Retrofit Your Home and Qualify for a Grant
Reprinted courtesy of: AmeriSpec of Simcoe Muskoka
Thinking of ways to make your home more energy efficient? Here’s what you can do to reduce your energy consumption and receive grants through ecoENERGY Retrofit.
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is offering a new residential energy efficiency assessment service to owners of single-family homes, including detached, semi-detached and low-rise multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) that are no more than three storey's high. Under ecoENERGY Retrofit program, property owners can qualify for federal grants by improving the energy efficiency of their homes and reducing their home’s impact on the environment.
NRCan-certified energy advisors conduct a detailed on-site assessment of your home’s energy use from the attic down to the basement. They then provide you with a personalized report, including a checklist of recommended retrofits to improve the energy efficiency of your home or MURB and, in some cases, to reduce water consumption. The report also shows the grant amounts for each eligible upgrade that you can receive by carrying out these energy-saving improvements.
The maximum grant you can receive for a home or MURB is $5000.00. The grant is calculated and based on amounts that are in effect at the time of the post-retrofit evaluation (E evaluation)
In order to qualify for the Eco-Energy Retrofit Grant, the homeowner must have an NRCan-licensed energy advisor conduct a detailed on-site assessment of their home’s energy use from the attic to the basement.
The assessment consists of two audits;
The first audit takes approximately one hour and fifteen minutes to complete.
The auditor will require all windows to be closed and interior doors to be opened.
A blower door test is conducted in order to assess the air leakage of the home.
Wood burning fireplaces and stoves must not be in use during the audit.
It is recommended that the ashes be removed before the audit is done.
The auditor will take digital photos as well as measurements. Access to the attic is required for insulation evaluation. Upon completion, you will receive a report with a checklist of recommended retrofits to improve the energy efficiency of your home. The report also shows the grant amounts that you can receive for each recommended retrofit you complete.
This assessment MUST be done BEFORE any renovations are started.
Note: There is a timeline of eighteen months from the date of the first audit to completion of the recommendations you choose to do.
The second audit takes approximately twenty minutes to complete. The auditor will conduct a second blower door test and verify the completed work. Please keep all receipts for verification. All the necessary forms will be completed by the auditor and submitted to the government. The auditor will require your municipal tax roll number.
The Cost of the audits are $300.00 & GST for the first audit and $150.00 & GST for the second audit, payable by visa/mastercrard, cash or cheque at the time of the audit. Please note that the Provincial Government rebates $150.00 to the homeowner towards the cost of the audit. The Provincial Government also matches the grant monies sent by the Federal Government, two separate cheques are issued.
If you had an Energuide audit done under the previous Federal Program, and received a grant, you are not eligible for this program.
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