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library”

button. .............................................................................................................................. 3-6

3.6. The Data Link form (Version 8.6). .................................................................................. 3-8

3.7. The Data Link form (Version 8.9). .................................................................................. 3-9

3.8. A blank Transfer CLIENTS Between Databases form. ................................................. 3-10

3.9. An example of the Transfer CLIENTS Between Databases form with client

entries. ............................................................................................................................ 3-10

3.10. The Pick External Database for Import/Export form. .................................................... 3-11

3.11. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ....................... 3-13

4.1. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.................................................................... 4-1

4.2. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ......................... 4-2

4.3. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ......................................... 4-3

4.4. The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ............................................ 4-5

x The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

List of Figures

4.5. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .......................... 4-5

4.6. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ......................... 4-6

5.1. The Audit record navigation block found on the Audit Information form under the

Main Menu’s “NEAT Audit” and “MHEA Audit” buttons............................................. 5-1

5.2. The Clients form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. .......................................... 5-3

5.3. Two textboxes, one requiring a numeric entry. ............................................................... 5-3

5.4. A drop-down list with its item list visible. ....................................................................... 5-4

5.5. Two checkboxes, the top one being selected and with a “Yes” response. ....................... 5-5

5.6. Two textboxes, the first is a required field and the second is not. ................................... 5-7

5.7. A status bar showing the reasonable range and default value for the Number of

Conditioned Stories field. ................................................................................................ 5-8

5.8. Error indicating that a numeric entry is outside the acceptable range. ............................ 5-8

5.9. Warning indicating that a numeric entry is outside the reasonable range. ...................... 5-9

5.10. The Report block from the Client Information form. .................................................... 5-16

5.11. The Access report toolbar. ............................................................................................. 5-16

5.12. The “References to Setup Library:” window. ................................................................ 5-20

6.1. The Agency Information form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ..................... 6-2

6.2. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ........................................ 6-5

6.3. The User Group and Password sub-form. ........................................................................ 6-8

6.4. Cost Centers form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ........................................ 6-9

6.5. The Show Fund Transactions (or Cost Center Funds) sub-form. .................................. 6-11

6.6. The Work Order Costs table under the Agency/Cost Centers tab. ................................ 6-12

6.7. The Surveys form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ....................................... 6-13

6.8. The Clients form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ........................................ 6-15

6.9. The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ......................................... 6-17

6.10. The Work Orders form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ............................... 6-19

6.11. The Libraries form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ..................................... 6-21

6.12. The Status History form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. ............................. 6-23

7.1. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ......................... 7-2

7.2. The Status form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ........................................... 7-10

7.3. The Energy Index form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ............................... 7-12

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) xi

List of Figures

7.4. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ....................................... 7-15

7.5. The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ............................................... 7-18

7.6. The Work Orders form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ................................ 7-21

7.7. The Surveys form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. ........................................ 7-24

7.8. The Photos form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. .......................................... 7-27

8.1. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .......................... 8-3

8.2. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ......................... 8-3

8.3. Dimensions associated with a manufactured home. ........................................................ 8-8

9.1. The Walls form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .............................................. 9-2

9.2. The Windows form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ........................................ 9-7

9.3. Basic types of windows. .................................................................................................. 9-9

9.4. The Doors form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............................................ 9-15

9.5. The Unfinished Attics form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ......................... 9-19

9.6. The Finished Attics form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............................. 9-25

9.7. Components of a finished attic. ..................................................................................... 9-25

9.8. The Foundations form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .................................. 9-27

9.9. The Heating form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ......................................... 9-34

9.10. The Uninsulated Supply Ducts for Heating System sub-form. ...................................... 9-38

9.11. The Gas Furnace Details sub-form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .............. 9-40

9.12. The Oil/Kerosene Furnace/Boiler Details sub-form under the Main Menu’s

“NEAT” button. ............................................................................................................. 9-47

9.13. The Electric Resistance Heating System Details sub-form under the Main Menu’s

“NEAT” button. ............................................................................................................. 9-48

9.14. The Heat Pump Details sub-form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ................ 9-51

9.15. The Space Heater Details sub-form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............. 9-53

9.16. The Cooling form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button.......................................... 9-55

10.1. The Shell − Walls form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button................................ 10-2

10.2. Carport/Porch Roof Dimensions .................................................................................... 10-4

10.3. The Shell − Windows form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button.......................... 10-6

10.4. Basic types of windows. ................................................................................................ 10-8

10.5. The Shell − Doors form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............................. 10-13

xii The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

List of Figures

10.6. The Shell − Ceiling form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ........................... 10-16

10.7. Typical Manufactured Home Roof Configuration. ...................................................... 10-17

10.8. Mobile Home Cathedral Ceiling with Step Wall. ........................................................ 10-19

10.9. The Shell − Floor form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .............................. 10-20

10.10. Section of a Typical Mobile Home Floor. ................................................................... 10-21

10.11. Lengthwise and Widthwise Floor Joists. ..................................................................... 10-22

10.12. Batt/Blanket Insulation Location. ................................................................................ 10-23

10.13. Typical Mobile Home Belly Configurations. .............................................................. 10-24

10.14. Addition of a Mobile Home. ........................................................................................ 10-26

10.15. The Addition − Walls form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button........................ 10-27

10.16. The Addition − Windows form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button.................. 10-30

10.17. The Addition − Doors form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ...................... 10-31

10.18. The Addition − Ceiling form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. .................... 10-32

10.19. The Addition – Floor form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ....................... 10-34

10.20. Dimensions of Mobile Home Addition........................................................................ 10-35

10.21. Batt/Blanket Insulation Location. ................................................................................ 10-35

10.22. The Primary Heating System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ........... 10-37

10.23. The Secondary Heating System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ....... 10-38

10.24. The Replacement Heating System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ... 10-38

10.25. The Primary Cooling System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ........... 10-44

10.26. The Secondary Cooling System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ....... 10-44

10.27. The Replacement Cooling System form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button. ... 10-45

11.1. The Status form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............................................ 11-2

11.2. The Air and Duct Leakages form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ................ 11-4

11.3. The Whole House Blower Door Measurements for Air Leakage sub-form. ................. 11-6

11.4. The Whole House Blower Door Measurements for Duct Leakage sub-form. .............. 11-9

11.5. The Blower Door Subtraction Measurements for Duct Leakage sub-form. ................ 11-11

11.6. The Duct Blower (Photo courtesy of The Energy Conservatory). ............................... 11-13

11.7. The Duct Blower Measurements for Duct Leakage sub-form. .................................... 11-14

11.8. The Pressure Pan Measurements for Duct Leakage sub-form (MHEA only). ............ 11-17

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) xiii

List of Figures

11.9. The Optional Blower Door and Zonal Pressures form under the Main Menu’s

“NEAT” button. ........................................................................................................... 11-19

11.10. The Zonal Pressures sub-form. .................................................................................... 11-20

11.11. The Pressure Pans sub-form......................................................................................... 11-21

11.12. The Optional Pressure Balance form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ......... 11-22

11.13. The Optional Pressure Pans form. ............................................................................... 11-23

11.14. The Water Heating form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ............................ 11-24

11.15. The Refrigerator form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ................................ 11-29

11.16. The Lighting Systems form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ....................... 11-36

11.17. The Health & Safety - Whole House form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT”

button. .......................................................................................................................... 11-38

11.18. The Health & Safety - Equipment form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button...... 11-39

11.19. The Worst Case Draft Test for Heating System(s) sub-form. ..................................... 11-40

11.20. The Health & Safety – Building Shell form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT”

button. .......................................................................................................................... 11-40

11.21. Two checkboxes, one indicating a hazard. .................................................................. 11-41

11.22. The Itemized Costs form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button............................. 11-43

11.23. The Itemized Costs form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button............................. 11-43

11.24. The Itemized Costs form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button............................. 11-48

11.25. Data sheet view of the Itemized Costs form. ............................................................... 11-48

11.26. The Utility Bills form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. ................................ 11-50

11.27. The Photos form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button.......................................... 11-54

11.28. The Measures form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button. .................................... 11-55

11.29. The Create Work Order sub-form ................................................................................ 11-58

11.30. The Create Work Order window .................................................................................. 11-58

11.31. The Optional Heating System Details buttons on the Heating form of the Main

Menu’s “NEAT” button (above) and Heating [Primary] form of the Main Menu’s

“MHEA” button (below).............................................................................................. 11-59

11.32. The Operational Tests for Heating System sub-form. ................................................. 11-61

11.33. The Vent Tests for Heating System sub-form. ............................................................ 11-61

11.34. The Other Components for Heating System sub-form. ............................................... 11-62

11.35. The Other Boiler Components for Heating System sub-form (NEAT only). .............. 11-62

xiv The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9)

List of Figures

11.36. The Inspections for Heating System sub-form. ........................................................... 11-62

11.37. The Thermostat Details for Heating System sub-form. ............................................... 11-62

11.38. The Optional Water Heater Details buttons. ................................................................ 11-63

11.39. The Operational Tests for Water Heater sub-form. ..................................................... 11-64

11.40. The Vent Tests for Water Heater sub-form. ................................................................ 11-64

11.41. The Inspections for Water Heater sub-form. ............................................................... 11-64

12.1. The Introductory section of the Recommended Measures report. ................................. 12-2

12.2. The Annual Energy and Cost Savings section of the Recommended Measures

report. ............................................................................................................................. 12-3

12.3. The Energy Saving Measure Economics section of the Recommended Measures

report. ............................................................................................................................. 12-5

13.1. The Work Order Information form under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button..... 13-2

13.2. The Status form under the Work Order main Menu Item. ............................................. 13-7

13.3. The Measures form under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button (form view)......... 13-9

13.4. Message when copying a measure from Library Measures to a work order. .............. 13-12

13.5. The “Materials Detail” sub-form displayed by selecting the “Show Audit Material

Detail” button on the Work Order Measures form. ..................................................... 13-14

13.6. The Energy Savings for Measure: <Measure Name> sub-form. ................................. 13-16

13.7. The Materials/Labor Details sub-form (form view). ................................................... 13-18

13.8. The Materials/Labor Details sub-form (data sheet view). ........................................... 13-18

13.9. The Measures form under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button (data sheet

view). ........................................................................................................................... 13-23

13.10. The Photos form under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button. .............................. 13-24

14.1. The Setup Library Information form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library”

button. ............................................................................................................................ 14-2

14.2. The NEAT Key Parameters – Economics form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................... 14-6

14.3. The NEAT Key Parameters – Set Points form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................... 14-7

14.4. The NEAT Key Parameters – Insulation form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................... 14-8

14.5. The NEAT Key Parameters – Equipment form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................... 14-9

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14.6. The NEAT Key Parameters – Windows form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-11

14.7. The MHEA Key Parameters – Economics form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-13

14.8. The MHEA Key Parameters – Set Points form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-13

14.9. The MHEA Key Parameters – Insulation form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-15

14.10. The MHEA Key Parameters – Heat Transfer form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-16

14.11. The MHEA Key Parameters – Doors form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-19

14.12. The MHEA Key Parameters – Windows form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-19

14.13. The MHEA Key Parameters – Base Loads form under the Main Menu’s “Setup

Library” button............................................................................................................. 14-20

14.14. The Fuel Costs form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button. ....................... 14-21

14.15. The Fuel Price Indices form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button. ........... 14-25

14.16. The Library Measures form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button ............. 14-26

14.17. The Unit Costs of Measure sub-form for the Attic Insulation R-30 measure. ............. 14-29

14.18. The User Defined Measures form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button

(with energy savings, Materials/Labor Details sub-form in form view) ..................... 14-32

14.19. The User Defined Measures form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button

(Health and Safety measure, Materials/Labor sub-form in data sheet view) ............... 14-32

14.20. The User Defined Measures form (data sheet view, All Measures) (left-most

columns) ....................................................................................................................... 14-33

14.21. The All User Measures Cost sub-form ........................................................................ 14-38

14.22. The Materials/Labor Details sub-form (form view) .................................................... 14-39

14.23. The Materials/Labor Details sub-form (data sheet view) ............................................ 14-40

14.24. NEAT Insulation Types ............................................................................................... 14-43

15.1. The General Information form under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library” button ........ 15-2

15.2. A typical form under Main Menu’s “Supply Library” button (form view) ................... 15-5

15.3. The Construction Materials/Hardware Materials form (data sheet view) ..................... 15-6

15.4. Inventory control block .................................................................................................. 15-8

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15.5. Inventory Purchase/Removal Summary ........................................................................ 15-8

15.6. Inventory Used Summary .............................................................................................. 15-8

15.7. The additional entries on the Hot Water Equipment and Refrigerator forms. ............. 15-10

15.8. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Cooling Equipment ........................... 15-11

15.9. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Doors ................................................ 15-12

15.10. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Heating Equipment ........................... 15-13

15.11. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Hot Water Equipment ....................... 15-14

15.12. The Energy Details sub-form for Insulation ................................................................ 15-14

15.13. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Lamps ............................................... 15-15

15.14. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Refrigerators ..................................... 15-16

15.15. The Energy Details sub-form for Replacement Windows ........................................... 15-17

16.1. The General form under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button. ................................. 16-2

16.2. Report displaying optional logo and header text ........................................................... 16-4

16.3. Range Check and Default Values form under the Main Menu’s “Preferences”

button. ............................................................................................................................ 16-5

16.4. The Report Sections form under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button. .................... 16-6

16.5. The Features form under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button. ................................ 16-7

16.6. Photo Folder field for third party photo browser ........................................................... 16-8

16.7. Program Error History form......................................................................................... 16-10

17.1. The Data Link form ....................................................................................................... 17-1

17.2. The “Currently Linked Backend Database” block. ........................................................ 17-3

17.3. The Compact and Repair window.................................................................................. 17-4

17.4. The Pick Database to Link window. .............................................................................. 17-5

17.5. Import/Export via MSAccess Database (Transfer CLIENTS between databases) –

Check-in/Check-out feature activated (two clients selected for import). ...................... 17-7

17.6. The Pick External Database for Import/Export window. ............................................... 17-9

17.7. The WARNING: Overwrite with older data? window. ............................................... 17-12

17.8. The Transfer between databases form (via Text Files) ................................................ 17-16

17.9. Browse window for selecting files to import via text files. ......................................... 17-17

17.10. Example “CSV” file for heating system records. ........................................................ 17-18

17.11. Exporting Clients (via text files). ................................................................................. 17-21

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17.12. The Client Selector form (GIS feature on) .................................................................. 17-25

17.13. The Sort/Filter menu window. ..................................................................................... 17-26

18.1. Tab for pathname method of photo storage. .................................................................. 18-1

18.2. Pathname photo browser. ............................................................................................... 18-2

18.3. Controls on Information tab for third party photo browser. .......................................... 18-3

18.4. Third party photo browser navigation window. ............................................................. 18-4

18.5. Editor of third party photo browser. .............................................................................. 18-5

18.6. GIS Map for Single Client Location. ............................................................................. 18-7

18.7. GIS Map for Client Selection. ....................................................................................... 18-9

18.8. The Status Editor sub-form. ......................................................................................... 18-13

18.9. E-mail specification form for reporting error message. ............................................... 18-15

18.10. E-mail Setup form. ....................................................................................................... 18-17

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The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) xix

Acronyms

AFUE annual fuel utilization efficiency

ASHRAE American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air- Conditioning

Engineers

Btu British thermal unit

COP coefficient of performance

csv comma separated values (file format)

DOE Department of Energy

GIS Geographic Information System

GUI graphical user interface

HDD heating degree days

HSPF heating seasonal performance factor

MB megabytes

MHEA Manufactured Home Energy Audit

MMBtu million British thermal units

NEAT National Energy Audit Tool

NFRC National Fenestration Rating Council

NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

RAM random access memory

SHGC solar heat gain coefficient

SIR savings-to-investment ratio

SP2 service pack 2 (Microsoft)

UPW uniform present worth

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The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) 1-1

Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

Chapter 1. Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

The Weatherization Assistant is a Windows-based energy audit software tool that

was developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to help states and their

local weatherization agencies implement the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

Weatherization Assistance Program. It applies engineering and economic

calculations to assist states and agencies select energy efficient retrofit measures

that meet government criteria for cost-effectiveness and that can be installed in

homes of low-income families enrolled in the Program. The Weatherization

Assistant can be used to select and rank measures for individual houses, or to

establish a priority list of weatherization measures for nearly identical housing

types.

The Weatherization Assistant is actually an umbrella program for two individual

energy audits or measure selection programs (see Figure 1.1): the National Energy

Audit Tool (NEAT) and the Manufactured Home Energy Audit (MHEA). NEAT is

designed specifically for site-built single-family homes, although it can be used

with some limitations for small multifamily residences. MHEA is designed

specifically for manufactured (or mobile) homes. The unique construction

characteristics of mobile homes require evaluating and installing measures

specifically for such homes in order to obtain effective weatherization with high

energy and dollar savings.

Figure 1.1. Design of the Weatherization Assistant.

In addition to serving as the umbrella program for NEAT and MHEA, the

Weatherization Assistant provides optional features that are useful in implementing

and administering weatherization programs. These optional features include

recording an extensive amount of agency-related contact information and client

Weatherization Assistant

Optional Administrative Features

(Member Programs)

NEAT

Site-Built Homes

MHEA

Manufactured Housing

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

intake data, developing work orders, recording diagnostic measurements and health

and safety issues, storing digital photos and documents, using an internal map to

locate or select clients, tracking the status of clients and jobs, tracking available

funds and total expenditures, tracking inventory, and generating summary and

analysis reports.

Installation of the Weatherization Assistant provides users with both of the

measure selection programs as well as the optional administrative features.

Installation procedures are provided in Chapter 2, Installation and Start-up.

1.1 Overview of NEAT and MHEA

NEAT was developed by ORNL. It was formally introduced in the summer of

1993 and has been modified and upgraded many times since. MHEA, on the other

hand, was originally developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

(NREL). ORNL converted this original version of MHEA to a Windows-based

program, packaged it with NEAT under the Weatherization Assistant umbrella,

and now maintains and supports the software.

NEAT and MHEA evaluate each home individually after taking into account local

weather conditions, weatherization measure costs, fuel costs, and specific

construction details of the home. After describing envelope components, heating

and cooling systems, and base load equipment (e.g., refrigerators, water heaters,

lighting), NEAT and MHEA produce a prioritized list of cost-effective

weatherization measures customized for the dwelling being evaluated. The output

includes estimates of the dollar value for the projected energy savings, savings-to-

investment ratios (SIRs), installation costs, a list of the quantities of the major

materials necessary to perform the recommended weatherization retrofits, and

design heating and cooling loads needed to size any replacement equipment.

MHEA stands apart from other building energy analysis tools in many ways. Input

and calculations incorporated into the software address constructions unique to

mobile homes such as bellied floors and bowstring roofs. The retrofit measures

evaluated by MHEA are all applicable to mobile homes.

NEAT and MHEA follow eight steps to select the energy efficiency measures for a

particular home that meet a designated level of cost-effectiveness (i.e., measures

that have an SIR greater than a specified value):

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

1. NEAT and MHEA guide the user through the process of entering data on the

home that describe the characteristics of the home, its mechanical systems, and

other energy-related information. NEAT and MHEA also allow health and

safety deficiencies and repair items to be noted. Both audits use blower door

measurements, duct leakage measurements, and steady-state efficiency

measurements of space-heating equipment, if available. Data may be collected

in the field using data input forms and transferred to NEAT or MHEA later in

the office, or data may be entered directly into NEAT or MHEA using a

portable computer while auditing the home.

2. NEAT and MHEA use engineering calculations and weather data from over 200

weather cities in the continental United States and bordering provinces of

Canada to compute the annual heat loss and heat gain of the home, and the

annual space-heating and space-cooling energy consumption required to keep

the home at a specific thermostat set-point. Both audits calculate heat loss and

heat gain on a monthly basis using a variable-base degree-day method and ten-

year average weather data for the selected city. They also consider the amount

of solar energy absorbed by a home and the typical amount of heat generated

inside a home by people and their refrigerators, water heater, other appliances,

and lights. NEAT and MHEA estimate the heat gain and loss due to duct

leakage if specified. NEAT and MHEA assume a home is maintained at average

conditions regardless of specific occupants because efficiency measures

typically remain after occupants move, and this follows the intent of the

Weatherization Assistance Program that finances energy efficiency measures

that generate savings over the life of the measures.

3. NEAT and MHEA compute the energy consumption of selected base load uses

(water heating, refrigerators, and lighting in need of retrofit) if desired.

Refrigerator and water heater descriptions use an extensive database of

manufacturers and models, which eliminates the need to input detailed

equipment descriptions by the user.

4. NEAT checks the applicability of 38 building envelope, space-heating and

space-cooling system, and base load energy efficiency measures to the specific

home being audited, while MHEA checks the applicability of 32 measures.

These measures include air and duct leakage reduction, envelope insulation,

window replacements and other treatments, space-heating and space-cooling

equipment replacement and tune-up, replacement refrigerators, water heater

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tank and pipe insulation, replacement lighting, and more. Both audits then

calculate an energy savings and discounted SIR for each applicable measure

applied individually to the home. User-defined energy efficiency measures can

also be entered and evaluated. The SIRs are calculated using fuel costs and

installation costs representative of the home and agency as input by the user, as

well as measure lifetimes appropriate for each measure.

