This is a common question that we get asked. Because we are able to find many issues that are invisible to the human eye, some people believe that a thermal imaging camera can see through walls. So can it?
The answer – no. A thermal camera cannot see through walls. This is very important to know though. A real estate agent was teaching a class and said that there was a room in an old home that they only discovered because they did renovations. She was perplexed because she said her inspector used a thermal camera and didn’t see through the walls to the hidden room.
Immediately, several people in the room corrected her and said that a thermal imaging camera cannot see through walls and explaining how thermal imaging works (i.e. thermal = temperature, it sees temperature differentials). Her legitimacy was totally lost at that point.
Her home inspector also stated on his website that he could see through walls and that he had “x-ray vision” due to having his camera. Any professional working in any field related to any building would do well to keep their reputation together and learn more about thermal imaging.
If you would like to know more about how thermal imaging works, contact us and we will be happy to help.