Energy assessment

Today we had an energy advisor came in to do an energy audit on our house. We were looking into solar hot water heating and found out that there are currently 3 government energy efficiency incentives programs for British Columbians: the ecoENERGY (Federal), LiveSmart BC, and SolarBC. (The SolarBC deals with solar hot water heating exclusively and a rebate of $1000 is available through this program).

One of the requirements for qualifying this government money is to do an energy audit on the house before and after the home improvement (one of the audit can be rebated $150). We went ahead and called City Green home energy advisor and made an appointment. So Zack, the auditor, came in this afternoon to measure the dimensions of the house, inspect the insulation and do a number of other poking-around. And he did a curious thing, which was to seal our front entrance with a sheet that has a giant fan and a meter attached. It sucked air out of the house, creating a lower air pressure indoor; it was supposed to measure the air-leakage of the house mathematically. And then we physically walked around the house, we could literally feel air blowing in from outside through where the areas of significant leakages. These areas include: the attic hatch, the floor, the places where pipes were going into the house from the crawl-space, etc.
One thing we know (and was reinforced today) is that the simplest step one can take towards energy efficiency is CONSERVE and INSULATE. Surely they sound a lot less sexy than renewable and alternative energy sources, but ultimately conserve and insulate are the most economic and practical measures to take.

We’ll receive our report in a week and then we have to determine what specific improvements we want to make. If we are to qualify for government money on such retrofits, we need to make them within 18 months from the time of the assessment.

B.C still has a relatively cheap energy. The solar electricity generating system (off-grid or on-grid) has high initial costs and we do have lots of over-cast days here on the island, so the pay-back time may be very long (up to 20 years…really depends). However, Solar Hot water heating is a good investment for British Columbians, because it can generate about 60% of all hot water heating, and the system has the potential to pay itself back in about 5 years. Maybe we’ll do that, in combination with insulation improvements on a couple places recommended.

If you are thinking about making your home more energy efficient, now may be the time! (for Canadians at least) . Do an energy assessment of your house first, you may learn a lot about your house that you never knew about!