5. NEAT and MHEA evaluate the interaction between efficiency measures (e.g.,

since insulation reduces the amount of energy needed for space heating, it also

reduces the energy savings from a space-heating system replacement).

Beginning with the measure with the highest SIR, NEAT and MHEA apply

each energy efficiency measure to the home and then compute a new SIR for

the remaining measures, taking into account savings gained by preceding

measures.

6. NEAT and MHEA identify a final list of recommended energy efficiency

measures by selecting those with an SIR greater than the cut-off value selected

by the user once interactions between measures have been accounted for.

7. NEAT and MHEA generate a report of recommended energy efficiency

measures that identifies, both individually and cumulatively, the energy

savings, installation cost, and SIR of the recommended measures. The report

also identifies those health, safety, and repair items selected by the user that

need to be performed. In addition, an essential materials list is developed, and

design heating and cooling loads needed to size replacement equipment are

provided.

8. NEAT and MHEA can adjust their estimated energy savings based on actual

utility consumption data and develop a second list of recommend energy

efficiency measures if the user desires.

1.2 Software Overview

The Weatherization Assistant utilizes a commercially produced database software,

Microsoft Access, to provide a user interface for data input and to store the

information you provide and the results of running the program. The analysis

engines (NEAT and MHEA) are written in the programming language “C.” The

Microsoft Access portions of the program are linked to the analysis engines by

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

C++ and Visual Basic programs. However, the Weatherization Assistant requires

no software associated with any of these languages or applications for normal use.

The Weatherization Assistant features a Windows graphical user interface. Data

input is provided to the program through Microsoft Access forms, which can be

used in either “form” view (data are displayed on forms that are filled in) or “data

sheet” view (as would be seen in a spreadsheet application).

The Weatherization Assistant stores all of its input and output information in a

single database file (often called the “mdb database file” or just the “mdb file”

because the file’s extension is “.mdb”). Within this file, information is stored in

linked tables, each table composed of as many “records” as is required to store the

information required. For example, when you enter information on a new client by

filling in data on a form, you are adding a new record to the client table.

Information is retrieved simply by requesting to view different records in the

database. You may already be familiar with the concept of tables, records, and

forms if you have used other software products based on Microsoft Access.

With data stored in Access tables, persons experienced in Access can retrieve the

information and import it to other Access applications without having to re-enter

data. In addition, the Weatherization Assistant can produce and read comma

separate value (csv) files containing data, which provides an additional mechanism

for data transfer between computer applications. This data transfer capability

provides the potential for collecting or storing all weatherization program data into

state-wide or nationwide databases that could then be used in program evaluation

or lead to better implementation processes.

1.3 Program Overview

The Weatherization Assistant divides its tasks into several main activities. These

activities are accessed using buttons found on the initial form, called the Main

Menu, which appears when opening the program (see Figure 1.2). Throughout this

manual, these main activities are referenced by the names given to these buttons as

seen on this Main Menu.

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

Figure 1.2. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Chapter 6, Agency) allow you

to enter information about your agency, your staff and their functions, and the

contractors and suppliers used by your agency. You can list the sources of funding

available for your work with balances of funds available in each, and you can also

see and navigate to all the clients, audits, work orders, setup libraries, and supply

libraries that are associated with your agency.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button allow you to enter information

about the clients that your agency serves. The Weatherization Assistant keeps a

listing of your clients separate from the descriptions of the homes of those clients.

Minimal information is required to identify a client, but there is a considerable

amount of optional data that you can enter if you desire. You must supply at least

the minimal data on a client before you can continue and perform an audit on the

client’s home or continue entering data for other clients. Under the Main Menu’s

“Clients” button, you can also see and navigate to all the audits and work orders

that are associated with that client. A detailed discussion of data entered under the

Main Menu’s “Clients” button is given in Chapter 7, Clients.

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Site Built (NEAT)” and “Mobile Home (MHEA)”

buttons allow you to describe a client’s home and enter other audit information

once a client has been entered into the Weatherization Assistant. It is this home

description that allows the Weatherization Assistant to make retrofit

recommendations for improving the energy efficiency of the home. After all the

house information has been entered and the audit has been run, you can view and

print the audit recommendations, as well as prepare for the optional step of

initiating work orders to install the recommendations. Data entered under the Main

Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons are fully described in Chapters 8–12.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button provide an optional feature

that allows you to develop work orders needed for weatherization measures to be

installed in a home. Work orders may be automatically generated by the execution

of either NEAT or MHEA, developed manually (e.g., if the measures to be

installed were recommended based on a predefined priority list rather than running

NEAT or MHEA), or created by a combination of the two. The level of detail

included in the work orders is determined by the user. Material descriptions and

associated costs pre-entered in the Supply Library can be used to make the

development of the work orders easier, faster, and more consistent. The use of

work orders combined with the use of the Weatherization Assistant’s optional

inventory feature can help you track and maintain inventory. A detailed description

of the optional work order feature is provided in Chapter 13, Work Orders.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button allow you to set up the

Weatherization Assistant to reflect conditions in your agency. The parameters

entered in the Setup Library affect the recommendations of the audits, although

they are not a part of the individual home descriptions. Parameters that are entered

in the Setup Library include fuel costs; identification of the weatherization

measures predefined in NEAT and MHEA that your agency performs; material and

labor costs associated with these weatherization measures; and values of selected

key parameters associated with materials, equipment, thermostat set-points, etc.

The Setup Library also allows you to enter your own weatherization measures and

insulation materials as alternatives to those already programmed into NEAT and

MHEA. Detailed discussions of the forms under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library”

button are provided in Chapter 14, Setup Library.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library” button allow you to identify or

select materials and enter details on each material such as cost, R-value for

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

insulation materials, etc. Entering materials into the Supply Library is most useful

when you are going to develop work orders, as described under the Main Menu’s

“Work Orders” button. In this case, having a library of materials to choose from

makes it easier to create a work order. If you are not going to use the work order

feature, then the only materials that you may want to enter in the Supply Library

are new refrigerators and water heaters that you use to replace existing units (if you

perform these measures). The forms under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library”

button are discussed in Chapter 15, Supply Library.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button allow you to choose various

options affecting the appearance of the Weatherization Assistant or the operation

of its interface. These options do not affect the calculations or the

recommendations of NEAT or MHEA themselves. These options include the

appearance of headers that are printed on the first page of all reports, the values

used to perform range checks on every numerical data input field, and the ability to

turn on or off optional features in the Weatherization Assistant. All of the options

that can be controlled under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button are discussed

in Chapter 16, Preferences.

Forms under the Main Menu’s “Data Link” button allow you to transfer data with

other users of the Weatherization Assistant or even with other database or analysis

programs. The Data Link feature also allows you to choose which database you are

connected to, although most users will only use the one database provided as part

of the initial installation of the Weatherization Assistant. Note that on the Main

Menu, the database file to which you are currently connected is displayed. In

Figure 1.2, this file is “wa8-9.mdb” which is located in the folder “C:\Program

Data\Weatherization Assistant 8-9.” The use of the Data Link feature is presented

in Chapter 17, Data Link.

1.4 Optional Features

The optional features in the Weatherization Assistant were incorporated into the

program in such a way as to allow you to use the measure selection programs

(NEAT and MHEA) almost as stand-alone programs, if you are not interested in

using the optional features. This is why most of the optional features are accessed

from their own tabs under the various Main Menu buttons (with the exception of

work orders, which has its own Main Menu button and was described previously),

and why there are separate buttons on the Main Menu of the program to take you

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Chapter 1: Overview of the Weatherization Assistant

directly to either NEAT or MHEA. In addition, the optional features are, for the

most part, independent of one another. This allows you to pick and choose which

optional features to use in a phased approach.

The Weatherization Assistant allows an extensive amount of diagnostic

measurements and health and safety issues to be recorded within the NEAT and

MHEA audits. NEAT and MHEA do not use most of these measurements and

observations directly in their calculations. However, by recording these

measurements and observations within the Weatherization Assistant, they become

a permanent part of the electronic record for a house. Also, repairs can be

automatically recommended to fix any identified health and safety issues if you set

the Weatherization Assistant up to do so. Chapter 11, NEAT and MHEA Common

Elements, discusses how to record diagnostic measurements and health and safety

issues.

The Weatherization Assistant provides the capability of linking digital photos

taken at any stage of the weatherization process or digital scans of additional

documents to a client, audit, and/or work order. This can be useful to more clearly

identify weatherization or repair items that need to be performed, or to document

pre-existing conditions that will not be addressed during weatherization. This

capability is discussed in Section 18.1, Digital Photos.

A Geographic Information System (GIS) can be installed with the Weatherization

Assistant that allows mapping of a single client’s location or any group of clients at

once. This allows auditors, weatherization crews, inspectors, and others to find the

location of a client’s home, and could assist in scheduling efforts or in creating

summary reports by geographic location. The GIS is described in Section 18.2,

Geographic Information System (GIS).

A relatively extensive client status tracking system is incorporated in the

Weatherization Assistant. This system allows an agency to track the overall status

of a client as well the client’s application, audit, work orders, inspections, and

payments if desired. Section 18.3, Status Tracking, discusses how to use this

system.

Although the Weatherization Assistant already provides many data fields under the

Main Menu’s “Agency” and “Clients” buttons for entering a wide range of

information on clients and their houses, agencies and states often collect even more

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information. The Weatherization Assistant provides the capability of including this

additional information in its database. User-generated survey or data forms can be

developed under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Section 6.4, Surveys

(Agency)), with the responses or data for each individual client stored and retrieved

in reports under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button (see Section 7.7, Surveys

(Client)).

The Weatherization Assistant provides a tool to assist weatherization staff in

tracking available funding provided that the work order feature is used. You can

create cost centers (funding sources) and record the receiving of funds under the

Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Section 6.3, Cost Centers). The funding

balances of each of the cost centers will then be automatically updated as work

orders are completed and actual costs are recorded under the Main Menu’s “Work

Orders” button (see Section 13.3, Measures (Work Order)).

The Weatherization Assistant provides predefined reports that summarize and

analyze the information you have entered. Different reports are available and

accessed under each of the Main Menu buttons. The primary report used in the

Weatherization Assistant is the Recommended Measures report that summarizes

the recommendations of a NEAT and MHEA audit (see Chapter 12, NEAT and

MHEA Results). Many other reports are available. For example, reports are also

available that document the data and information you entered into each NEAT or

MHEA audit, list the cost of measures you entered in the Supply Library,

summarize the work performed on a house, or identify all the houses weatherized

between selected dates along with their final costs. If you are an experienced user

of Microsoft Access, you can even develop your own reports as outlined in

Appendix D, Development of Customized Reports.

The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) 2-1

Chapter 2: Installation and Start-up

Chapter 2. Installation and Start-up

The Weatherization Assistant includes the two measure selection programs, NEAT

for site-built homes and MHEA for mobile homes, as well as an umbrella of

optional features addressing other tasks performed by agency personnel as part of

the weatherization process. The instructions provided in this chapter will install all

of these tools onto your computer. Instructions are also provided in this chapter on

how to install the separate files needed to use the Weatherization Assistant’s GIS

to map the location of client homes, how to obtain the Weatherization Assistant

User’s Manual, and how to start the program.

2.1 Hardware and Software Requirements

The Weatherization Assistant must be installed on a Windows-based personal

computer that has at least 100 megabytes (MB) of free random-access memory

(RAM). The installation will require at least 150 MB of available hard disk space.

Your graphic card and monitor should be able to produce a display with a

minimum resolution of 1024×768 pixels in order to allow the Weatherization

Assistant’s windows to be seen without scrolling.

The Weatherization Assistant needs only a Windows operating system (NT4.0,

Win2000, XP, Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8), which normally comes with the

purchase of a computer. NT4.0 and Win2000 must have at least the service pack 2

(SP2) upgrades installed in order to ensure proper operation of the Weatherization

Assistant. The upgrades are available through Microsoft, typically by using their

Windows Update feature.

The Weatherization Assistant uses your existing Windows printer setup to both

display and print results and reports. Thus, even though you may not have a printer

physically attached to your computer, you must have an acceptable printer driver

loaded and selected as the default in order to display the results. Output produced

by the Weatherization Assistant is stored in its database file and displayed in rich-

text format from within the program.

2.2 Obtaining the Weatherization Assistant Software

The Weatherization Assistant software is copyrighted and cannot be altered in any

way beyond the bounds set within the program. The latest version of the

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Weatherization Assistant is Version 8.9.0.5. All releases of Version 8.9 of the

Weatherization Assistant are designated by four digits (i.e., 8.9.x.x), where the

third digit indicates the update number and the fourth digit indicates the

maintenance number.

The installation file for the latest release of Version 8.9 of the Weatherization

Assistant (WA 8-9-0-5.exe) can be downloaded over the Internet from either the

Weatherization Assistance Program Technical Assistance Center (WAPTAC) or

ORNL web sites:

• http://waptac.org/Energy-Audits/Weatherization-Assistant.aspx

and then select

the “Weatherization Assistant 8.9” hyperlink, or

• http://eber.ed.ornl.gov/pub/weatherization and then select the “Weatherization

Assistant 8.9” folder.

Right click your mouse on the “WA 8.9.0.5” hyperlink on the WAPTAC site or the

“WA 8-9-0-5.exe” file from the ORNL site. Select “Save target as…” from the

menu displayed. You will be presented with a “Save As” window asking where on

your computer you wish to save the “WA 8-9-0-5.exe” file. Choose an existing or

new location (folder) on your computer to save the file in. You might select your

“Desktop” to allow easy access. You are encouraged to leave the “File name” as

the default automatically entered in this field (i.e., “WA 8-9-0-5.exe”). Once the

folder has been selected or created, select the “Save” button to begin the download,

which may take several minutes if you are not using a high-speed Internet

connection. After completion of the download, you may exit your Internet browser

or download the GIS files and/or the manuals for the Weatherization Assistant (see

Section 2.5, Obtaining and Installing the GIS Files).

The “WA 8-9-0-5.exe” file will not be needed for normal operation once it has

been executed to install the Weatherization Assistant. However, you would need

the file if you ever needed to re-install the program. Thus, it is recommended that

you eventually save the file in a safe location, possibly in the folder created during

installation (e.g., “C:\Program Files\Weatherization Assistant 8-9” or “C:\Program

Data\Weatherization Assistant 8-9”).

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2.3 Installing the Weatherization Assistant

If your computer is configured to allow only certain users, normally a system

administrator, to install software, then this user will have to be contacted in order

to install the Weatherization Assistant. If you should attempt installation under

such circumstances without proper authorization, you will receive messages

indicating either the need for “administrative privileges” or that you do not have

“write access” to certain locations on your computer.

If this is the first installation of the Weatherization Assistant program on your

computer or you are upgrading from a previous version other than Version 8.9,

then the Weatherization Assistant’s installation procedure will automatically install

Version 8.9 as a “new installation.” A “new installation” will install Version 8.9 of

the Weatherization Assistant in its own folder on your computer (the default folder

is “C:\Program Files\Weatherization Assistant 8-9” for a computer with an XP

operating system or “C:\ProgramData\Weatherization Assistant 8-9” for a

computer with a later operating system), provide you with a unique icon on your

desktop with which to start Version 8.9 of the program, and give you a database

file to store all your agency, client, audit, and other information. If earlier versions

were previously installed, they will remain on your computer and will be fully

functional.

If a previous release of Version 8.9 is already installed on your computer, then it is

recommended that you install the latest release of Version 8.9 as an “update,”

although you have the option to install the latest release as a “new installation” if

desired. Installation of the latest release of Version 8.9 as an “update” will install

the latest release in the same folder as your previous release of Version 8.9, use the

same desktop icon to start the Weatherization Assistant, and use the same database

file as the previous release of Version 8.9. All the information entered in your

previous release of Version 8.9 on your agency, clients, and audits and in your

Setup and Supply Libraries will remain unchanged.

A change in only the fourth digit of the latest release indicates a change in the program that should not affect the

program’s output or recommendations (e.g., a new report was added). However, if the third digit in the latest release

is different than your previous release, then a modification has been made to the program that could affect the

program’s output (e.g., savings or cost of a measure). Therefore, once the latest release is installed, rerunning an

audit that was previously run under the previous release could result in changes in the Recommended Measures

Report (e.g., a different list of recommended measures; different energy savings, costs, and/or SIR for a

recommended measure). Once the latest release is installed, the Recommended Measures Report generated under the

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Before installing Version 8.9 of the Weatherization Assistant on your computer,

close all Windows programs that are running. Then, to initiate the installation

process, use Windows Explorer or My Computer to locate the “WA 8-9-0-5.exe”

file that you downloaded to your computer and then double click on it. If the “WA

8-9-0-5.exe” file was downloaded to your desktop, simply double clicking on the

file’s icon on your desktop will initiate the process.

A welcome screen for the Weatherization Assistant Install program appears (see

Figure 2.1). Select “Next,” and then select “I Agree” after reading the Disclaimer

Statement (see Figure 2.2).

Figure 2.1. Welcome screen.

Figure 2.2. Disclaimer Statement screen.

The Destination Folder screen that appears identifies if a previous Version 8.9 was

found on your computer and where the new release of Version 8.9 will be installed

(see Figure 2.3 and Figure 2.4). It is recommended that you install the new release

in the folder selected by the installer: “C:\Program Files\Weatherization Assistant

8-9” or “C:\ProgramData\Weatherization Assistant 8-9” for a “new installation,” or

the folder where the previous release of Version 8.9 is installed in the case of an

“update.” However, the installation routine does allow you to select another folder

if you desire. If you do choose a folder other than the default, make sure it is

previous release can be viewed without rerunning the audit by selecting the Recommended Measures report in the

Report block in the lower right corner of the NEAT or MHEA Audit Information forms. If you want to rerun the

audit using the latest release but keep the recommendations generated under the previous release, you should make a

copy of the audit and then run the audit on the copied version (do not run the audit on the original version of the

audit because this will write over the recommendations generated under the previous release).

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different from the folder of any other existing version of Weatherization Assistant.

This will ensure that any building descriptions entered with a previous version will

remain undisturbed.

Figure 2.3. Destination Folder screen for a

“New Installation.”

Figure 2.4. Destination Folder screen for an

“Update.”

Once the destination folder has been selected, click “Next” to obtain the Start

Installation screen (see Figure 2.5). This screen confirms the release of Version 8.9

that will be installed. Click “Next” to start the installation of the actual

Weatherization Assistant files.

The installation may take a minute or two. During the installation, several progress

screens will appear that display the installation status. If the installation was

successful, a final screen appears stating that the latest release was installed

successfully (see Figure 2.6). Select “Finish” to complete the installation and exit

the install program.

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Figure 2.5. Start Installation screen.

Figure 2.6. Finish screen.

If a “New Installation” was performed, the installation

process will have placed a new icon on your desktop

(see Figure 2.7). This icon will be called “WA 8.9” if

no previous versions of Version 8.9 were on your

computer and “WA 8.9.x.x” if there was. To run

Version 8.9 of the Weatherization Assistant, just double

click on this new icon. However, you should consult

Chapter 3, Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant, to

properly set up the program before proceeding with its

use.

If an “Update” was performed, the installation process will have linked the icon

used to run the previous release to the latest release. As before, just double click on

this same icon to run the latest release of Version 8.9.

2.4 Network Installation

If you are installing the Weatherization Assistant on a network, you need to:

• Install the Weatherization Assistant on each of the client computers. The

program will then be run individually from each client computer.

Figure 2.7. The

Weatherization Assistant’s

icon for Version 8.9.

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• Copy one of the “wa8-9.mdb” files from a client computer to a shared folder on

the network computer. Make sure that the shared folder has READ, WRITE,

and CREATE permissions for all users, and that the “wa8-9.mdb” file in the

shared folder has READ and WRITE permissions. The “mdb” files may be

renamed, in order to prevent the confusion resulting from files of the same

name, as long as each retains the “mdb” extension.

• Run the Weatherization Assistant on each client computer and use the Data

Link feature on the Main Menu to link each client computer to the shared “wa8-

9.mdb” file on the network computer (see Section 17.1, Currently Linked

Backend Data File).

An alternate method of sharing information among multiple computers is to use the

Import/Export feature of the program. See Section 17.3, Data Transfer –

Import/Export with Another MSAccess Database, for more details.

2.5 Obtaining and Installing the GIS Files

The GIS feature in Version 8.9 of the Weatherization Assistant allows the location

of client homes to be mapped (see Section 18.2, Geographic Information System

(GIS)). Before this optional feature can be used, you must first download and then

unzip two files that are available only over the Internet (due to copyright

restrictions) from the same two web sites used to obtain the program files for the

Weatherization Assistant:

• http://waptac.org/Energy-Audits/Weatherization-Assistant.aspx

and then

select the “GIS Mapping" hyperlink, or

• http://eber.ed.ornl.gov/pub/weatherization

and then select the “GIS Files"

folder.

