Oct
27
Written by:
Catherine Marshall
10/27/2008 10:10 AM
The price of oil is bouncing around like a yo-yo. The cost of electricity is on the way up. Natural gas distributors are warning you to lock into a contract now or face a price spike. If you are feeling anxious about your future utility bills, you are not alone.
So if you have been thinking about turning your home into a renovation construction zone, why not consider doing some projects that will increase your home’s energy performance and make you feel “green all over” by reducing your carbon footprint? Right now the federal and provincial governments have banded together to offer the Ontario Home Energy Audit and Retrofit Rebate Program with up to $10,150 in grant money available per home.
The first step in the program, a home energy audit, is cheap, informative and the first $150 is covered by the grant program. You’ll need to hire a licensed energy adviser who will conduct a detailed on-site assessment of your home's energy use, including a "blower door" test to find air leaks. The adviser will provide you with the actual energy-efficiency rating of your home along with a report and list of recommended retrofits.
In a recent edition of the Toronto Star New in Homes section, the first hand experiences of an intrepid homeowner showed that this first step can be an eye-opener. This fellow had just purchased a 1900s farmhouse near Napanee. Since he received no reliable information on the heating costs from the previous owner, he thought that an energy audit (at an after rebate cost of $175) would provide with an idea of whether an energy retrofit might be required. Clues that he might need a retrofit included the electric baseboard and space heaters in the upper floor.
The average 100 year old home has an energy rating of 55, but the audit showed this fellow’s house scored minus 24! All of the sources of heat loss added up to the equivalent of a 1.5 foot by 1.5 foot hole in the house. The picture of this charming home was totally out of step with the nightmarish heating bills it would produce under the status quo.
One aspect of the house that appealed to this home buyer was its “lovely, energy-efficient windows”. However the audit revealed the windows hadn’t been installed properly so they were part of the problem. The doors were another part.
Let me digress for a moment. Many people cheap out on their doors and windows. In terms of energy efficiency, this is pure folly. Windows and doors can account for 20% of the home’ s exterior but are responsible for 30% or more of the heat loss. So you can insulate your walls and roof up your ying-yang --- and still have an energy inefficient house! To make your house efficient, choose Energy Star rated products and have them installed by an installer who has certified with one of the larger window companies.
Now back to the main story: The energy auditor recommended adding insulation, fixing water problems in the basement, adding a vapour barrier to the basement floor, and especially sealing air leaks throughout the house.
So this fellow got to work, enlisted the services of a contractor, and is adding his elbow grease and caulking to seal, seal, and seal some more. One benefit of having an experienced contractor working with him is that he needs to take pictures to show that the improvements have been done properly. He has up to 18 months to complete the work to qualify for the Retrofit Rebate and anticipates that it will be an ongoing project this winter.
The process will end with a return visit from the energy adviser, who will conduct a second evaluation and calculate a new energy-efficiency rating that indicates the improved energy use in your home. From there, the adviser will determine exactly how much you can expect to receive in grants, will prepare the paperwork for you to sign and will submit the grant application(s).
Based on the initial audit, he expects to reduce his energy consumption by 55 per cent and reduce his home’s greenhouse gas emissions by 14.8 tonnes per year.
It's natural to get caught up in all the fun stuff that comes with renovating – the design, the specifications, the finishes, the colours. But hopefully now you are going for that “green all over” feel by looking into an energy retrofit as part of the process. ~ Catherine Marshall
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