Download the “base.zip” file and the zip file for your state (i.e., “xx.zip” where xx

is the two letter abbreviation for your state) following the same steps used to

download the latest release of the Weatherization Assistant (see Section 2.2,

Obtaining the Weatherization Assistant Software). These downloads may take

several minutes if you are not using a high-speed Internet connection.

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After downloading the two files to your computer, right click on each zip file and

choose “Extract All…” Select the destination for the extracted files to be the GIS

folder under the location where you installed the Weatherization Assistant (e.g.,

“C:\Program Files\Weatherization Assistant 8-9\gis” or “C:\Program

Data\Weatherization Assistant 8-9\gis”). After each file has been unzipped, the zip

files are no longer needed and can be deleted. The GIS files are used under a

license agreement and cannot be duplicated or further distributed.

After both zip files have been unzipped, turn the GIS feature on within the

Weatherization Assistant by selecting the “Preferences” button from the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu, click on the Features tab, check the box

next to Feature 3, “Enable geographic information system (mapping),” and then

click on the “Restart” button. See Sections 16.4, Features, and 18.2, Geographic

Information System (GIS), for more details.

2.6 Obtaining Manuals for the Weatherization Assistant

Two manuals are available for the Weatherization Assistant:

• The Weatherization Assistant Users Manual (Version 8.9) – (This manual)

The primary manual describing Version 8.9 of the Weatherization Assistant,

including detailed descriptions of NEAT, MHEA, and all the associated

administrative features offered in Version 8.9. This manual is provided in PDF

format.

• The National Energy Audit (NEAT) Engineering Manual (Version 7) –

This engineering manual delineates the algorithms and assumptions used by

NEAT in arriving at its measure recommendations based on the user’s input of

the building characteristics. This manual was published in September 2003 and,

thus, does not include changes made in the Weatherization Assistant since that

time. This manual is provided in PDF format. An update to the manual is

forthcoming. No equivalent manual for MHEA is currently available.

Both manuals can be downloaded over the Internet from the same two web sites

used to obtain the program files for the latest release of the Weatherization

Assistant:

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Chapter 2: Installation and Start-up

• http://www.waptac.org/Weatherization-Assistant/Weatherization-Assistant-

Manuals.aspx, or

• http://eber.ed.ornl.gov/pub/weatherization and then select the “Manuals” folder.

Selecting the files for the manuals from the WAPTAC or ORNL web sites will

either:

• Automatically open the files with the PDF software because the software is

already installed on your computer. In this case, you may use that software’s

“Print” button to immediately print the manuals, or you may use that software’s

“Save” button to save the files to a folder on your computer for later viewing

and printing.

• Cause your Internet browser to display the same “Save As” window as seen

when downloading the program files for the latest release of the Weatherization

Assistant, because the PDF software is not installed on your computer. In this

case, you may download the manuals following the same steps used to

download the latest release of the Weatherization Assistant (see Section 2.2,

Obtaining the Weatherization Assistant Software). However, you will not be

able to view or print the manuals until you install the PDF software or a PDF

viewer on your computer.

In both cases, it may take several minutes to open or download the files if you are

not using a high-speed Internet connection. It is recommended that you download

or save the manuals in the same folder or a subfolder where you installed the

Weatherization Assistant (e.g., “C:\Program Files\Weatherization Assistant 8-9” or

“C:\ProgramData\Weatherization Assistant 8-9”).

2.7 Accessing Web-Based Training for the Weatherization Assistant

A web-based training course on the Weatherization Assistant has been developed

and made available over the Internet. The course covers all of the information

presented in three days of on-site training provided to new users of the

Weatherization Assistant. Also provided is a module that presents information on

the optional advanced features of the program. To access the training, go to:

http://www.weatherizationassistanttraining.org

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The first time you visit the website, select the “REGISTER” hyperlink near the

bottom of the page. This will lead you through a registration process. Once

registered, use the LOGIN hyperlink to visit the training site as often as needed.

There is no charge associated with use of this site.

2.8 Starting the Weatherization Assistant

Click on the Weatherization Assistant icon displayed on your desktop to start the

program. Any other means of attempting to open the program will likely fail. The

icon has specific instructions regarding the opening of the Weatherization

Assistant that are needed for its successful operation.

The first time you start the

Weatherization Assistant

after installation, you will be

asked to enter an “Installation

ID” (see Figure 2.8). The

entry requested is a brief

name (up to 10 characters)

identifying this specific

installation of the software. If

this will likely be the only

installation of the

Weatherization Assistant in

your agency, this entry is not

vital and may be something

such as the acronym of your

agency. However, if you plan

to have multiple installations of the Weatherization Assistant on different

computers within your agency and you plan to share data between them, the

Installation ID should uniquely identify this specific installation. For example, you

might enter “Inst 1,” or the initials or last name of the person who is responsible

for this specific computer.

The Installation ID is appended to new records (such as setup or supply libraries)

when they are created (see Sections 14.1, Setup Library Information, and 15.1,

General Information Form). For example, if the Installation ID you entered was

Figure 2.8. The Installation ID form.

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“Smith,” and you copied the library “Your Setup Library,” then the copy of the

Setup Library would be named “Your Setup Library [Smith].” If necessary for

uniqueness, an integer will also be appended. If the Installation ID field on the

Installation ID form is left blank, a default installation ID consisting of the time the

record was created will be assigned. For example, under these circumstances, the

copied setup library would be named “Your Setup Library [09:51:13].” Of course,

you are free to rename the record, as long as the name remains unique.

The Installation ID is also used by default when exporting from an installation

using text files in order to identify which computer the files are from (see Section

17.4, Data Transfer – Import/Export Indirectly with Text Files).

You can change the Installation ID at any time by selecting the “Preferences”

button on the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Section 16.1, General).

After you have entered the Installation ID, select the “Done” button. If during

installation you chose to install the Weatherization Assistant in a folder on your

computer other than the default folder, the Weatherization Assistant may tell you

that it must connect to the “back-end database.” Click on the “OK” button to

continue. You will then be asked to confirm that the linking was successful. A

similar process will then be performed to link to a reporting module.

The Weatherization Assistant will now take you briefly to an introductory banner

screen that indicates the version number and release date. Subsequent start-ups of

the Weatherization Assistant will also take you directly to this introductory screen.

This screen will automatically disappear once the program has fully loaded and be

replaced by the Main Menu for the Weatherization Assistant (see Figure 2.9). It is

from this Main Menu that you will access all of the functions included in the

Weatherization Assistant. An overview of the Main Menu is provided in Section

1.3, Program Overview.

2.9 The User Log On Form

If you institute use of the User Logon feature of the Weatherization Assistant, you

will be presented with the Weatherization Assistant Log On form each time you

start the program (see Figure 2.10). This feature requires users of the program to be

registered and have passwords assigned before they can access the program. A list

of currently registered users is displayed by clicking on the downward pointing

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arrow in the “User Name” drop-down list. The following is displayed for each

registered user: the User Name, the Full Name of the user, and the user’s Group

(indicating privileges), Agency, and State (of agency). Choose a user from the list

and enter the password for that user. Only after successfully logging on will the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 2.9) become available. See

Feature 4, “Enable user logons with user names and passwords from the Agency/

Contacts tab” in Section 16.4, Features, and “Change Logon Group and Password”

in Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency), for more information on the use of the User

Logon feature.

Figure 2.9. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Figure 2.10. The Weatherization Assistant Log On form.

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Chapter 3: Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant

Chapter 3. Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant

A new installation of Weatherization Assistant requires the program to be properly

set up for your specific agency before it can be used to select cost-effective

weatherization measures for homes. This involves the simple, administrative tasks

of initializing your agency information and renaming the default Setup and Supply

Libraries to better identify them to yourself. It also involves the important steps of

tailoring the Setup Library and, to a lesser extent, the Supply Library to represent

your local costs, conditions, etc. These latter steps cannot be ignored.

If your installation of Version 8.9 is an upgrade from an earlier Version 8 of the

Weatherization Assistant (e.g., Version 8.6), you can set up your new installation

by importing agency information and the Setup and Supply Libraries from the

previous version, as outlined in Section 3.3, Importing Information from a

Previous Version. Otherwise, you must follow the steps outlined in Section 3.2,

Program Setup, to set up the Weatherization Assistant manually. You must decide

which method you will use before implementing it because confusion may result if

both approaches are used.

This chapter assumes that you are familiar with navigation and data entry

techniques common to programs using a Windows user interface. If you are not,

you should consult Chapter 5, Navigation and Data Entry, to learn how to navigate

through the Weatherization Assistant’s multiple forms and enter information into

its data fields.

3.1 Initial Start-up of the Weatherization Assistant

Click on the Weatherization Assistant icon displayed on your desktop to start the

program. The first time you start the Weatherization Assistant after a new

installation, an Installation ID form will be displayed (see Figure 2.8). If this is the

first time the Weatherization Assistant has been started since it was installed,

follow the steps presented in Section 2.8, Starting the Weatherization Assistant, to

correctly set up the Installation ID.

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Figure 3.1. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

3.2 Program Setup

Initializing Your Agency Information

Select the “Agency” button from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see

Figure 3.1) to display the Agency Information form (see Figure 3.2). Change the

Agency Name from “Your Agency” to the actual name of your agency (the full

name or perhaps an acronym) and the State from “US” to your state using the drop-

down list. If the Weatherization Assistant is installed on multiple computers within

your agency, you should make the Agency Names unique, perhaps by entering a

dash (“-”) followed by the Installation ID that you used in Section 3.1, Initial Start-

up of the Weatherization Assistant, after the name of your agency. Although not

absolutely necessary, you should select the Agency Type from the options in the

drop-down list that best matches your agency. Make sure the checkbox in front of

“Default agency to associate with new Client, Work Order…” is checked. Delete

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the “Agency comment” from the Comment field. Section 6.1, Agency Information,

should be reviewed for more information on these steps.

Figure 3.2. The Agency Information form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

Although optional, you may wish to enter one or more “Contacts” for your agency.

Select the Contacts tab under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button to display the

Contacts form (see Figure 3.3). Enter your name in the Contact Name field.

Following this entry, make sure that the Name Detail field correctly identifies your

First, MI (if you entered it), and Last names. Enter an abbreviated name, possibly

your initials, first, or last name, in the User Name field and make sure the Active

checkbox is checked. Enter your agency name in the Company field. If any of the

checkboxes at the left center of the form apply to you, select them. An agency

contact designated as an “Auditor” can be assigned responsibility for audits (see

“Auditor” in Section 8.2, Audit Information).

If you want to use the Weatherization Assistant’s User Logon feature to restrict

who can open the software, select the “Change LogOn Group and Password”

button. Select the “Admin” User Group and enter and confirm a password. Leave

the “Confirm Old Password” field blank. Select the “Apply New Password” button

(see Feature 4 in Section 16.4, Features for additional details).

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You may enter additional agency contacts now or at a later time by selecting the

“New” button in the Agency Contact record navigation block in the lower left

corner of the form. Enter the new contact’s Contact Name and User Name, and

make sure the Active checkbox is checked. Enter the Company Name for the

contact and any additional information related to the contact. For instance, if the

contact was associated with a material supplier, the Company field would be the

name of the company that supplies the material and the Supplier checkbox would

be checked.

Figure 3.3. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency), should be consulted for more information on these

steps. When finished, click on the X-box in the upper right corner of the “Agency”

window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Naming Your Supply Library

Select the “Supply Library” button from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main

Menu (see Figure 3.1) to display the Supply Library’s General Information form

(see Figure 3.4). Rename the Supply Name from “Your Supply Library” to

something more recognizable to you. It is recommended that you simply replace

the “Your” with the acronym of your agency. If you have more than one

installation of the software within your agency, it is also recommended that you

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use the Installation ID in the name, perhaps by adding a dash (“-”) followed by the

Installation ID. The name of your agency and your state, as entered previously,

will be correctly listed in the Agency and State fields, respectively. Refer to

Section 15.1, General Information (for the Supply Library) for more information

on these steps. When finished, click on the X-box in the upper right corner of the

“Supply” window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Figure 3.4. The General Information form under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library”

button.

Naming Your Setup Library

Select the “Setup Library” button from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu

(see Figure 3.1) to display the Setup Library Information form (see Figure 3.5).

Rename the Library Name from “Your Setup Library” to something more

recognizable to you. It is recommended that you simply replace the “Your” with

the acronym of your agency. If you have more than one installation of the software

within your agency, it is also recommended that you use the Installation ID in the

name, perhaps by adding a dash (“-”) followed by the Installation ID. The name of

your agency, state, and supply library as entered previously will be correctly listed

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in the Agency, State, and Supply Library fields, respectively. Refer to Section

14.1, Setup Library Information, for more information on these steps.

Figure 3.5. The Setup Library Information form under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library”

button.

When finished, click on the X-box in the upper right corner of the “Setup Library”

window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Populating the Setup and Supply Libraries

Before entering a client and running an audit, data specific to your agency must be

entered into the Setup Library, such as your actual fuel costs, your actual costs for

installing measures, and identifying which measures your agency can perform.

Information needs to be entered into the Supply Library only if you replace

refrigerators or water heaters, or if you will be using detailed material information

in the optional work order feature.

If this is your first use of the Weatherization Assistant, it may take up to a week to

compile the required information and then a day to enter it into the Weatherization

Assistant. If you used a previous version of the Weatherization Assistant (e.g.,

Version 8.6.0.4), it may take less than a day for you to manually reenter the data

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from the previous version into Version 8.9, although now might be a good time to

take an extra day to update the information. If you were using a previous version of

the Weatherization Assistant, you can easily print out all the measure costs you had

entered in the Setup Library. Select the “Setup Library” button from the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 3.1) in the previous version to

display the Setup Library Information form (see Figure 3.5). Choose the Library

Measure Costs report using the drop-down list in the Report block in the lower

right corner of the Setup Library Information form, and then select the “Print”

button in the Report block. Before using this previous measure cost data, it might

be a good time to take an extra day to update the information.

To enter the information into Version 8.9, select the “Setup Library” button from

the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu in this version (see Figure 3.1) to

display the Setup Library Information form (see Figure 3.5). Use the tabs shown in

the “Setup Library” window to enter data specific to your agency. The Fuel Costs

tab (to enter current fuel costs) and the Library Measures tab (to select the

measures your agency installs and enter the costs for these measures in the units

specified) are of greatest importance. Under the Fuel Costs tab, rename the Fuel

Cost Table Name from “Default Costs” to something more recognizable to you,

perhaps indicating when or from where the costs were obtained. You may also

want to look at the Key Parameters tab to see if any of these items need to be

altered. You will need to refer to Chapter 14, Setup Library, for details concerning

the information stored in the setup library and how to change it. Exit the Setup

Library by clicking on the X-box in the upper right corner of the “Setup Library”

window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

From the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 3.1), select the

“Supply Library” button to display the General Information form (see Figure 3.4).

If you are planning to replace refrigerators or install new water heaters as part of

your weatherization program, you may want to enter the replacement models you

will use by selecting the Refrigerators or Hot Water Equipment tabs, respectively

(see “Additional Entries on the Hot Water Equipment and Refrigerator Forms” in

Section 15.2, Materials/Labor Forms, for more details). Exit the Supply Library by

clicking on the X-box in the upper right corner of the “Supply” window to return to

the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

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3.3 Importing Information from a Previous Version

If you used a previous version (Version 8.2 or later) of the Weatherization

Assistant, you can set up a new installation of Version 8.9 by importing your

agency information, Setup and Supply Library information, as well as client and

audit data from the previous version. (Importing from Version 7.4 is not possible.)

This approach may reduce the time needed to reenter agency information and

Setup and Supply Library data. However, an upgrade from Version 8.2 or later to

Version 8.9 signifies changes in the database structure (e.g., added fields), default

parameters, etc. Therefore, importing the Setup and Supply Libraries, clients,

and/or audits may require some additional data entry or modification before they

can be used in Version 8.9. Results (e.g., recommendations) obtained from

different versions may also differ. See the end of this section for further details.

To begin, start your previous

version (e.g., Version 8.6) of the

Weatherization Assistant to

display the Weatherization

Assistant’s Main Menu (similar

to Figure 3.1), and then select

the “Data Link” button to

display the Data Link form (see

Figure 3.6). Write down the path

name of the database you are

currently connected to and have

been using, as shown in the Path

field under “Currently Linked

BACKEND DATABASE.” The

path name will end with a

“.mdb.” You can click into the

Path field and use the keyboard navigation buttons to see the entire path name if

needed. Alternatively, you can highlight the entire path name and use traditional

Windows procedures (e.g., press the [Ctrl-C] key combination) to copy the name

into your computer’s memory for pasting later. Exit this previous version of the

Weatherization Assistant when you are done.

Start Version 8.9 of the Weatherization Assistant using the icon displayed on your

desktop. If this is the first time you have started Version 8.9 following installation,

Figure 3.6. The Data Link form (Version 8.6).

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Chapter 3: Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant

follow the steps presented in Section 2.8, Starting the Weatherization Assistant, to

correctly set up the Installation ID.

Select the “Data Link” button on the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see

Figure 3.1) to display the Data Link form in Version 8.9 (see Figure 3.7).

Figure 3.7. The Data Link form (Version 8.9).

Select “With another MSAccess Database” from the “Import/Export Data” drop-

down list at the bottom of the form then click on the “Go” button to display a blank

Transfer CLIENTS Between Databases form (see Figure 3.8).

If you copied the path name of your existing database into your computer’s

memory, you can click in the textbox beneath “External Database Path” then paste

the path name into the textbox by pressing the [Ctrl-V] key combination. Pressing

the Enter key on your keyboard will then display the clients in this database in the

display window under “External Database Path” (see Figure 3.9).

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Figure 3.8. A blank Transfer CLIENTS Between Databases form.

Figure 3.9. An example of the Transfer CLIENTS Between Databases form with client

entries.

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Chapter 3: Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant

Otherwise, select the

“Browse” button to display

the Pick External Database

for Import/Export form (see

Figure 3.10). The default

location first displayed on

this form will either be the

last location you visited

using the form or the

location where you installed

Version 8.9. Use typical

Windows navigation

techniques to find the

database that you were using

in the previous version (refer

to the path name you wrote

down previously). Once you

have found the database,

click on the name of the database so that it is highlighted and its name appears in

the “File name” field, and then select the “Save” button. You will be brought back

to the “Transfer CLIENTS between databases” form (see Figure 3.9), where the

path name for the database you were using in the previous version is displayed to

the left of the “Browse” button and the clients entered in this database are shown in

the display window under “External Database Path.”

Information transferred between databases is grouped by clients. You specify what

clients you want transferred and all the data associated with these clients is

transferred. This includes all of the information entered under the “Client,”

“Energy Audits” (NEAT or MHEA), and “Work Orders” Main Menu buttons as

well as the reports generated when running the audits or forming the work orders

for these clients. If you so indicate, the transfer will also include the agency

information and the Setup and Supply Libraries associated with these clients. See

Chapters 6 through 15 for descriptions of the information contained in each of

these categories.

If you want to transfer one or more clients from a previous version to Version 8.9

to create a contiguous Version 8.9 database, highlight the clients to be transferred

by clicking on their Client IDs on the right side of the “Transfer CLIENTS

Figure 3.10. The Pick External Database for

Import/Export form.

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between databases” form. More than one client can be highlighted by holding

down the [Ctrl] or [Alt] keys. If you are only interested in transferring agency and

library information, highlight just one of your clients who accesses these libraries

and is assigned to the agency of interest so that this information will be included in

the transfer. You can delete this client from Version 8.9 once the transfer has

occurred, while retaining the library and agency information. If you have multiple

libraries you wish to transfer to Version 8.9, select multiple clients, each accessing

a different library you wish to transfer.

Make sure that the “Include Agency and Library Records” checkbox is checked.

Then, select the “Import <--” button to start the data transfer process. This may

take several minutes depending on how many clients you highlighted. When the

data transfer process is completed, the “Status” bar at the bottom right of the form

will disappear and the client(s) that you transferred will be listed on the left side of

the “Transfer CLIENTS between databases” form under “Local Database Path.”

Select the “Exit” button to close the “Transfer CLIENTS between databases” form

and return you to the Data Link form, and select the “Exit” button again to close

the Data Link form and return you to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Select the “Agency” button on the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see

Figure 3.1) to display the Agency Information form (see Figure 3.2). If the name

shown in the Agency Name field is not the name of the agency that you used in the

previous version, use the drop-down list in the Agency record navigation block in

the lower left corner of the Agency Information form to call up the agency with the

name that you were using. Make sure the checkbox in front of “Default agency to

associate with new Client, Work Order, ...” is checked. You should examine the

Agency Information forms for any other agencies that may exist in your Version

8.9 database (e.g., “Your Agency”) to ensure that this checkbox is not selected.

Verify that the number in parentheses on the Clients tab is the number of clients

that you wanted to transfer from the previous version. When finished, click on the

X-box in the upper right corner of the “Agency” window to return to the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

If you transferred one or more clients only to transfer their associated library

and/or agency information from the previous version to Version 8.9, you may wish

to delete these clients from the Version 8.9 database so that they do not exist in

more than one database. Deleting these clients will not delete the libraries imported

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Chapter 3: Setting Up the Weatherization Assistant

with them. Select the “Clients” button on the Weatherization Assistant’s Main

Menu (see Figure 3.1) to display the Client Information form (see Figure 3.11). If

the name shown in the Client ID field near the top of the form is not one of the

clients to be deleted, use one of the drop-down lists in the Client record navigation

block in the lower left corner of the Client Information form to call up a client to

be deleted. Once a correct client is shown in the Client ID field, select the “Del”

button in the Client record navigation block. A warning box will appear that says

“This will cause CASCADING DELETES to occur in all tables associated with

this Client record.” Click “OK .” Repeat this process for any additional clients you

used simply to transfer agency and/or library information. When finished, click on

the X-box in the upper right corner of the “Client” window to return to the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

Figure 3.11. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

The methods outlined in this section have described how to import your previous

version’s Setup Library into Version 8.9. However, there are database structure

differences between your former version’s Setup Library and Version 8.9’s library.

For instance, Version 8.9 adds two new weatherization measures to NEAT, the

Door Replacement measure and the White Roof Coating measure. You will need to

decide whether these measures should be evaluated and, if so, what their costs

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should be. Also, now might be a good time to review and update all of the

information in the Setup Library, especially the fuel and measure costs.

If your import was from a version prior to 8.6, none of the user-defined NEAT

insulation types from the previous version will be transferred since the formats are

different. Therefore, you must enter these insulation types manually into Version

8.9 by selecting the “Setup Library” button from the Weatherization Assistant’s

Main Menu (see Figure 3.1) and then selecting the NEAT Insulation Types tab.

See Section 14.7, NEAT Insulation Types, for more information. You must also

enter the costs associated with these insulation types by selecting the Library

Measures tab.

If you transferred one or more clients from a previous version to Version 8.9 to

form a contiguous Version 8.9 database, you must check all the audit-related forms

in Version 8.9 before rerunning these audits to make sure all the fields are filled in.

Refer to the “Weatherization Assistant Update History” document that can be

downloaded over the Internet from the same two web sites used to obtain the

program files for the latest release of the Weatherization Assistant to help identify

these fields:

• http://waptac.org/Energy-Audits/Weatherization-Assistant.aspx

then select the

“Update History” hyper link or

• http://eber.ed.ornl.gov/pub/weatherization/Update%20History.pdf

In addition, rerunning an audit under Version 8.9 that was run under a previous

version could result in changes in the Recommended Measures report (e.g., a

different list of recommended measures; different energy savings, costs, and/or

SIR for a recommended measure). Once the clients and audits have been

transferred to Version 8.9, the Recommended Measures report generated for an

audit under the previous version can still be viewed without rerunning the audit by

selecting the Recommended Measures report in the Report block in the lower right

corner of the NEAT or MHEA Audit Information forms. If you rerun the audit

using Version 8.9, a new Recommended Measures report will be created and the

previous report created under the previous version will be lost. Therefore, if you

want to rerun the audit using Version 8.9 but keep the recommendations generated

under the previous version, you should make a copy of the audit and then run the

copied version using Version 8.9.

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Chapter 4: Quick-Start Tutorial

Chapter 4. Quick-Start Tutorial

This chapter provides a quick overview of the basic steps needed to run an audit on

a client home, which is the primary purpose of the Weatherization Assistant. These

steps include entering a new client, initiating an energy audit for this client, and

obtaining and understanding a recommendations report. Being familiar with these

basic steps will allow you to start using the Weatherization Assistant. You will also

be prepared to read other chapters of the user’s manual to learn about the details of

performing an audit and using other features of the program.

This chapter assumes that you are familiar with navigation and data entry

techniques common to programs using a Windows user interface. If you are not,

you should consult Chapter 5, Navigation and Data Entry, to learn how to navigate

through the Weatherization Assistant’s multiple forms and enter information into

its data fields.

4.1 Creating a New Client

Before entering audit data for a

client’s home, you must first set up

the client in the Weatherization

Assistant and enter information

related to the client. Select the

“Clients” button from the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main

Menu (see Figure 4.1) to display

the Client Information form (see

Figure 4.2).

If you have entered information

previously for a client or have

imported clients, the form will

likely be filled in with information

for one of these previously defined

clients. Do not type over any information for an existing client. Click on the

“New” button in the Client record navigation block in the lower left corner of the

Client Information form to provide you with a blank Client Information form. If

this is your first definition of a client for this installation of the Weatherization

Figure 4.1. The Weatherization Assistant’s Main

Menu.

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Assistant, selecting the “Clients” button from the Main Menu will take you to a

blank Client Information form with default Client ID of “Client (1).”

Figure 4.2. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

Change the default entry in the Client ID field that the Weatherization Assistant

automatically created for this new client (i.e., “Client (xx)”) to an ID your agency

uses for the client, typically a job number. Make sure the name of your agency is

listed in the Agency field. If not, select your agency using the drop-down list in the

Agency field.

Although not required, you will want to assign a setup library to the client if you

plan to use the work order feature (see Chapter 18, Work Orders). If you have only

one setup library associated with your agency, then this setup library will be

automatically selected in the Setup Library field. If you have more than one setup

library associated with your agency, the Setup Library field will be blank, although

you can select the correct setup library to use for this client by using the drop-down

list. Select the correct Dwelling Type for the house using the drop-down list.

Although not absolutely necessary, you should enter the number of occupants in

this client’s house in the Number of Occupants field because NEAT and MHEA

will use this number of occupants instead of a default number of 2 in its calculation

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Chapter 4: Quick-Start Tutorial

of internal loads. Enter any other information you desire for your new client in the

other fields on this form. More detailed information is provided in Section 7.1,

Client Information.

While still under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button, select the Contacts tab to

display the Contacts form (see Figure 4.3). Enter the client’s name in the Full

Name field. This should be the name of the person who applied for weatherization

services. Make sure that the “Name Detail” fields correctly identify the “First,”

“MI” (if entered), and “Last” names. Check the Primary Applicant checkbox.

Ensure that the Contact Type is “Applicant/Person of Record.” If not, use the drop-

down list in the Contact Type field to select this entry. Enter any other information

you desire for the client using the fields on this form. If you had entered address

information for the client on the Client Information form, you can use the “Copy

Client Addr” button to copy this address to the Contacts form.

Additional client contacts may be entered by choosing the “New” button in the

Client Contact record navigation block. However, only one contact per client

should be declared a Primary Applicant with Contact Type of “Applicant/Person of

Record.” Choose any other appropriate Contact Type for subsequent contacts (e.g.,

“Other Contact for Applicant”).

For more information on how to use the Contacts form and enter additional

contacts, see Section 7.4, Contacts (Client).

Figure 4.3. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

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When finished, you can immediately start an audit for the client that you just

entered by selecting the Audits tab. Alternatively, you can click on the X-box in

the upper right corner of the “Client” window to return to the Weatherization

Assistant’s Main Menu and start an audit at a later time. Section 4.2, Starting a

New Audit, discusses how to start an audit.

4.2 Starting a New Audit

Once you have created a client in the Weatherization Assistant, you can describe

the client’s home in either audit program (NEAT or MHEA), which will then allow

you to run the audit to develop a set of recommended energy measures. You can

start a new audit either by selecting the “Clients” button from the Weatherization

Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 4.1), or by selecting either the “Site Built

(NEAT)” or “Mobile Home (MHEA)” buttons. Starting an audit from the “Client”

window automatically enters the correct Client ID in the audit, which eliminates a

common error, so this approach is recommended and described first.

If you just created a client as discussed in Section 4.1, Creating a New Client, and

are still on either the Contacts form or Client Information form under the Main

Menu’s “Clients” button (see Figure 4.2 or Figure 4.3), you can start an audit for

the client that you just entered by selecting the Audits tab to display the Audits

form (see Figure 4.4). Otherwise, select the “Clients” button from the

Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 4.1) to bring you to the Client

Information form (see Figure 4.2), use the Client record navigation block in the

lower left corner of the form to select the client that you want to create an audit for,

and then select the Audits tab to display the Audits form (see Figure 4.4).

From the Audits form, select either the “Create New Site Built (NEAT) Audit” or

“Create New Mobile Home (MHEA) Audit” button depending on which audit is

applicable for the client’s house. The buttons are on the bottom right on the form.

This will bring you to the Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT”

or “MHEA” button (see Figure 4.5 and Figure 4.6, respectively).

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Figure 4.4. The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

Figure 4.5. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” button.

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Figure 4.6. The Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “MHEA” button.

The Client ID, Agency Name, and Agency State fields will already be filled in

using information you previously entered for the client. Change the Audit Name

from the default name created for this new audit (e.g., “Audit (xx)”) to a name

conforming to the naming convention for the clients and audits you have

developed. It is recommended that you use the Client ID in the Audit Name. For

example, for a client named “John Smith” with a Client ID of “11_348," you might

enter “11_348 Audit 1” as the Audit Name, signifying that this is the first (and

probably only) audit you are creating for this client. Some may wish to include the

client’s last name in the Audit Name, such as “Smith Audit 1.” However, if you

have more than one client with last name “Smith”, you may find locating the

correct audit by the Audit Name difficult. Others have been known to use an Audit

Name referencing the client’s street address. This can become somewhat unwieldy.

Although not required, you may select the auditor to be assigned to this audit using

the drop-down list in the Auditor field. If you selected yourself as an “Auditor”

(see “Initializing Your Agency Information” in Section 3.2, Program Setup), you

will be listed in the drop-down list, as will any other agency contacts declared as

auditors.

Select the setup, fuel cost, and supply libraries to be assigned to this audit using the

drop-down lists in the Setup Library, Fuel Cost Library, and Supply Library fields,

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respectively. If you have not created more than one setup, fuel cost, or supply

libraries for your agency, these entries will automatically be selected for you. The

supply and setup libraries will be those that you named when you initially set up

the Weatherization Assistant (see Section 3.2, Program Setup). The fuel cost

library is a sub-library found in the setup library. You should have updated this

fuel cost library and renamed it as part of the process of updating and populating

the setup library (see Section 3.2, Program Setup). Select a city close to the client’s

home that has similar weather using the drop-down list in the Weather File field.

Finally, enter audit data on the house in the remaining fields on the Audit

Information form. Refer to Chapter 8, NEAT and MHEA Introduction, for more

details.

At this point you may exit the “NEAT Audit” or “MHEA Audit” window and

return later to enter the remaining house audit data, or you can enter all house data

now under other tabs on the NEAT or MHEA audit forms (e.g., Shell, Heating,

Cooling, Ducts/Infiltration, Baseloads, and Itemized Costs), as described in

Chapters 9–11. In either case, when you are finished, click on the X-box in the

upper right corner of the “NEAT Audit” or “MHEA Audit” window to return to

the “Client” window, then click on the X-box in the upper right corner of the

“Client” window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu. One

method of returning to the audit is somewhat the reverse of the above process used

to exit the audit; that is, select the “Client” button from the Weatherization

Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 4.1) to bring you to the Client Information

form (see Figure 4.2), use the Client record navigation block in the lower left

corner of the form to select the client that you want to return to, select the Audits

tab to display the Audits form (see Figure 4.4), and then double click on the name

of the audit in the Audit Name column of the table that you want to return to.

The alternative method of starting a new audit for a client already entered under

the Main Menu’s “Client” button is to select either the “Site Built (NEAT)” or

“Mobile Home (MHEA)” buttons from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu

(see Figure 4.1), depending on which audit is applicable for the client’s house. This

will display the Audit Information form under the “NEAT Audit” or “MHEA

Audit” window (see Figure 4.5 and Figure 4.6, respectively). This form will likely

be filled in with information for a previously entered audit. Do not type over

any information for an existing audit.

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Click on the “New” button in the Audit record navigation block in the lower left

corner of the Audit Information form to obtain a new, essentially blank audit form.

Select the client that this audit is being started for using the drop-down list in the

Client ID field near the top of the form. The client information must have been

previously entered as outlined in Section 4.1, Creating a New Client. Select “OK”

if a warning box appears that says “This will assign the Audit to a new Client

record.” The Agency Name and Agency State fields will be automatically filled in

using the information you previously entered for the client. At this point, follow

the same procedures outlined above for the other method of starting a new audit to

fill in the information on the Audit Information form, starting with changing the

Audit Name from the default name created for this new audit (e.g., “Audit (xx)”) to

a name conforming to the naming convention for the clients and audits you have

developed.

As with the other approach of starting a new audit, you may exit the “NEAT

Audit” or “MHEA Audit” window and return later to enter the remaining house

audit data, or you can enter all house data now under the other tabs on the NEAT

or MHEA audit forms, as described in Chapters 9–11. In either case, when you are

finished, click on the X-box in the upper right corner of the “NEAT Audit” or

“MHEA Audit” window to return to the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu.

To return to the audit, select either the “Site Built (NEAT)” or “Mobile Home

(MHEA)” buttons from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu (see Figure 4.1)

to bring you to the NEAT or MHEA Audit Information form (see Figure 4.5 and

Figure 4.6, respectively), and then use the Audit record navigation block in the

lower left corner of the form to select the audit that you want to return to.

4.3 Running a New Audit

When you are finished entering all the audit data for a house, you can run the audit

by selecting the “Run Audit” button found in the upper right corner of each form

under the “NEAT Audit” or “MHEA Audit” window. When you run an audit, a

Recommended Measures report will automatically be displayed. The report lists all

the cost-effective weatherization measures recommended for the house along with

the estimated energy and cost savings, installation costs, and savings-to-investment

ratios for the recommended measures. The report also provides other information

such as the primary material quantities needed to perform each recommended

measure, the total space-heating and space-cooling energy consumption estimated

for the house, and the design heating and cooling loads for the house. The

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Recommended Measures report is described in detail in Chapter 12, NEAT and

MHEA Results.

The Recommended Measures report can be printed by clicking on the printer

symbol in the menu bar located at the top of the report. Or, use the [Ctrl-P] key

combination to call up your printer driver’s form to further control the printing

process. When finished reviewing the report, use the “Close” button in the menu

bar located at the top of the report to exit the report and return to the audit.

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The Weatherization Assistant User’s Manual (Version 8.9) 5-1

Chapter 5: Navigation and Data Entry

Chapter 5. Navigation and Data Entry

The Weatherization Assistant uses a graphic user interface (GUI) provided by

Microsoft’s Access XP (2003). The Weatherization Assistant uses all the standard

Access forms, controls, and the concept of records contained in this software.

Thus, if you are familiar with Access, you are probably already proficient with the

mechanics of entering data into the Weatherization Assistant. Otherwise, this

chapter will supply you with the basics needed for this task.

5.1 Form and Record Navigation

Data entry and display in the Weatherization Assistant uses forms. Each form

contains information related to a specific topic, such as the Client Information form

as found under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button or the Heating form, as found

under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons. You navigate to the

different forms found in the Weatherization Assistant using the tabs found under

each of the Main Menu’s buttons. In some cases, forms and/or sub-forms are

accessed through buttons found on other forms.

The term "record" refers to the information contained on a specific form. The terms

"record" and "form" are often used interchangeably, although you should keep the

somewhat subtle difference in definitions in mind. To navigate to a record you are

interested in on a given form, you can use the controls in the record navigation

block located in the lower left corner of the form. The type of record you can find

using the record navigation block is indicated in the upper left border of the block.

For example, in Figure 5.1, audit records can be found using the Audit record

navigation block that is located on the Audit Information form under the Main

Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons. There are three types of controls on record

navigation blocks you can use:

Figure 5.1. The Audit record navigation block found on the Audit Information form under

the Main Menu’s “NEAT Audit” and “MHEA Audit” buttons.

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Chapter 5: Navigation and Data Entry

• Drop-down Lists − The drop-down lists included in most of the record

navigation blocks include listings of all available records arranged in

alphanumeric order “by” various identifying fields. For example, in Figure 5.1,

you can find a specific audit record by searching by the audit name, client

name, client ID, or alternate client ID. Clicking your mouse on any item listed

in one of the drop-down lists will position you to that record (i.e., will display

that audit’s records on the form).

• Navigation buttons − Records are stored in alphabetical order by one of the

identifying fields (e.g., Audit Name or Client Name) and then numbered

sequentially. You can use the navigation buttons at the bottom of the record

navigation block to move to a particular record number by entering the

appropriate number, using the first or last record buttons ( or ,

respectively), or using the next or previous record buttons ( or ,

respectively). The total number of records currently stored is shown in the data

field following the word “of.”

• Other control buttons − Finally, remaining buttons in the record navigation

block allow you to create, copy, or delete records. Use the “New” button to

create a new blank record, the “Copy” button to copy the currently accessed

record, and the “Del” button to delete the currently accessed record.

You can also locate and move to a desired client, audit, or work order record by

accessing the Clients, Audits, or Work Orders forms found under the Main Menu’s

“Agency” and “Clients” buttons (see Figure 5.2). These display-only forms are

meant just for navigation. They provide a relatively condensed view of all records

of the type selected by displaying the available records in a spreadsheet format or

data sheet view. Information in these forms cannot be altered, as indicated by the

information being shaded. To navigate to a desired client, audit, or work order

record, double click on the desired entry under the Client ID, Audit Name, or Work

Order Name columns, or any column with a header that is in angle brackets (< >).

See Section 5.8, Data Sheet and Form Views of Records, for more information on

how to use these navigation data sheet views.

The bookmarks feature is enabled when the Weatherization Assistant is first

installed (see Feature 9 in Section 16.4, Features). If you select the “Agency,”

“Client,” “Audit,” “Work Order,” “Setup Library,” or “Supply Library” buttons on

the Main Menu with this feature enabled, the Weatherization Assistant will

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Figure 5.2. The Clients form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

automatically return you to the same record you were last working on when you

exited that record type to return to the Main Menu.

Data for a record are stored in your computer’s temporary memory rather than to

the Weatherization Assistant’s database file that resides on a hard drive when you

start filling in data on a blank form or modify data on an existing form. When you

exit that form or navigate to a new record, the record you were working on gets

saved to the Weatherization Assistant’s database file, which typically resides on

your hard drive or the hard drive of a network computer. There are a number of

completeness and relational integrity checks performed by the Weatherization

Assistant when the record is being saved. This is why you may get warning and

error messages when you try to leave a form or navigate to a new record (see

Section 5.11, Entry Errors).

5.2 Entering Data into the Weatherization Assistant

Forms contain three types of controls (or

fields) that accept input from the user:

textboxes, drop-down lists, and checkboxes.

Textboxes (see Figure 5.3) allow you to

type in entries from the keyboard and are

Figure 5.3. Two textboxes, one requiring

a numeric entry.

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not restricted to any pre-selected set of responses. However, they often must satisfy

certain conditions to be acceptable. For example, a field expecting a number

cannot contain an alphabetic character.

Drop-down lists (see Figure 5.4) look like textboxes

except that they have a square with a downward

pointing arrow to the right of the field. Entries into

these controls are restricted to one of several predefined

responses.

The drop-down list entries can be selected in one of

three ways:

• Left click on the box with the arrow, and then click on the desired response

from the item list that appears.

• Once you have navigated to the control, press the [Alt-↑] key combination to

display the item list, use the [↑] and [↓] keys to highlight the desired response.

• Whenever the entire field is selected (i.e., the entry is in reverse video), you

may begin to type in one of the acceptable responses. As soon as the characters

you type uniquely match one of the acceptable responses, the remainder of the

field will be automatically filled in.

In all of the cases above, navigating from a drop-down list to a new control (e.g.,

pressing either the [Enter] or [Tab] keys) completes the selection. You will not be

allowed to exit a drop-down list unless an acceptable response has been provided,

or you press the [Esc] key to back out of your changes (see Section 5.4, The

Escape Key).

Some drop-down boxes do not require the entry to be one of the predefined

responses. The exceptions are the fields for the Existing Refrigerator and Water

Heater Manufacturer and Model under the Audit Base Loads tab as well as the

fields designating the location of zonal pressure and pressure pan readings under

the Ducts and Infiltration tab of the audits. These fields are a combination of a

drop-down list and a textbox, which lets you select an entry from the drop-down

list as well as allows you to type in entries from the keyboard. However, you will

obtain the data from the database of refrigerators and water heaters only if your

Figure 5.4. A drop-down

list with its item list visible.

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entry exactly matches one that is in the database. See “Manufacturer and Model” in

Section 11.4, Base Loads – Water Heating, and Section 11.5, Base Loads –

Refrigerators.

A green shaded drop-down list indicates that the selection is being made from a

library of entries, normally from your Supply Library. In such circumstances, the

information provided in the item list includes not only what will appear in the

drop-down list, but most often additional data associated with each item.

When the characters in a textbox or drop-down list are highlighted (displayed in

reverse video), the control is said to be in overwrite mode. Any characters that are

highlighted in a control will be replaced by keystrokes you enter. Any number of

characters can be highlighted by left clicking the mouse while dragging it across

those you wish highlighted.

To switch to insert mode, position the mouse pointer to a location within the

textbox or drop-down list and left click. This will allow you to insert characters

between existing ones. While in insert mode within a textbox or drop-down list, the

[←], [→], [Home], [End], [Backspace], and [Delete] keys retain their traditional

functions of positioning the cursor within the field. Single character highlighting

(replacing only individual characters) can be obtained by pressing the [Insert] key

on your keyboard.

The checkbox (see Figure 5.5) is a small white box in

which a check mark may or may not be visible. If a

check is visible, it implies a response of “Yes” to the

question or statement associated with the box. You

may change the response in a checkbox either by left

clicking the mouse on the box or pressing the [Space]

key whenever the box has been selected (indicated by a dotted rectangle around the

control name).

5.3 Navigating Between Controls

You can use either the mouse or keyboard to navigate among the controls on

forms. You will typically use a mixture of both methods. The mouse is most

intuitive for navigating between forms, menus, and tabs, but you may find the

keyboard [Tab] key or other keys to be quite handy for navigating on forms. This

Figure 5.5. Two checkboxes,

the top one being selected

and with a “Yes” response.

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may be especially true during lots of data entry when constantly moving between

the mouse and keyboard can be tedious. Experiment and see what methods are

most comfortable for you.

You can point and click the left mouse button on the textbox or drop-down list you

want to edit or the checkbox you want to select. Accessing a textbox or drop-down

list in this manner will automatically put you into the insert mode within the

control, with a vertical line indicating where the next keyboard character will be

inserted.

You can use the [Tab] key and the [Shift-Tab] key combination to cycle through

the controls in forward or reverse order, respectively. These keys will place you in

overwrite mode within a textbox or drop-down list, highlighting its entire contents.

In most cases, the [Enter] key will act in the same manner as the [Tab] key. One

exception is when positioned in a comment field. Here, the [Enter] key is reserved

for moving the cursor to a new line within the comment. The [↑] and [↓] keys will

work the same as the [Shift-Tab] key combination and [Tab] key, respectively,

unless you are in the insert mode within a field, during which the keys will be

inoperative.

5.4 The Escape Key

The [Esc] key is a useful way to back out of your changes. It is similar to an

"undo" command. If you have made changes to a textbox or drop-down list but

have not yet left the control, pressing the [Esc] key restores the value that was in

the control prior to your change. Pressing the [Esc] key twice consecutively (or

only once if you are not in a control) will back out of all changes you have made to

all the controls on a form since you entered it. This can be particularly useful if, for

some reason, entries you have made on a form produce an error in the input that

will not allow you to exit the form. Sometimes identifying the error is difficult and

you are, therefore, prevented from continuing data entry. Pressing the [Esc] key

twice will place the form back to its original state, which was acceptable input.

You will lose the data entered on the form but will be able to continue data entry.

Once you leave a form and navigate to another form, the changes in the former

form are saved and cannot be reversed. Thus, if you have doubts whether many

changes you will make to a record are desired, you might consider making a copy

of the record prior to initiating the changes.

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5.5 Required Versus Optional Textboxes and Drop-down Lists

Required textboxes and drop-down lists

have a single solid black border around

the entry (see Figure 5.6). If you try to

exit a form with a required textbox or

drop-down list blank, you will be

reminded to complete all required

textboxes and drop-down lists, and the

cursor will be positioned to the first required textbox or drop-down list that is

missing an entry. If you decide NOT to save the record, you can use the [Esc] key

to cancel your changes.

Textboxes and drop-down lists without the solid line border are not necessary for

the Weatherization Assistant to execute or to allow saving the information on the

form. However, the data may be necessary for clarity, record keeping

requirements, or simply identification purposes.

In the remainder of this user’s manual, the description of required entries will end

with “Required” to clearly indicate that they are mandatory and must have an

appropriate value entered in them before you can proceed. Other, non-required

entries will be identified by descriptions that end with “Optional” to indicate that

they may be left blank.

5.6 Field Defaults

Many of the numeric fields in the Weatherization Assistant, especially those under

the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons, have a default value associated

with them. This default value is displayed in the lower left corner of the screen in

the status bar when you enter a field. A short description of the field is provided in

the status bar followed by a set of square brackets (see Figure 5.7). If a default

value has been assigned to this field, it will be displayed in this set of brackets as

“Default xx (TAB on blank field to accept).” If you leave a required numeric field

using the [Enter] or [Tab] keys without having entered a value, the default value

will be automatically entered. You can edit the default values that have been

assigned to the numeric fields by selecting the Range Check and Default Values

tab under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button (see Section 16.2, Range Check

and Default Values). Some numeric fields have default values that are computed

Figure 5.6. Two textboxes, the first is a

required field and the second is not.

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from other values you have already entered. An example is the Steady State

Efficiency field on NEAT’s Heating form. Computed defaults override values

entered under Preferences, though either may be replaced by your own entry.

Figure 5.7. A status bar showing the reasonable range and default

value for the Number of Conditioned Stories field.

5.7 Field Range Checking

Numeric fields have range checks applied as soon as you exit the field. There are

two ranges that are checked: the acceptable range and the reasonable range.

The acceptable range

determines if a number

entered is acceptable to

the analysis engine. For

example, it makes sure

that all window

dimensions are positive

numbers. All numeric

entries must fall within

the acceptable range set for each field. If you enter a number outside the acceptable

range for a field, you will get an error message (see Figure 5.8). You will then have

to select the “OK” button to go back to the form to change the data entered in that

field, or to use the [Esc] key to back out of the latest entry and change the entry

back to its previous acceptable value (perhaps a blank field). You will not be

allowed to continue entering data in any other field until you change the entry to an

acceptable value. The acceptable ranges cannot be changed by the user.

The reasonable range checks to see if the number entered falls within a range of

values that might be reasonable for the field in question. For example, for window

dimensions, the reasonable range may be between 4 and 90 inches. The minimum

and maximum values are displayed in the status bar in the lower left corner of the

screen when you enter the field (see Figure 5.7). If you enter a value outside the

reasonable range, you will get a warning message stating that the value is above or

below the reasonable maximum or minimum value, respectively (See Figure 5.9).

You can override the message to enter the value desired by selecting the “OK”

Figure 5.8. Error indicating that a numeric entry is outside the

acceptable range.

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button. Just be sure to check the

accuracy of the value you entered

if you choose to override the

warning message. Otherwise, you

will need to select the “Cancel”

button to return to the field to

correct the number entered. You

can edit the reasonable minimum

and maximum values that have

been assigned to the individual

numeric fields by selecting the

Range Check and Default Values

tab under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button (see Section 16.2, Range Check

and Default Values).

5.8 Data Sheet and Form Views of Records

The Weatherization Assistant provides you with the ability to display different

views of your records on many of the forms, so you can select the view that best

suits your needs. Multiple views are available more often for the forms found

under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons, although they are also

available for some of the forms found under the Main Menu’s “Agency,” “Client,”

“Work Order,” “Setup Library,” and “Supply Library” buttons. There are three

basic views supported, two of which allow you to edit the data displayed or enter

new data in a new record:

• Form View − The form view is the most common view, allowing you to see

and edit all of the information for a particular record, or enter new data into a

blank record. The controls on the form are usually arranged or grouped in ways

that will contribute to your understanding of the information requested. In those

instances when a form has sub-forms, it is normally only in the form view that

all of the sub-form information can also be viewed.

• Navigation Data Sheet View − This view displays a listing of all records of a

particular type in a spreadsheet format (see Figure 5.2). The columns in the

spreadsheet represent the information entered for a given control. Data

displayed in the navigation data sheet view cannot be altered. This view is used

primarily to provide a summary of records and to allow you to navigate to the

Figure 5.9. Warning indicating that a numeric

entry is outside the reasonable range.

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record you choose. If the number of records is large, you may have to scroll

vertically to see all the records. This view is distinguished from the editable

data sheet view described below by noticing that the information presented in

the navigation data sheet view are all shaded. See Section 5.1, Form and

Record Navigation, for additional relevant discussion.

• Editable Data Sheet View − Like the navigation data sheet view, the editable

data sheet view displays a listing of all records of a particular type in a

spreadsheet format, with the columns in the spreadsheet representing the

information entered for a given control. However, data displayed in the editable

data sheet view can be edited, and data for new records can be entered. If the

number of records is large, you may have to scroll vertically to see all the

records. Typically, the number of controls or columns is too wide to fit on one

screen, so you must also scroll horizontally to view all of the available controls.

In some instances, all of the controls found on a form will not be displayed in

the editable data sheet view.

The forms accessed by the Clients, Audits, or Work Orders tabs under the Main

Menu’s “Agency” and “Clients” buttons are set up to be displayed in the

navigation data sheet view. These forms cannot be displayed in any of the other

two views.

The form view is the default view for all other forms in the Weatherization

Assistant. The editable data sheet view is also available for most of these other

forms (and some sub-forms). These include the Contacts and Cost Centers tabs

under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button, the Contacts tab under the Main Menu’s

“Clients” button, the Measures tab under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button,

and many of the tabs under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons.

Before you use the editable data sheet view exclusively, you should view records

in both the form view and the editable data sheet view until you become familiar

with the contents of each record type.

It is often helpful to temporarily switch from form view to editable data sheet view

to see all of your records for a given type. To switch from form view to editable

data sheet view, right click anywhere on the form but not inside a control. A

rectangular "Subform Datasheet" pop-up window will appear. Left click on the

rectangular window and the view will change to the data sheet view. To change

back to form view, position your cursor on the record you are interested in seeing

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in form view, then right click your mouse. The same "Subform Datasheet" window

will appear. Left click on the rectangular window and you will be taken to the form

view for that particular record.

The editable data sheet view also allows you to easily change all the entries in a

given control. For example, if you wanted to change the Frame Type of all

windows in a NEAT audit, place the Windows form under NEAT’s Shell tab into

the data sheet view, locate the Frame Type column, and then simply type in the

first letter of the desired frame type in the drop-down list as you use the down

arrow key to travel down the column. This allows the automatic fill feature of the

drop-down list to complete the entry. Instead of entering the first letter of the

desired frame type, you could change the entry in the first record (or make sure it is

correct) and then use the [Ctrl-‘] (control-apostrophe) key combination in

subsequent records to copy the contents of the control from the previous record

(which, in the data sheet view, is the field immediately above) into the current

record.

The data sheet view is also handy for sorting the list of records shown. Click your

mouse on the title header of the column of data that you want to sort the records by

to display the entire column in reverse video. Then select either the “A-Z” or “Z-

A” buttons on the main application tool bar at the top of the application’s window

to sort the records in alphabetical or reverse alphabetical order, respectively. You

can sort the records using multiple columns by selecting multiple adjacent columns

in the data sheet. Just click and drag in the column header to select multiple

columns. The sort order is determined by the position of the selected columns,

from left to right. The ordering of columns can be changed by highlighting a

column(s) then clicking and dragging the column to a new position. Several of the

left most columns cannot be re-ordered because they are considered to be

identifying information for the records. Column widths can be adjusted by

dragging the column header borders. All column width and position settings affect

only the current data sheet view. When you close the form, the original column

widths and order will be restored.

A few specialized data sheet views will not allow sorting by multiple columns. In

these data sheets, selecting an entire column of data will turn the “A-Z” and “Z-A”

buttons grey, making them un-accessible. Instead, place your cursor in any single

record of the type you wish to sort on. Then select either the “A-Z” or “Z-A”

buttons.

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You may also “filter” the records when displayed in the editable data sheet view.

Filtering forces the display of only those records that have a specified value for a

given data item. For example, if one of the columns displayed the city in which the

clients dwelt, you could choose to display only records for clients who lived in one

specified city. To do so, click your mouse on any city entry of the particular city

you are interested in, and then click on the filter button ( ) at the top of the

window. Your display will then include only those clients from the city selected.

Be careful when using filtering. If you forget that your display of records is

filtered, you may wonder what happened to some records you would otherwise

expect to see in the display. To cancel filtering, select the remove filter button ( ).

5.9 Copying and Pasting Data

Data records are normally copied while in the form view using the “Copy” button

in the record navigation blocks (see Section 5.1, Form and Record Navigation).

When this technique is used to create a copy of a record, you will be placed

immediately into the form view for the new record. Most often, records have a data

field that must be unique among all of the records of the specific type (e.g., the

Client ID or the Audit Name). Whenever the “Copy” button is used to copy such a

record, the copy process will provide you with a default entry for this data field

that is unique (a significant advantage compared to the method of copying records

while in the editable data sheet view describe below). In addition, your cursor will

be positioned at this data field, with the field in reverse video, allowing you to

immediately change the default entry to a value or name that makes more sense to

you.

The process of copying a record while in the editable data sheet view is different.

You must first select the record you wish to copy by clicking the record selection

box at the very left of the record you wish to copy. This will display the entire row

of data in reverse video. Copy the information in this record to a temporary

location (referred to as the “clipboard” in most computer applications) by either

entering the [Ctrl-C] key combination, selecting the “Copy” button (displayed as

two small overlapping sheets of paper) from the toolbar at the top of the

application window, or selecting the Edit/Copy menu items from the menu bar at

the top of the application window. Select the blank record row by clinking the

record selection box with the asterisk (“*”) in it. This will place the entire blank

record row into reverse video. Finally, paste the copied record into the blank record

by either entering the [Ctrl-V] key combination, selecting the “Paste” button

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(displayed as a clipboard with a small sheet of paper) from the toolbar at the top of

the application, or selecting the Edit/Paste menu items from the menu bar at the top

of the application window. This method of copying records does not provide you

with default unique entries for those fields that must be unique. Therefore,

immediately after pasting the copied record into the blank record row, you must

provide a new unique entry yourself before proceeding.

Data presented in the data sheet view or any similar tabular format within the

Weatherization Assistant can be copied and then pasted into an equivalent data

range within the Weatherization Assistant. For example, you might want to copy

the fuel prices from one setup library to another. To do this, go into the Fuel Costs

tab of the setup library that you want to copy the fuel costs from. Click your mouse

on the Unit Cost column header so that the entire column becomes displayed in

reverse video. Use one of the techniques described above to copy this data to your

computer’s clipboard. Then, go to the Fuel Costs tab in the setup library that you

want to paste the costs into. Select the Unit Cost column as before, and use one of

the techniques described above to paste the copied data into this column. The

existing fuel costs will be replaced with those that you copied. Care must be taken

to always copy and paste the same amount and type of data.

Data presented in the data sheet view or any similar tabular format within the

Weatherization Assistant can also be copied and then pasted into another Windows

application. For example, the fuel costs copied above could also be pasted into

Microsoft Excel. After copying the desired fuel costs, open the Excel application

and position your cursor in the cell where you want the upper left corner of the

data to be located. A single paste instruction will paste all of the copied data into

the spreadsheet. You may need to adjust column widths to properly display the

data, after which you can print the data from Excel.

The data entered in a single control or field can be copied and pasted, but make

sure both controls or fields are the exact same type. To select the data to be copied,

click and drag the mouse over the contents of the control or field, or use the [Tab]

key to enter the field. Either way, the contents of the control or field will become

highlighted and selected. Alternatively, if the control or field has only one word in

it, you can simply double click on the control or field to highlight and select it.

Then, use the copy and paste techniques described above to complete the process.

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You can also use the [Ctrl-‘] (control-apostrophe) key combination when you are

in a control or field to copy the contents of the same control or field from the

previous record. This is particularly useful in the data sheet view when you want to

make a copy of the field directly above the current field in the same data sheet

column. See Section 5.8, Data Sheet and Form Views of Records, for more details.

5.10 Deleting Data

Once you have become familiar with all the techniques of selecting data described

in the Section 5.9, Copying and Pasting Data, deleting data becomes relatively

simple. To delete data in a single control, select the data you wish to delete and

then either press the [Delete] key on your keyboard, select the “Cut” button

(displayed as a pair of scissors) from the toolbar, or select the Edit/Cut menu items

from the menu bar. Any deletion of data from a drop-down list must be replaced by

another selection available from the drop-down list.

To delete an entire record while in form view, use the “Del” button in the record

navigation block. This will delete the entire record currently accessed and of the

type indicated by the navigation block. After hitting the “Del” button, the

Weatherization Assistant will prompt you to make sure you really intend to delete

the current record. When you delete a record, you also automatically delete all of

the unique records that fall under it (called cascading deletes). For example,

deleting a client record deletes all audits, work orders, and reports associated with

that client, but it would not delete the setup and supply libraries associated with the

client. A special case occurs in deleting setup or supply libraries. The

Weatherization Assistant will not allow you to delete any library that is referenced

by any agency, client, audit, or work order. You first have to reassign any of these

references to another library before you can successfully delete it (see Section

5.14, The References Button).

To delete an entire record while in the editable data sheet view, click on the record

selection box on the left of the record you wish to delete to display the entire row

of data in reverse video. Then, use one of the three techniques described above to

delete the data.

You can use the editable data sheet view to delete multiple records. Use the sorting

feature of this view to make those records you wish to delete appear together.

Select multiple records by moving the cursor to the record selector on the left side

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of the data sheet for the first record you wish to delete (the cursor will change to a

right arrow), and then clicking and dragging the mouse across the record selectors

until the records you want to delete are all highlighted. Press the [Delete] key, or

use one of the other deletion methods described above. The Weatherization

Assistant will ask you if you are sure you want to delete the number of records

selected.

The Water Heating and Refrigerators forms found under the Main Menu’s

“NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons do not have a record navigation box in the form

view and do not have an editable data sheet view available. If you have entered

data on these forms and later wish to delete it, select the “Del” button at the lower

left of the form. After confirming your intent to delete the record, the form will be

blanked out. Choosing the “New” button, also in the lower left corner of the form,

will not delete the entries on the form, but simply place your cursor in the

Manufacturer field, preparatory to your selecting a different record from the

database.

5.11 Entry Errors

The Weatherization Assistant may detect a data input error once the entry has been

made or after you have selected the “Run Audit” button to run an audit. The error

messages provided can be fairly descriptive, allowing you to clearly identify the

problem. For drop-down lists, the most common error message is “The text you

entered isn’t an item in the list,” indicating that you did not select one of the pre-

designated items from the drop-down list. Another possible data entry error

message is “The value you entered isn’t valid for this field.” This would most

likely occur because you accidentally input an alphabetic character rather than a

numeric entry.

Occasionally, you may not completely understand the entire error message.

However, the message may refer to a “table” that is causing the problem. The

name of the table will lie in single quotes and will be the name that appears after

“tbl.” For example, an error message that refers to “tblAgency” is indicating a

problem with a data entry in the Agency table. The table names generally coincide

with the names found on the various tabs used within the Weatherization Assistant.

Therefore, if you are fairly familiar with the Weatherization Assistant, you may be

able to identify the form within the Weatherization Assistant that is creating the

problem. For example, “tblAgency” refers to a problem with the Agency table that

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is associated with the Agency Information form found under the Main Menu’s

“Agency” button. In such instances, locate the form, examine the entries, and try to

determine which entry does not conform to the requirements given in this manual.

5.12 The Report Block

A Report block (see Figure 5.10)

appears in the lower right corner on

the Information tabs under most of

the Main Menu buttons: Agency,

Clients, NEAT and MHEA Energy

Audits, Work Orders, Setup and

Supply Libraries.

The “Select Report” drop-down list in each Report block provides you with a list

of all the reports available to you for the program segment you are currently

accessing. Examples of all the standard reports provided with the Weatherization

Assistant are shown in Appendix C, Reports. If you are familiar with Microsoft

Access, you may be able to develop your own customized reports and add them to

the report list following the procedures outlined in Appendix D, Development of

Customized Reports. Choose the report you want to access using the standard

mechanics for drop-down lists (see Section 5.2, Entering Data into the

Weatherization Assistant).

The “Preview” button in the

Report block displays the

selected report as it would

appear if printed. A standard

Access toolbar will appear at

the top of this display (see

Figure 5.11). Three buttons on the toolbar allow you to display varying numbers of

pages of the report. Each button looks like a single dark colored rectangle with

light colored pages in it. A single page indicates viewing one page at a time, two

pages side by side allows you to view two pages at one time, and the button with

four small pages allows you to choose from an additional six predefined layouts.

Depending on the resolution you have chosen for your graphics, many of these

displays will not have large enough text to read. Clicking the mouse while

positioning your cursor at a location on the display will enlarge the view about that

Figure 5.10. The Report block from the Client

Information form.

Figure 5.11. The Access report toolbar.

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Chapter 5: Navigation and Data Entry

point. You may also use the Zoom drop-down box, seen with “Fit” selected in

Figure 5.11, to select a magnification.

Also on the toolbar is a print button, normally at the extreme left of the toolbar.

Select this button to print the report using your default printer. You may also use

the [Ctrl-P] key combination to display the Windows Print screen and print the

report from there. This form allows you to select other printers you may have

installed, choose which pages to print, and allows you to use other print options as

well. If you have the PDF software, one of the printers available will be the PDF

generator. Selecting this will save the report as a PDF file that can be distributed

via most electronic media.

The right-most button on the toolbar is the “Output to Notepad” button. Select this

button to export the report to a pure ASCII text file and display it in Notepad (a

Windows application). From there, the file may be saved to any location on your

computer with any file name you wish. It may also be edited as any other text file,

attached to e-mails, etc.

Close the report display using the “Close” button on the toolbar. The standard

Windows closure X-box in the upper right of the display may also be used for this

purpose, but care must be taken to select the closure X-box associated with the

report display, since other windows may also be open at the same time with their

own closure X-boxes.

The “Print” button on the Report block acts the same as the “Preview” button

except it automatically presents you with the Windows Print screen in addition to

displaying the report.

The “Snapshot File” button on the Report block also displays the report, but only

after creating a snapshot file and indicating the location where the snapshot file

was placed on your computer (e.g., “Snapshot output file created: C:\Program

Data\Weatherization Assistant 8-9\output\NAuOut-01.snp”). The filename is a

default name that you may change using standard Windows procedures. A

“Snapshot” file is a file formatted specifically for the “Snapshot” computer

application. If you do not have this software on your computer, this option may not

be of much use to you.

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5.13 Getting Help

You can get help anywhere within the Weatherization Assistant by pressing the

[F1] key. The help material will usually be specific to the current control (textbox,

drop-down list, or checkbox) that you are on. If help material for that specific

control is not available, the Weatherization Assistant will display help material for

a more general topic associated with the specific form that you are on.

The right pane of the help window will display the title of the help material in bold

letters at the top with the help material underneath. The left pane of the window

will contain one of three displays, depending on the tab chosen for the pane. The

Contents tab displays a listing of all help topics available in the Weatherization

Assistant. You can choose topics by browsing through the expandable Contents

tree. Just double click on a topic in the tree to reveal any sub-topics associated with

the main topic. The Index tab allows you to find topics by keywords, arranged in

alphabetical order. If more than one help topic matches the word chosen, a sub-

window will appear allowing you to choose which of the topics you want to view.

You can also use the Search feature to search for a particular topic. Type a word in

the field supplied and the Weatherization Assistant will search for all occurrences

of that word in the help material.

Hypertext items (i.e., highlighted help text that you see in a different color) are

found in some of the help material that provide you with more information on that

topic or word. Move the mouse cursor to the highlighted word(s) and press the left

mouse key to see this additional information.

The tabs to select these alternate help features may be hidden by selecting the

“Hide” button at the top of the window. If you have viewed multiple topics during

a single help session, you can use the “Back” button to go back to previous topics.

The “Print” button allows you to print the material currently displayed. The

“Options” button provides some additional options that may be of use.

Exit the help form and return to the main program by clicking on the X-box in the

upper right corner. A blank “Weatherization Assistant 8-9 Help” window may

persist. Use that window’s X-Box to completely exit the help application.

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5.14 The References Button

“References” buttons exist on several forms in the Weatherization Assistant: the

Contacts and Cost Centers tabs under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button; beneath

the banner line in the “Setup Library” window and under the Fuel Costs tab, both

under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” button; and beneath the banner line in the

“Supply” window under the Main Menu’s “Supply Library” button. When selected

from any of these locations, you are presented with a navigation data sheet

window, each row listing a separate reference to the record accessed on the parent

form (see Figure 5.12). The location of each reference is identified by the record

type and the name you assigned the record. Some entries list multiple record types

with the names of the records in successive columns in the table for the entry to

further help you locate the reference.

The entries may be sorted or filtered (see Section 5.8, Data Sheet and Form View

of Records). Entries can be hidden from view by using the same process described

in Section 5.10, Deleting Data. From this form, however, no records are actually

deleted. They will reappear the next time the window is opened. You can navigate

directly to any record displayed by placing your cursor in the cell containing the

name of the record you wish to access and double clicking your mouse.

The “Clear the References Listed Above” button at the lower left corner of the

window will clear the reference being accessed from all of the records in the table.

Be careful in using this feature. For example, if you clear the references to a setup

library, any audits that had referenced the setup library will no longer run, though

the audits and their recommendations will remain. However, you will no longer

know what setup library was used in making the recommendations. Once this

operation is performed, there is no way to undo it without going into each

individual record and making the assignment manually. You may selectively clear

references by hiding records you do not wish to be involved in the operation from

the table before selecting the “Clear the References Listed Above” button.

You may wish to change the references in the records listed in the table to another

reference of similar type. The drop-down list at the middle of the bottom of the

window contains possible alternate references available for this reassignment. For

example, you can change the auditor assigned to a group of audits. Thus, in

viewing the references to a specific agency contact, the drop-down list will contain

all agency contacts. Make your selection from the drop-down list and click on the

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“Change the References Listed Above to this new value” button. A selective

reassignment may be accomplished by first hiding or filtering out from the table

the records you do not wish to be reassigned.

Figure 5.12. The “References to Setup Library:” window.

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Chapter 6: Agency

Chapter 6. Agency

The Agency is the highest level record type within the Weatherization Assistant.

Thus, all other records (Clients, Audits, Work Orders, etc.) must be associated with

an Agency level record. Information related to your agency is organized under the

Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 3.1).

The minimum agency information necessary to operate the Weatherization

Assistant is already supplied by the program at installation; namely, an Agency

Name and State. As discussed in Section 3.2, Program Setup, you should edit this

information to tailor it to your agency unless you are setting up a new installation

of the Weatherization Assistant by importing agency information from previous

versions (see the introductory discussion associated with Chapter 3, Setting Up the

Weatherization Assistant). You should also provide additional information about

your agency as needed before substantial use of the Weatherization Assistant.

The remainder of this chapter is divided into sections describing the data and

display items entered on each of the forms seen under the Main Menu’s “Agency”

button: Agency Information, Contacts, Cost Centers, Surveys, Clients, Audits,

Work Orders, Libraries, and Status History. All but the first and last of the tabs

associated with these forms have a number in parentheses following the tab name.

These numbers indicate the number of records entered for each particular form for

the agency currently selected. For example, in Figure 6.1, there are 12 client

records and 7 audit records entered for the Demonstration Agency.

6.1 Agency Information

The Agency Information form (see Figure 6.1) allows you to enter general

information about your agency. It also allows you to view and navigate to other

agencies in your database, and to access agency level reports. Below are brief

descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the Agency

Information form:

• Agency Name – Enter the name of the agency being described. The entry is one

of only two required data items on the Agency Information form. The entry

may be up to 80 characters in length. The name must be unique. Required.

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Figure 6.1. The Agency Information form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

• State – Select the state in which the agency is located from the entries in the

drop-down list. Required.

• Agency Type – Select the entry that best describes what type of agency this is.

The choices are Local Community Action Agency, Tribal Organization, Unit of

Local Government, or Other. Optional.

• Federal Grant # – Enter the Federal Grant Number under which the agency

performs Weatherization Assistance Program work, as seen on the DOE

Program Application Forms. Optional.

• EIN – Enter the Federal Employer Identification Number assigned by the U.S.

Internal Revenue Service to this agency, as entered on the Financial Status

Reports of the DOE Program Application Form. Optional.

• Other ID Num – Enter any additional identification descriptor (numbers and/or

letters) for this agency which may be of use to you or your state. The entry must

be 50 characters or less. Optional.

• Comment – You may enter comments directly in the Comment field on the

form, or you may enter them in the Comment Editor by selecting the

“Comment” button to the left of the field. The Comment Editor is similar to

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Chapter 6: Agency

Window’s Notepad and may be used to enter extended comments. The total

comment may have up to 65,000 characters. Text from other sources may be

copied and pasted into the Comment Editor’s window. The Agency Comment is

not displayed anywhere else in the Weatherization Assistant or in any of its

predefined reports. However, you may wish to include the comment in a user-

designed report (see Appendix D, Development of Customized Reports).

Optional.

• Address, City, State, and Zip Code – Enter the complete mailing address for

the agency. Optional.

• Phone and Fax Numbers – Enter a primary phone and fax number that others

should use to contact the agency. Numbers for individuals within the agency

may be separately recorded under the Contacts tab as, discussed in Section 6.2,

Contacts (Agency). Optional.

• E-Mail – Enter an e-mail address that others should use to contact the agency.

The Weatherization Assistant has the ability to e-mail client records from

within the program. Setting up this feature will require you to enter this or

another agency e-mail address (see Section 18.4, E-Mailing from Within

Weatherization Assistant). Optional.

• Web Page URL – If the agency has a web site, enter its URL in this field.

Optional.

• Default Agency – If selected, this checkbox indicates that the agency being

described on the remainder of the form will be automatically associated with

any new Client, Work Order, Setup Library, and Supply Library records

created. Only one agency can be selected as the “Default Agency.” Thus,

selecting this checkbox for this agency will automatically uncheck it for any

other agency.

• Agency Record Navigation Block – The Agency record navigation block is

used to find and navigate to agency records for other agencies that have been

entered, copy or delete the currently accessed agency, or create a new agency.

These would not be a common activities because normally an agency has only

one agency record. See Section 5.1, Form and Record Navigation, for

information on using the Weatherization Assistant’s record navigation blocks.

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Chapter 6: Agency

• Report Block – The Report block provides you with access to all reports

available under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. See Appendix C, Reports,

for examples of these reports. The following reports are currently available:

Quarterly Program Report (the unit production portion of the DOE Quarterly

Program Report), Scheduled Audits (for NEAT and MHEA), Open Work

Orders, and Economic Summary by Client, Client Surveys (Blank), and Work

Order Totals by Category. See Section 5.12, The Report Block, for information

on the mechanics of using the Weatherization Assistant’s Report blocks.

Appendix D, Development of Customized Reports, describes a method to create

reports tailored to your needs and to list the reports in the Report block.

• Select Clients – If reports selected in the Report block require the selection of

specific clients to be included in the report, the forms accessed from the “Select

Clients” button are used to make this selection. Currently, none of the

predefined reports at the Agency level require such a selection, although a

customized report that you develop might. Transfer of client data between

computers using text files requires this same client selection process. See

Section 17.5, Selecting Client Records, for information on how to use the Select

Clients feature.

If the Weatherization Assistant’s Geographic Information System (GIS) feature

has been turned on, you can select a group of clients using the forms accessed

from the “Select Clients” button and display their locations on a map. Refer to

Section 17.5, Selecting Client Records, as well as Section 18.2, Geographic

Information System (GIS), for additional information on this mapping option.

6.2 Contacts (Agency)

The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.2)

allows you to enter information on any person associated with the currently

selected agency, including auditors, contractors, crew members, and suppliers. You

can enter as many contacts as needed. If you have enabled the User Logon or

Check-in/Check-out features (see Features 4 and 10 in Section 16.4, Features), you

will have to enter users of the Weatherization Assistant. If you want to track work

orders by contractor or add suppliers to your supply libraries, then you will have to

enter these contacts as well. The Contacts form may be viewed and edited in the

data sheet view, which provides a summary of all contacts already entered for the

agency or allows quick changes to multiple entries. Below are descriptions of the

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individual data items and controls found on the Contacts form under the Main

Menu’s “Agency” button:

Figure 6.2. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

• Contact Name – Enter the name of the contact. You may enter the name with

the given name first and the surname last, or with the surname first followed by

a comma and then any given names. After you have entered the name and

moved to another control, the Weatherization Assistant will automatically fill in

the uneditable Name Detail fields (i.e., First, MI, and Last) to show you how the

program sees the name that you have entered. If you are basically trying to enter

the name of a company (e.g., a supplier of materials), you should enter the

name of your primary contact within that company and then provide entries for

the User Name and Company fields. Suppliers and contractors listed in drop-

down lists in other parts of the Weatherization Assistant are identified by these

User Name and Company fields rather than the Contact Name for a person

within the company. The name must be unique. Required.

• User Name – Enter a short User Name (initials perhaps) that can be used to

identify the contact. In some lists and reports, space does not permit displaying

the full Contact Name, so the list or report will use the User Name to identify

the contact instead. Be sure to use short User Names to make forms and reports

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Chapter 6: Agency

more readable. If the User Logon feature is enabled (see Feature 4 in Section

16.4, Features), a valid User Name and password will be required to use the

Weatherization Assistant. The name must be unique. Required.

• Active – This checkbox indicates if the contact is currently active with the

weatherization program. Only contacts who are active will appear in

appropriate drop-down lists throughout the program. See also the description

for the Auditor, Contractor, Crew, and Supplier checkboxes provided below.

• References – Selecting this button displays the “References to Agency

Contact” window, which lists all references to the contact currently being

accessed. See Section 5.14, The References Button, for more information on the

use of this feature.

• Company – Enter the company for whom the contact person works. Drop-

down lists of contractors and suppliers used elsewhere in the Weatherization

Assistant will identify the contact by the Company entry, as well as the User

Name and/or Contact Name. Required.

• Auditor, Contractor, Crew, and Supplier – These checkboxes indicate

whether the contact person holds any of the positions indicated. Contacts who

are Auditors will be included in the drop-down list for the Auditor field on the

Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons

(see Section 8.2, Audit Information). Contractors and Crews may be assigned to

Work Orders (see Sections 13.1, Work Order Information, 14.5, Library

Measures, and 14.6, User Defined Measures) and Suppliers may be listed as

sources of inventoried items in the Supply Library (see Section 15.2,

Materials/Labor Forms). These listings will occur only if a particular contact is

declared as “Active” as described above.

• EIN – Enter the Federal Employer Identification Number of the company with

whom the contact is associated, as assigned by the U.S. Internal Revenue

Service. Optional.

• Title – Enter any title that may help describe the contact, such as “manager,”

“appliance manager,” “crew chief,” or “monitor.” This title will not appear in

lists of contacts used throughout the Weatherization Assistant. Optional.

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Chapter 6: Agency

• Address, Unit Number, City, State, and Zip Code – Enter the complete

mailing address for the contact. Optional.

• Work, Cell, Pager, Fax, and Home Phone – Enter any of the indicated phone

numbers for the contact. Optional.

• E-Mail – Enter an e-mail address for the contact. The Weatherization Assistant

has the ability to e-mail client records from within the program. Entering an e-

mail address on the Contacts form will automatically enter this contact and their

e-mail address in the Address Book of this feature (see Section 18.4, E-Mailing

from Within Weatherization Assistant). Optional.

• Web Page – If available, enter the URL for this contact’s web site. This could

be particularly useful, for example, if the contact is a supplier whose web site

contains a catalogue of available items. The web site may be accessed directly

from the Contacts form by clicking your mouse on the address. Optional.

• Comment – You may enter comments directly in the Comment field on the

form, or you may enter them in the Comment Editor by selecting the

“Comment” button to the left of the field. The Comment Editor is similar to

Window’s Notepad and may be used to enter extended comments. The total

comment may have up to 65,000 characters. Text from other sources may be

copied and pasted into the Comment Editor’s window. Comments entered on

the Contacts form are not displayed anywhere else in the Weatherization

Assistant or in any of its predefined reports. However, you may wish to include

the comment in a user-designed report. Optional.

• Change LogOn Group and Password − If the User Logon feature is enabled

(see Feature 4 in Section 16.4, Features), only contacts who have been entered

under the Contacts form on the Main Menu’s “Agency” button and assigned

LogOn passwords will be able to open the Weatherization Assistant. In

addition, only contacts who have been entered under the Contacts form and

assigned a password can be identified as making a change to one of the

Weatherization Assistant’s status categories (see Section 18.3, Status Tracking).

Select the “Change LogOn Group and Password” button to obtain the User

Group and Password sub-form to input the required password information (see

Figure 6.3). Assign the contact to a User Group, either User or Admin. Contacts

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Chapter 6: Agency

who are Users will be able to create new

records and edit existing ones, but will

not be allowed to delete client, audit, or

work order records. In addition, a User

cannot change the settings on the

Features tab found under the Main

Menu’s “Preferences” button. Contacts

who are assigned to the Admin group

have full capabilities, including deletion

of all records. If the contact does not

currently have a password, you only need to enter a new password in the New

Password and Confirm New Password fields. Otherwise, enter the contact’s

existing password in the Confirm Old Password field before entering a new

password in the other two fields. Select the “Apply New Password” button

when you are finished to complete the process. If the User Logon feature is not

turned on, there are no restrictions enforced in the Weatherization Assistant and

every user is considered to be in the Admin User Group.

• Agency Contact Record Navigation Block – The Agency Contact record

navigation block is used to find and navigate to existing agency contacts, copy

or delete the currently accessed contact, or create a new contact. See Section

5.1, Form and Record Navigation, for information on using the Weatherization

Assistant’s record navigation blocks.

6.3 Cost Centers

The Weatherization Assistant gives you the option of assigning the cost for each

individual weatherization measure that is recommended and/or installed to a

different cost center or funding source (see Sections 11.11, Measures (Audit); 13.3,

Measures (Work Order); and 14.5, Library Measures, for more details). If you use

this option, the Weatherization Assistant will track expenditures by cost center and

provide you with summaries. If you enter the funding received or allocated to each

cost center, the Weatherization Assistant will also provide you with summaries of

the balance of funds remaining for each cost center. The Cost Centers form under

the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.4) is used to set up these cost

centers, enter the funding received for each cost center, and view summaries of

expenditures and balances. Below are descriptions of the individual data items and

controls found on the Cost Centers form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button:

Figure 6.3. The User Group and

Password sub-form.

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Chapter 6: Agency

Figure 6.4. Cost Centers form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

• Cost Center Name – Enter the name of the cost center that you are setting up.

Usually this name identifies the source providing the funds for this cost center

(e.g., the DOE Weatherization Program, LIHEAP, PVE, utility program, etc.).

The name must be unique. Required.

• Active – This checkbox indicates whether the cost center is currently available

to fund work. If the cost center is active, then it will appear in the drop-down

lists found elsewhere in the Weatherization Assistant which assign

recommended or installed measures to cost centers. If the cost center is not

active, then it will not appear in these drop-down lists.

• References – Selecting this button displays the “References to Agency Cost

Center” window, which lists all references to the cost center currently being

accessed. The entries will include all instances where a measure whose cost has

been assigned to the cost center has been recommended by an audit, any work

order that includes the measure, as well as all measures whose costs have been

pre-assigned to the cost center in a setup library (see Section 14.5, Library

Measures). See Section 5.14, The References Button, for more information on

the use of the References feature.

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• Cost Center Type – Indicate the type of funding source for this cost center.

The options are DOE, Other funds included in grant budget, or Other funds not

included in grant budget. Optional.

• Program Year − Enter the program year for which the funding and/or

expenditures in this cost center are being tracked. If you want to track the same

cost center by individual program years, you will need to set up a separate cost

center for each year. For example, if you want to track DOE Weatherization

Assistance Program funds over the 2008 and 2009 program years, you might

create a cost center called “DOE 2008” and another called “DOE 2009.” The

entry does not allow a range of years to be entered. If such is your need, you

might enter the beginning year in this field, then the expected span in the

Comment field. Optional.

• Description – Enter any additional description you may need to identify this

cost center. Optional.

• Comment − You may enter comments directly in the Comment field on the

form, or you may enter them in the Comment Editor by selecting the

“Comment” button to the left of the field. The Comment Editor is similar to

Window’s Notepad and may be used to enter extended comments. The total

comment may have up to 65,000 characters. Text from other sources may be

copied and pasted into the Comment Editor’s window. Comments entered on

the Cost Centers form are not displayed anywhere else in the Weatherization

Assistant or in any of its predefined reports. However, you may wish to include

the comment in a user-designed report. Optional.

• Cost Center Financial Summary Table − These fields are displayed on the

Cost Center form in a table format. They summarize the income and

expenditures for the cost center being referenced. The numbers in the “Actual”

column are those debits or credits that have been declared as “Cleared” under

the “Show Fund Transactions” button (see below) or that are listed as “Actual”

expenditures on a work order (see “The Materials/Labor Details Sub-Form” in

Section 13.3, Measures (Work Order), for details). The numbers in the

“Expected” column include those in the “Actual” column as well as debits or

credits that have been entered into the Transactions form but have not yet been

“Cleared” and “Estimated” costs from active work orders that have not yet been

declared “Actual.” Uneditable.

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The first three rows in the summary table show totals based on entries made

under the “Show Fund Transactions” button (see below). The “Total Funds In”

row lists the total funding received by or allocated to the cost center. The “Total

Non Work Order Costs” row lists the total costs charged to the cost center that

are not related to or accounted for in any work order. For example, these costs

may be for overhead, administration, or training. The Total Available Funds

row is simply the difference between the Total Funds In row and the total Non

Work Order Costs row.

The Total Work Order Costs row lists the total costs from all work orders that

have not been canceled. The individual entries that make up these totals may be

viewed under the “Show Work Order Costs” button (see below). The Balance

row displays the balance for the cost center (i.e., the difference between the

Total Available Funds row and the Total Work Order Costs row).

• Show Fund Transactions − The individual entries that comprise the Total

Funds In and the Total Non Work Order Costs in the cost center financial

summary table are entered, edited, and displayed in the sub-form accessed by

selecting the “Show Fund Transactions” button (see Figure 6.5). Enter the date

of the transaction in the first column and a description of the transaction in the

second column. Credits (allocations or income to the cost center) are entered in

the third column while non-work order related debits (costs) are entered in the

fourth column. Anticipated credits and debits may be entered. They will only

affect totals under the “Expected” column on the financial summary table until

the Cleared checkbox has been selected. Enter any comment associated with the

transaction. Double clicking on the Comment field will bring up the Comment

Editor permitting entry of extended length comments, if necessary. This sub-

form cannot be viewed in the standard form view.

Figure 6.5. The Show Fund Transactions (or Cost Center Funds) sub-form.

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Chapter 6: Agency

• Show Work Order Costs − An itemized listing of work order costs that

comprise the Total Work Order Costs in the financial summary table are

displayed in the sub-form accessed by selecting the “Show Work Order Costs”

button (see Figure 6.6). This sub-form is “READ ONLY.” No entries can be

edited.

Figure 6.6. The Work Order Costs table under the Agency/Cost Centers tab.

Shown in their respective columns of entries are the Client ID of the client for

whom the work is being performed, the specific work order under which the

cost was incurred, the measure within the work order whose cost is being listed

preceded by the order number of the measure within the work order, the

estimated cost for the measure, and the actual cost for the measure if one has

been entered. The “ActCost” entries on this sub-form are included in both the

“Actual” and “Expected” entries of the financial summary table, whereas the

“EstCost” costs are included in only the “Expected” totals of the financial

summary table.

Modifications to the entries displayed in the sub-form can only be made in the

respective work orders that generated the costs. The headers for the Client,

Work Order, and Measure columns are in angle brackets (<>). This implies that

the actual client, work order, or measure may be accessed directly by double

clicking on the record’s entry in the form. If this technique of editing any of

these records is used, it is highly recommended that you exit the record after

making the modifications and return to the Work Order Measure Costs sub-

form before navigating to other forms. Having too many inter-related forms

open at the same time in the Weatherization Assistant can confuse the software

and result in abnormal behavior and warnings.

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• Cost Center Record Navigation Block – The Cost Center record navigation

block is used to find and navigate to existing cost centers, copy or delete the

currently accessed cost center, or create a new cost center. See Section 5.1,

Form and Record Navigation, for information on using the Weatherization

Assistant’s record navigation blocks.

6.4 Surveys (Agency)

The Surveys form (see Figure 6.7) under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button is

used to define custom surveys for your agency to collect additional information on

your clients or their households. The surveys themselves are filled out for

individual clients under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button as described in Section

Figure 6.7. The Surveys form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

7.7, Surveys (Client). You can create any number of surveys. Surveys do not need

to be limited to questions asked of the client. They could also be used to document

other information related to the clients collected by the agency, such as income or

other eligibility criteria. Below are descriptions of the individual data items and

controls found on the Surveys form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button:

• Survey Name – Enter the name for the survey. The Survey Name will be used

to identify the survey to be completed later under the Main Menu’s “Clients”

button. The name must be unique. Required.

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• Active – Use this checkbox to indicate whether the survey is considered

“Active.” Only active surveys will be listed for selection in the drop-down lists

under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

• Comment – You may enter comments that apply to the entire survey directly in

the Comment field on the form, or you may enter them in the Comment Editor

by selecting the “Comment” button to the left of the field. The Comment Editor

is similar to Window’s Notepad and may be used to enter extended comments.

The total comment may have up to 65,000 characters. Text from other sources

may be copied and pasted into the Comment Editor’s window. Comments

entered on the Cost Centers form are not displayed anywhere else in the

Weatherization Assistant or in any of its predefined reports. However, you may

wish to include the comment in a user-designed report (see Appendix D,

Development of Customized Reports). Optional.

• Survey Definition Record Navigation Block – The Survey Definition record

navigation block is used to find and navigate to existing surveys, copy or delete

the currently accessed survey, or create a new survey. See Section 5.1, Form

and Record Navigation, for information on using the Weatherization Assistant’s

record navigation blocks.

The Survey Question Definitions sub-form is used to define the questions to be

included in the survey. A new question may be initiated by positioning the cursor

at the first blank record or by selecting the new record button ( ). Be careful to

distinguish between the new record button associated with the Survey Question

Definitions sub-form and the new record button in the Survey Definition record

navigation block. The latter would initiate a whole new survey, not a new question

within the existing survey. The entries in the sub-form are copy/paste friendly from

both the Weatherization Assistant program and other text or word processing

software. The multiple columns of the sub-form may be copied to a spreadsheet,

such as Microsoft Excel, for printing. You can create a blank survey by not

entering any questions. The survey can then be associated with any client when

you want to create a totally unique set of questions specific to that client. Below

are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the Survey

Question Definitions sub-form:

• Group – You can assign each question to a group if desired. This may be

desirable for organizational or presentation purposes. You could also use the

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Group designation to sort the questions on the sub-form using standard data

sheet view sorting techniques. The entry is limited to 50 characters. Optional.

• Order # – Establish the order the questions will appear on the Client Surveys

report by assigning order numbers (see Section 7.1, Client Information).

Optional.

• Question – Enter the actual question to be asked of the client or completed by

agency staff. Each question may be 255 characters or less. Optional.

6.5 Clients

The Clients form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.8) shows

all client records associated with the current agency in a navigation data sheet

view. The form is used primarily to navigate to individual client records, although

it can also be used to create new blank client records. The shading of the records

displayed on this form is the visual indicator that this form is used for navigation

Figure 6.8. The Clients form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

Columns not displayed in this figure include the Numerical ClientID, AgencyName,

AgencyState, and Alt. Client ID.

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rather than data entry. You can double click with your mouse on the entries under

the column headings in angle brackets (<>) to navigate to the associated record.

Like any data sheet, the order that the client records are displayed can be changed

by highlighting a column and pressing one of the sort buttons in the tool bar. Some

of the columns in the form may be collapsed (not shown) by default. You can

double click the mouse near the borders of some of the columns in the header to

have them expanded. You can also collapse columns that you do not want to see by

dragging their widths to zero. You may need to use the vertical and horizontal

scroll bars to display all the records and columns, respectively. Below are

descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the Clients form

under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button:

• Client ID, Agency Name (not shown), Agency State (not shown), Client

Name, and Alt. Client ID (not shown) − These entries are those given on the

Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button for each of

the clients listed (see Section 7.1, Client Information).

• Numerical ClientID (not shown) − When a new client is created, the

Weatherization Assistant automatically assigns a unique number to this client

for internal software purposes. This field displays what this number is for each

client. See Feature 6 in Section 16.4, Features, for more information.

• Last Edited – This field shows the date (and time, if the column is expanded)

of the last change made to this client record while on the forms under the Main

Menu’s “Clients” button.

• Status – This field gives the latest client status for each client as set on the

Status form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button for the client. See Section

7.2, Status (Clients), for more information.

• Date – This field provides the date that the latest status was set.

• Checked Out To, Last Checked Out, and Last Check In − If the Check-

in/Check-out client records feature is turned on (see Feature 10 in Section 16.4,

Features), the Weatherization Assistant tracks who checked a client out and

when the client was checked out and checked back in. These fields provide this

information for each client if applicable.

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• Refresh List – The “Refresh List” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Clients form to reflect any changes since the last time this

form was opened.

• Create New Client Record for this Agency – You may use this button to

create a new client. Selecting the button will take you to the Client Information

form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button (see Section 7.1, Client

Information), where descriptive data for the new client can be entered. When

you exit the Client Information form, you will be returned to the Client form

under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button. A row with the new client should

already be added; if not, use the “Refresh List” button on the form.

6.6 Audits (Agency)

The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.9) shows

all audit records associated with the current agency in a navigation data sheet view.

The form is used primarily to navigate to individual audit records. The shading of

the records displayed on this form is the visual indicator that this form is used for

navigation rather than data entry. You can double click with your mouse on the

Figure 6.9. The Audits form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

Columns not displayed in this figure include the numerical ClientID, numerical JobID,

agency name, and agency state.

entries under the column headings in angle brackets (<>) to navigate to the

associated record. Like any data sheet, the order that the audit records are

displayed can be changed by highlighting a column and pressing one of the sort

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buttons in the tool bar. Some of the columns in the form may be collapsed (not

shown) by default. You can double click the mouse near the borders of some of the

columns in the header to have them expanded. You can collapse columns that you

do not want to see by dragging their widths to zero. You may need to use the

vertical and horizontal scroll bars to display all the records and columns,

respectively.

Normally, there is only one audit record for each client. However, the

Weatherization Assistant does allow you to create and execute more than one audit

per client. This might be useful if you desire to see the effect of some modification

in the building description on the recommendations of the audit. You might also

want to update or correct an existing audit without losing the original description.

If you have created and run more than one audit per client, you should ensure that

only one set of active work orders exists for the client. Otherwise, confusion and

double accounting of costs are likely to occur. Below are descriptions of the

individual data items and controls found on the Audits form under the Main

Menu’s “Agency” button:

• Client ID, Client Name, Alt. Client ID, Audit Name, Type, Agency Name

(not shown), and Agency State (not shown) − These entries are those given

on the Audit Information form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA”

buttons for each of the audits listed (see Section 8.2, Audit Information).

• Last Edited – This field shows the date (and time, if the column is expanded)

of the last change made to this audit record while in the forms under the Main

Menu’s “NEAT” or “MHEA” buttons.

• Status – This field gives the latest audit status for each audit as set on the Status

form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons for the audit. See

Section 11.1, Status (Audit), for more information.

• Date – This field provides the date that the latest status was set.

• Numerical ClientID and JobID (not shown) − When a new client and a new

audit are created, the Weatherization Assistant automatically assigns a unique

number to each of these for internal software purposes. These fields display

what these numbers are for each audit. See Feature 6 in Section 16.4, Features,

for more information.

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• Refresh List – The “Refresh List” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Audits form to reflect any changes since the last time this form

was opened.

6.7 Work Orders (Agency)

The Work Orders form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.10)

shows all work order records associated with the current agency in a navigation

data sheet view. The form is used primarily to navigate to individual work order

Figure 6.10. The Work Orders form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

Columns not displayed in this figure include the numerical ClientID, numerical

WorkOrderID, agency name, and agency state.

records. The shading of the records displayed on this form is the visual indicator

that this form is used for navigation rather than data entry. You can double click

with your mouse on the entries under the column headings in angle brackets (<>)

to navigate to the associated record. Like any data sheet, the order that the work

order records are displayed can be changed by highlighting a column and pressing

one of the sort buttons in the tool bar. Some of the columns in the form may be

collapsed (not shown) by default. You can double click the mouse near the borders

of some of the columns in the header to have them expanded. You can collapse

columns that you do not want to see by dragging their widths to zero. You may

need to use the vertical and horizontal scroll bars to display all the records and

columns, respectively.

More than one work order per client may be displayed on this form if more than

one contractor is assigned work for a client. The work orders may have been

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generated automatically from the Measures form under the Main Menu’s “NEAT”

and “MHEA” buttons (see Section 11.11, Measures (Audit)) or manually under the

Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button (see Section 13.1, Work Order Information).

Below are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the Work

Orders form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button:

• Client ID, Work Order, Agency Name (not shown), and Agency State (not

shown) − These entries are those given on the Work Order Information form

under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button for each of the work orders listed

(see Section 13.1, Work Order Information).

• Numerical ClientID (not shown) and WorkOrderID (not shown) − When a

new client and a new work order are created, the Weatherization Assistant

automatically assigns a unique number to each of these for internal software

purposes. These fields display what these numbers are for each work order. See

Section 16.4, Features, for more information.

• Contractor – This field shows the contractor assigned to this work order. This

entry may be blank if a contractor has not been assigned. Contractors are

defined on the Contacts tab under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button as

described in Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency), and assigned to each measure

either by default in the Setup Library (see Section 14.5, Library Measures),

when a work order is initiated from the Measure form under the Main Menu’s

“NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons (see Section 11.11, Measures (Audit)), or under

the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button itself (see Section 13.1, Work Order

Information).

• Last Edited – This field shows the date (and time, if the column is expanded)

of the last change made to this work order record while on the forms under the

Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button, or the date the work order was generated

from the Measures form of the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA” buttons if

no modifications have been made.

• Status, Inspect Status, and Pay Status – There are three status categories for a

work order: a general status, an inspection status, and a payment status. Each

status category has its own column in the Work Orders form. These fields give

the latest status of each category for each work order. These statuses are

changed on the Status form under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button for

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each individual work order. See Section 13.2, Status (Work Order), for more

information.

• Dates – These fields provide the date that the latest status was set for each of

the three work order status categories.

• Refresh List – The “Refresh List” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Work Orders form to reflect any changes since the last time

this form was opened.

6.8 Libraries

The Libraries form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Figure 6.11)

shows all the setup libraries and supply libraries associated with the current agency

in a navigation data sheet view. The form is used primarily for reference and to

navigate to individual libraries. The shading of the records displayed on this form

is the visual indicator that this form is used for navigation rather than data entry.

You can double click with your mouse on a specific library of interest to directly

access that library. Like any data sheet, the order that the libraries are shown can

be changed by highlighting a column and pressing one of the sort buttons in the

tool bar. Below are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on

the Libraries form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button:

Figure 6.11. The Libraries form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

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• Library Name, Description, and Comment − These entries are those given to

each library under the Main Menu’s “Setup Library” or “Supply Library”

buttons (see Sections 14.1, Setup Library Information, and 15.1,General

Information Form, respectively).

• Created On, By (not shown) – These entries give the date (and time if the

column is expanded) and who was logged on when the library was created. The

second entry requires use of the User Logon feature (see Feature 4 in Section

16.4, Features, for more information).

• Last Edited, By – These entries give the date the library was last modified and

who was logged on when the modification was made. This second entry

requires use of the User Logon feature (see Feature 4 in Section 16.4, Features,

for more information).

• Refresh List − The “Refresh List” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Libraries form to reflect any changes since the last time this

form was opened.

6.9 Status History

The Status History form under the Main

Menu’s “Agency” button lists the current

status settings and the entire history of

status changes for all status categories

(types) for all clients belonging to the

current agency (see Figure 6.12). You may

need to use the vertical scroll bar to see all

the status settings. The status categories

used in the Weatherization Assistant are

shown in Table 6.1.

The Status History form is used to review the history of status changes rather than

to edit individual records in the history. Changes in status are made under the

Status forms of the respective “Client,” “NEAT” or “MHEA,” and “Work Orders”

Main Menu buttons. See Sections 7.2, Status (Clients); 11.1, Status (Audit); and

13.2, Status (Work Order), for more details. Section 18.3, Status Tracking,

provides a full discussion of the status tracking feature in the Weatherization

Table 6.1. Status categories tracked

under the Status History form

Client Level

Client (General)

Client Application

Audit Level

NEAT Audit

MHEA Audit

Work Order

Level

Work Order (General)

Work Order Inspection

Work Order Payment

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Chapter 6: Agency

Assistant, including a display of all of the status categories and the possible

settings for each. You can double click your mouse on the entries under the column

headings in angle brackets (<>) to navigate to the associated record.

Figure 6.12. The Status History form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button.

The Weatherization Assistant retains a record of all status settings and changes. If

you make a mistake in setting a status, correcting it will still leave the old setting in

the history. Even though you cannot edit status records from the Status History

form, you can delete entire status records using the form (see the discussion of

deleting records in a data sheet view in Section 5.10, Deleting Data). Thus, the

form is a good location to detect mistaken entries and delete them.

Combining the use of the filter and sort features in the Status History form can

produce a useful display (see the discussion of filtering and sorting in Section 5.8,

Data Sheet and Form Views of Records). If you filter the entries by a specific

client and then sort the entries by date, you will display a chronological listing of

all status entries associated with a specific client. A similar display can also be

produced by selecting the “Overall Client Status History” button on the Status

form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button and sorting the records by date as

discussed in Section 7.2, Status (Clients).

Below are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the

Status History form.

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• Client ID − This entry is the Client ID given on the Client Information form

under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button (see Section 7.1, Client Information).

• Record Name − This field identifies the Client ID, Audit Name, or Work Order

associated with the status setting.

• Status Type − This field identifies the status category associated with this

status setting. These categories are listed in Table 6.1.

• Date − This field displays the date that the status setting became effective.

• Status − This field displays the status setting. The possible settings for each

status category are listed in Section 18.3, Status Tracking.

• Changed On − This field displays the date that the status setting was changed.

• By − This field displays the User Name of the person who changed the status

setting. The names are restricted to those that have been entered on the Contacts

form under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button and have a password assigned as

discussed in Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency). A User Name of “Admin” implies

that a specific person was not identified as making the change.

• Comment (not shown) − Any comment that has been appended to this status

setting will be shown in this field.

• Refresh List − The “Refresh List” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Status form to reflect any status changes that may have been

made since the last time this form was opened.

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Chapter 7: Clients

Chapter 7. Clients

Because audits and work orders are assigned to clients, setting up and entering

information on clients is an essential task in the Weatherization Assistant.

Information related to clients is organized under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button

of the Weatherization Assistant (see Figure 3.1).

The minimal information required for a specific client is a Client ID, the name of

the agency handling the client, and the type of dwelling. However, you may store

additional client information in case you are using the Weatherization Assistant as

the main repository of client data.

The first task in using the Weatherization Assistant for a new client is to enter

identifying information about the client under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

The most common and direct way to start a new client record is to select the

“Clients” button on the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu and then select the

“New” button from the Client record navigation block on the Client Information

form (see Figure 7.1). You can also start a new client by selecting the “Agency”

button from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu, selecting the Clients tab,

and then clicking on the “Create New Client Record for this Agency” button (see

Section 6.5, Clients).

You may access the record for any existing client by selecting the “Clients” button

from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu and then using one of the Client

record navigation block drop-down lists to locate and select the desired client.

Although this is the more direct method, you can also access an existing client by

selecting the “Agency” button from the Weatherization Assistant’s Main Menu,

selecting the Clients tab, and then double clicking your mouse on the Client ID

corresponding to the client of interest (see Section 6.5, Clients).

The remainder of this chapter is divided into sections describing the data and

display items entered on each of the forms seen under the Main Menu’s “Client”

button: Client Information, Status, Energy Index, Contacts, Audits, Work Orders,

Surveys, and Photos (if the photo browser tab method for attaching photos to

records has been activated under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button as

described under Feature 1 in Section 16.4, Features). All but the first three tabs

associated with these forms have a number in parentheses following the tab name.

These numbers indicate the number of records entered for each particular form for

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Chapter 7: Clients

the client currently selected. For example, in Figure 7.1, there are two contact

records and one audit record entered for client 05_348.

7.1 Client Information

The Client Information form (see Figure 7.1) under the Main Menu’s “Clients”

button allows you to enter general information on a specific client and the client’s

dwelling. It also allows you to view and navigate to other clients in your database,

and to access client level reports.

Figure 7.1. The Client Information form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

Both options for linking photos to the client are shown (Photos tab and Photo Folder field

with accompanying “Browse” and “View” buttons) even though only one can be selected

and displayed at one time.

All of the data on the Client Information form are optional except the Client ID,

Agency, and Dwelling Type. However, optional data may still be used elsewhere

in the Weatherization Assistant or in reports that you generate. For example, if the

number of occupants is entered, NEAT and MHEA will use this value rather than a

default value to determine the amount of internal loads. As another example, the

majority of information in the Dwelling and Occupants blocks of data are used to

generate the Unit Production portion of the DOE Quarterly Report, accessed from

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Chapter 7: Clients

the Report block under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Section 6.1,

Agency Information).

Below are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the

Client Information form. The data items and controls included in the Dwelling and

Occupant blocks are described at the end, as are the data items and controls related

to mapping, photographs, and checking out clients.

• Client ID – The Client ID is designed to be the key parameter identifying this

client to you and to the computer. The Client ID is one of several fields you will

use to locate and identify a specific client. Therefore, the Client ID must be

unique. Typically, the Client ID should be the job number that agencies assign

to their clients. Although the Client ID could be the name of the client, the

names of the client and other contacts associated with the client should be

entered under the Contacts form as discussed in Section 7.4, Contacts (Client).

The entry may be up to 50 characters in length, although report footers can only

report the first 20 characters. Required.

• Alt. Client ID – The Alternate Client ID field allows you to assign a second

identifying parameter to each client if your agency or state has multiple means

of identifying a client. The Alternate Client ID can be used to locate and

identify a specific client. The entry may be up to 50 characters in length,

although report footers can only report the first 20 characters. Optional.

• Agency – This field is used to select the agency associated with this client. A

new client will automatically be assigned to the agency selected as the default

agency under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button (see Section 6.1, Agency

Information), although any agency defined under the Main Menu’s “Agency”

button can be selected using the drop-down list. If the agency a client is

assigned to is changed after audits and/or work orders have been created for this

client, then information in the audits and/or work orders (e.g., Setup, Fuel Cost,

and Supply Libraries) will have to be re-entered to retain consistency with the

new agency assignment. Required.

• State − The State field that is to the right of the Agency field and shaded will be

automatically filled in once the agency the client is assigned to is selected. This

is the state associated with the selected agency as entered under the Main

Menu’s “Agency” button (see Section 6.1, Agency Information).

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• Setup Library − The setup library to be associated with this client can be

selected using the drop-down list. The setup libraries that will be listed in the

drop-down list are those that have been created for the agency selected in the

Agency field. The setup library needs to be selected using the Setup Library

field only if work orders will be created without running a NEAT or MHEA

audit so that user-defined measures entered in the setup library can be accessed

from under the Main Menu’s “Work Orders” button. The setup library that will

be used in running NEAT or MHEA will be selected on the NEAT or MHEA

Audit Information form (see Section 8.2, Audit Information). However, if you

select a setup library on the Client Information form for this client, then the

selected setup library will automatically be selected on the Audit Information

form when an audit for this client is created (although you can change this

selection on the Audit Information form if desired). Optional.

• Address, Unit Number, City, State, and Zip Code – Enter the address of the

client’s dwelling to be weatherized. If you are using the Weatherization

Assistant’s Geographic Information System (GIS) feature, the GIS will use this

address to plot the location of the dwelling as explained in Section 18.2,

Geographic Information System (GIS). The address may or may not be the same

as any address you supply for contacts associated with the client as discussed in

Section 7.4, Contacts (Client). Optional.

• County and Other Geographic Identifier – These fields can be used to

identify the county the client’s dwelling resides in or to locate the dwelling by

some other geographic identifier (e.g., congressional district). The entries may

be 20 characters or less. Optional.

• Comment – You may enter comments directly in the Comment field on the

form, or you may enter them in the Comment Editor by selecting the

“Comment” button to the left of the field. The Comment Editor is similar to

Window’s Notepad and may be used to enter extended comments. The total

comment may have up to 65,000 characters. Text from other sources may be

copied and pasted into the Comment Editor’s window. Any comment that is

entered is displayed in a variety of reports, including the Client Information

Report and the NEAT/MHEA Data Collection Form (Client Specific) available

from under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button (see the Report Block below) and

the Input Report available from under the Main Menu’s “NEAT” and “MHEA”

buttons (see Section 8.2, Audit Information). You may also wish to include the

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comment in a user-designed report (see Appendix D, Development of

Customized Reports). Optional.

• Cumulative Cost and SIR – These two fields are filled in only if a work order

has been created for the client and actual costs (rather than estimated costs) for

weatherization measures have been entered into the work order. These fields

show the actual cost of all measures performed on the client’s dwelling and the

savings-to-investment ratio (SIR) for these measures calculated using the actual

costs and savings. See the discussion under “The Materials/Labor Details Sub-

Form” in Section 13.3, Measures (Work Order), for more details. Uneditable.

• Client Record Navigation Block – The Client record navigation block is used

to find and navigate to existing client records in your database, copy or delete

the currently accessed client, or to create a new client. See Section 5.1, Form

and Record Navigation, for information on using the Weatherization Assistant’s

record navigation blocks.

The default installation of the Weatherization Assistant turns on the “Use only

the latest bookmarked Agency in the find record drop-down boxes” feature in

Preferences (see Feature 9 in Section 16.4, Features). With this feature turned

on, the drop-down lists in the Client record navigation block will display only

the clients associated with the agency last visited using the Main Menu’s

“Agency” button. Normally, this will be your agency, so the drop-down lists

will display only your agency’s clients. If you have more than one agency

defined in your database and you want the drop-down lists to display clients

from all defined agencies, turn this feature off.

• Report Block – The Report block provides you with access to all reports

available under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button. The following reports are

currently available: Client Completion Report, Client Information Report,

Client Information Form, NEAT/MHEA Data Collection Form (blank or client

specific), and Client Surveys. See Appendix C, Reports, for examples of these

reports. The reports display information already gathered and entered into the

Weatherization Assistant while the forms are blank forms to be used to gather

information. The NEAT and MHEA Data Collection Forms may be printed

with general client information pre-entered or completely blank. See Section

5.12, The Report Block, for information on the mechanics of using the

Weatherization Assistant’s Report blocks. Appendix D, Development of

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Customized Reports, describes a method to create reports tailored to your needs

and to list the reports in the Report block.

Dwelling Data Block

The data items included in the Dwelling data block are intended to be used

primarily to complete the Unit Production portion of the DOE Quarterly Program

Report (see “Report Block” in Section 6.1, Agency Information). Definitions of the

items should be consistent with this report, DOE guidance, and/or 10 CFR Part

440. All of the data entries are optional except for the Dwelling Type. Below are

brief descriptions of the individual data items found in the Dwelling data block on

the Client Information form:

• Type – Use the drop-down list to select the type of dwelling this client lives in.

The choices are Site Built, Mobile Home, Duplex, Triplex, Fourplex,

Multifamily (5 or more units per building), Shelter, and Other. The selection is

used only in populating the Quarterly Program Report and does not restrict your

assigning either the NEAT or MHEA audit to the client, though the two should

be consistent. Required.

• Ownership – Indicate whether the client owns or rents the dwelling. If you

select “Other,” you may want to specify details in the Comment field. Optional.

• Primary Heating Fuel – Choose the fuel that is used to provide the most space

heating in the dwelling using the drop-down list. The choices are None, Natural

Gas, Oil, Electricity, Propane, Wood, Coal, Kerosene, and Other. If you select

“Other,” you may want to specify details in the Comment field. Optional.

• Secondary Heating Fuel − If more than one fuel is used to provide space

heating to the dwelling, choose the next most used fuel using the drop-down

list. The choices are the same as for the primary heating fuel. Optional.

• High Energy Use – Select this checkbox if the client/dwelling is considered to

be a high energy user, defined as “a low-income household whose residential

energy expenditures exceed the median level of residential expenditures for all

low-income households in the state.” Optional.

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• High Energy Burden − Select this checkbox if the client’s energy costs are a

high burden for them. A client with a high energy burden is defined as “a low-

income household whose residential energy expenditures divided by the annual

income of that household (energy burden) exceeds the median level of energy

burden for all low-income households in the state.” Optional.

• Previously Weatherized – Select this checkbox if the dwelling was previously

weatherized as defined for the DOE Quarterly Program Report. Optional.

• Low Cost/No Cost – Select this checkbox if the work performed on the

dwelling may be considered to be low cost or no cost as defined for the DOE

Quarterly Program Report (typically a dwelling in which a maximum of $50

materials were expended). Optional.

• Year Built – Enter an estimate of the year the dwelling was built. Optional.

• Account #1 and #2 − These fields are provided so that utility account numbers

for the client can be entered. If both fields will be used, you should establish a

consistent approach within your agency or state as to which fields are used for

which accounts. For example, electric utility account numbers may always be

entered in the Account #1 field, and natural gas, propane, fuel oil, etc. account

numbers are always entered in the Account #2 field. A comment entry may also

help clarify the type of account number entered in each field. Optional.

Occupants Data Block

The data items included in the Occupants data block are intended to be used

primarily to complete the Unit Production portion of the DOE Quarterly Program

Report. Definitions of the items should be consistent with this report, DOE

guidance, and/or 10 CFR Part 440. All of the data entries are optional. Below are

brief descriptions of the individual data items found in the Occupants data block on

the Client Information form:

• Occupants – Enter the total number of occupants living in the dwelling.

Although optional, this entry is used in NEAT and MHEA to determine the

internal loads of the dwelling, estimate water usage, and modify the minimum

leakage rate for the dwelling. A default number of occupants is used in NEAT

and MHEA if no entry is made. Optional.

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• Elderly − Enter the number of elderly people who live in the dwelling, defined

as those 60 years of age or older. Optional.

• Disabled − Enter the number of disabled people who live in the dwelling, as

defined in 10 CFR Part 40. Optional.

• Native American − Enter the number of occupants living in the dwelling who

are members of a Native American Tribe. Optional.

• Children − Enter the number of children who live in the dwelling, defined as

being 19 years of age or younger, or as defined by your state. Optional.

• Primary Language − Select the primary language spoken by the occupants of

the dwelling using the drop-down list. The choices are English, Spanish, Other

European Language, Asian Language, and Other. If you select “Other,” you

may want to specify details in the Comment field. Optional.

Graphic Information System Data Items

If you are using the Graphic Information System (GIS), two uneditable fields

(Latitude and Longitude) and a “Map” button will be present on the Client

Information form just below the Comment field. If the address entered on the

Client Information form for the client is recognized by the Weatherization

Assistant, the Latitude and Longitude fields will display the indicated data and the

“Map” button will take you to a map showing this location. See Section 18.2,

Geographic Information System (GIS), for more details.

Photograph Data Items

If you have chosen to use the third party photo browser method for attaching

photos to records under the Main Menu’s “Preferences” button (see Feature 2 in

Section 16.4, Features), a Photo Folder field, “Browse” button, and “View” button

will be present on the Client Information form below the Comment field. Use the

“Browse” button to select a folder on your computer in which you have stored

digital photos for this specific client. Once selected, the location of this folder will

be displayed in the Photo Folder field. Select the “View” button to obtain a photo

browser in which you may view and edit these photos. The Weatherization

Assistant provides the option of attaching photos not only to clients, but also to

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audits and work orders as well. Therefore, you should develop a consistent policy

regarding where and how you store reference to your photos. See Section 18.1,

Digital Photos, for more information on viewing and editing photos.

Client Check Out Data Items

If you have chosen to use the Check-in/Check-out feature of the Weatherization

Assistant (see Feature 10 in Section 16.4, Features, and Section 17.3, Data

Transfer – Import/Export With Another MSAccess Database), a Checked Out To

field, “Check In” button, and “Check Out” button will be present on the Client

Information form below the Comment field. If the client you are currently

referencing has been checked out, the User Name of the user who checked out the

record will appear in the “Checked Out To” drop-down list’s field.

You may initialize the checking out of a client or change the user assigned to the

check-out by using either the “Check Out” button or the “Checked Out To” drop-

down list. You may choose any user to be recorded as the user having checked out

the client using the drop-down list. If you use the “Check Out” button, you may

only check the client out to the current user who is logged on, presumably yourself.

Once a client has been checked out, you may check the client back in by selecting

the “Check In” button, regardless of who had previously checked the client out. If

there are multiple users who may check records in and out, you will need to

coordinate this practice.

7.2 Status (Clients)

The Status form under the Main Menu’s

“Clients” button (see Figure 7.2) allows you to

view the current status settings associated with

the client being accessed for all of the status

categories used in the Weatherization

Assistant. The status categories used in the

Weatherization Assistant and that appear in

the left column of the Status form are shown

in Table 7.1. The current status will be shown

for only those categories for which a status

has been set or for which a setting is possible. You may need to use the vertical

scroll bar to see all the status settings, especially if multiple work orders exist

Table 7.1. The status categories used

in the Weatherization Assistant

Client Level

Client (General)

Application

Audit Level Audit (NEAT or MHEA)

Work Order

Level

Work Order (General)

Work Order Inspection

Work Order Payment

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because three status categories (general, inspection, and payment) are tracked

separately for each work order. Below are brief descriptions of the individual data

items and controls found on the Status form. The entries on the main Status form

cannot be edited. You must use the “Edit” button on the form to change the current

status for the client.

Figure 7.2. The Status form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

• <Status Category and Record Name> – The left most column of the form

displays the status category (see Table 7.1). If the status category is an audit

level or work order level category, the name of the audit or work order is also

displayed.

• Current Status − This field displays the current status setting for the given

status category. The possible settings for each category are listed in Section

18.3, Status Tracking.

• Completed − An “X” will be displayed in this field when the current status

setting signifies completion or closure of the activity associated with the status

category. Settings that represent completion are indicated by an asterisk (*) in

Section 18.3, Status Tracking.

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• Date − This field displays the date that the current status became effective.

• Changed − This field displays the date that the current status was last changed.

• By − This field displays the User Name of the person who changed the status.

The names are restricted to those that have been entered on the Contacts form

under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button and have a password assigned as

discussed in Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency). A User Name of “Admin” implies

that a specific person was not identified as making the change.

• Comment − Any comment that has been appended to this current status setting

will be shown in this field.

• Edit − Status settings are changed by selecting the “Edit” button in the row of

the status category you wish to change. Use of the Status Editor form that

appears is explained in Section 18.3, Status Tracking.

• History − Select the “H” button to see a history of all settings for a specific

status category for the current client. The Status History form that appears is the

same in appearance as that discussed in Section 6.9, Status History.

• Refresh List − The “Refresh” button can be used to update the information

displayed on the Status form to reflect any status changes that may have been

made since the last time this form was opened.

• Overall Client Status History − Select the “Overall Client Status History”

button to display a listing of all status entries for all status categories associated

with the current client. The Status History form that appears is the same in

appearance as that discussed in Section 6.9, Status History. You can use of the

sort feature (see Section 5.8, Data Sheet and Form Views of Records) while

viewing this form to arrange the status settings in a desired order (e.g.,

chronologically).

7.3 Energy Index

The Energy Index form (see Figure 7.3) is used to compute an overall energy index

for the client’s dwelling in units of Btu per heating degree day per square foot.

Note that the energy index may be significantly affected by the life styles of the

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occupants, regardless of the dwelling’s construction characteristics, because it is

based on actual energy consumption. The energy index is typically used to

determine how energy efficient the client’s dwelling currently is and the potential

to save energy in the client’s dwelling from weatherization. The index can be used

to compare or rank dwellings according to the potential energy savings that could

be achieved from weatherization. The energy index calculated by the

Weatherization Assistant is of most use in heating climates because the index is

based on heating degree days. The energy index calculated on this form is

independent of the detailed energy calculations and energy consumption estimates

made under NEAT or MHEA. Use of the Energy Index form is totally optional.

Figure 7.3. The Energy Index form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

Below are descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the

Energy Index form. All entries except those for the secondary fuel type are

required for the Weatherization Assistant to calculate an energy index. You may,

however, enter partial data and then return at a later time to complete the data

entry.

• Fuel Costs – In order to translate the Annual Cost of energy entered in dollars

(see below) into units of energy consumption, the Weatherization Assistant

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needs to know the fuel prices paid by the client. Use this drop-down list to

select the Fuel Cost table that contains the fuel prices appropriate for this client.

The fuel costs tables that will appear in the drop-down list are those that have

been entered in any setup library associated with the agency that the client has

been assigned to (see Section 14.3, Fuel Costs). If you have only one Setup

Library with a single fuel cost table, this will be a trivial choice.

If you select a fuel cost table on the Energy Index form, then the selected fuel

cost table will automatically be selected on the NEAT or MHEA Audit

Information form (see Section 8.2, Audit Information) when an audit for this

client is created (although you can change this selection on the Audit

Information form if desired). If you do change the table on the Audit

Information form, remember that the fuel costs used in the audit calculations

may be different from those used to calculate the energy index.

• Floor Area – Enter the conditioned floor area of the client’s dwelling in units

of square feet. This is the floor area of the living space, not the foot print area.

For example, a two-story home with a floor area of 1200 sq. ft. per story would

have a total floor area of 2400 sq. ft. If you enter a floor area on the Energy

Index form, then this floor area will automatically be entered on the NEAT

Audit Information form (see Section 8.2, Audit Information) when an audit for

this client is created (although you can change this entry on the Audit

Information form if desired).

• Heating Degree Days – Enter the number of annual Heating Degree Days

(HDDs) at base 65ºF for the location of the dwelling. The annual HDDs entered

should correspond to the same time period as the annual energy costs entered

below in order for the energy index to be most accurate. In addition, values

entered for different clients should come from a consistent source. However, if

the HDDs for this time period are not available, then average values over long

time periods may be used. Such values may be available through the National

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) or The American Society of

Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

The next three fields exist for both a primary and a secondary heating fuel. Enter

information into the fields for the secondary heating fuel only if more than one fuel

is used to supply space heating to the dwelling (e.g., if an electric space heater is

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used to heat a bedroom while the remainder of the house is heated by a gas

furnace).

• Fuel Type – Select the fuel type that is being described as providing the space

heat. The choices are None, Natural Gas, Oil, Electricity, Propane, Wood, Coal,

Kerosene, and Other.

• Annual Cost – Enter the annual fuel bill for the fuel specified. Typically, this is

the sum of 12 recent and consecutive monthly fuel bills.

• Est % Heating − Enter an estimate of the portion of the Annual Cost for this

fuel that was spent for space heating, as opposed to water heating, cooking, etc.

A default value will be entered automatically based on the Fuel Type selected,

but you should modify this value if you do not think it is representative of the

actual conditions in the dwelling.

• BTU/HDD/sqft – Once all of the information described above has been

entered, the Weatherization Assistant computes and displays an energy index

for the primary and secondary fuels as well as a combined energy index for

both fuels. This latter value is the energy index for the home (i.e., a measure of

the home’s energy efficiency).

• High Energy Use – This read-only checkbox is automatically filled out

depending on your entry on the Client Information tab for this same data item

(see Section 7.1, Client Information). Although DOE’s definition of this

parameter is not directly linked to the energy index for a home, consistent use

of the energy index and designation of homes as high energy users should

reveal some correlation between these two data items.

7.4 Contacts (Client)

The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button (see Figure 7.4) allows

you to enter information on people associated with the currently selected client.

You can enter as many contacts as needed. The person requesting weatherization

assistance should be one contact that is entered and will often be the only contact

entered. Other contacts that may be entered for some clients include responsible

relatives of elderly individuals who should be consulted, owners of rental units, or

perhaps a utility representative from whom billing data will be obtained.

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Multifamily buildings may have a superintendent or maintenance person assigned

to the building who could be a valuable contact. The Contacts form may be viewed

and edited in the data sheet view, which provides a summary of all contacts already

entered for the client or allows quick changes to multiple entries. Client contacts

are reported on the Client Completion Report, the Client Information Report, and

the Client Survey Report, all of which are accessible from the Report block of the

Client Information form (see Section 7.1, Client Information). Below are

descriptions of the individual data items and controls found on the Contacts form

under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button:

Figure 7.4. The Contacts form under the Main Menu’s “Clients” button.

• Full Name – Enter the name of the contact. You may enter the name with the

given name first and the surname last, or with the surname first followed by a

comma and then any given names. After you have entered the name and moved

to another control, the Weatherization Assistant will automatically fill in the

uneditable Name Detail fields (i.e., First, MI, and Last) to show you how the

program sees the name that you have entered. If you are trying to enter the

name of a company (e.g., a supplier of materials), you should enter the name of

your primary contact within that company and then provide entries for the User

Name and Company fields. The name must be unique. Required.

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• Primary Applicant – Use this checkbox to indicate if the contact being entered

is the name of the person who applied for weatherization. If checked, this

person’s name will also appear in the uneditable Client Name field, which is

shown above the tabs on the “Client” window when this particular client is

accessed. Reports will also display this individual as the client. Only one

contact can be declared as the Primary Applicant for each client. Designating a

contact as the Primary Applicant will automatically uncheck the checkbox for

any other contact who had previously been declared as the Primary Applicant

for this client. Changing the contact designated as the Primary Applicant is not

recommended when other windows displaying this information are open.

• Contact Type – Select from the drop-down list the Contact Type that best

applies to the contact. The choices are Applicant/Person of Record, Non-

Applicant/Person of Record, Other Contact for Applicant, Landlord/Owner,

Superintendent, Maintenance Staff, and Other. The entry will default to

“Applicant/Person of Record” when a new contact record is initiated. Normally,

if the Primary Applicant checkbox is checked for this contact, then the Contact

Type is “Applicant/Person of Record.” The “Non-Applicant/Person of Record”

is intended for use in multifamily buildings to designate an occupant of a unit

who can have weatherization work performed on their unit only because the

required fraction of other units in the building qualify. Optional.

• Company Name – If applicable, enter the company associated with the contact.

Remember that the contacts being entered here are for a specific client, not for

your agency in general. Thus, companies you use as suppliers or contractors

would likely be more appropriately entered on the Contacts form under the

Main Menu’s “Agency” button as discussed in Section 6.2, Contacts (Agency),

unless this company supplied a specific need for this client alone. Optional.

• Title – If applicable, enter a title associated with the client. This entry could

alternately be used to enter a position or relation of the contact to a primary

applicant. Optional.

• Address, Unit Number, City, State, and Zip Code – Enter the complete

mailing address of the contact. If the address is the same as the address entered

for the dwelling on the Client Information form (see Section 7.1, Client

Information), you can use the “Copy Client Addr” button to copy this address

from the Client Information form to the Contacts form. Optional.

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• Copy Client Addr − If the address entered for the dwelling on the Client

Information form (see Section 7.1, Client Information) is the same as the

address for the client, you can use the “Copy Client Addr” button to copy the

address information from the Client Information form to the Contacts form.

• Work, Cell, Pager, Fax, and Home Phone – Enter any of the indicated phone

numbers for the contact. Optional.

• E-Mail – Enter an e-mail address for the contact. Only e-mail addresses of

contacts listed under the Main Menu’s “Agency” button will be entered

automatically in the Address Book of the e-mail feature of the Weatherization

Assistant. See Section 18.4, E-Mailing from Within Weatherization Assistant,

for more information. Optional.