There are many reasons you may be considering an energy upgrade to your home. Perhaps you want to lower your monthly utility bills, improve comfort, or try out popular technologies like heat pumps that your neighbours and friends are already installing.
Whatever your motivation, one thing is certain: a home energy retrofit is an investment of both time and money — and you want to make sure that investment pays off.
In this blog, Heather Ray, Program Coordinator for the Better Homes Peterborough loan program, shares four key things every homeowner should consider to get the most value, comfort and long-term benefit from their home energy retrofit.
1. Start with baseline data
Schedule a home energy assessment
It’s important to understand how your home is performing today. This baseline data helps you prioritize improvements and make more informed decisions. After you apply to the Better Homes Peterborough loan program, one of your first steps will be to schedule an EnerGuide home energy assessment, also known as a home energy audit.
A home energy assessment provides a clear snapshot of where your home is losing energy, how efficient your heating and cooling systems are, and which upgrades will deliver the greatest impact.
As part of the Better Homes Peterborough program, your Energy Coach, a certified energy advisor, will help you understand your home energy assessment results and use this information to help you create your home energy retrofit plans.
To qualify for most rebates or incentives, you must complete the energy assessment before starting any upgrades, so it should be one of your first steps.
To find out more about Home Energy Assessments, check out our past blog.
Please contact a service organization directly to book a home energy assessment. The most local service organization is GreenUP at 705-536-9943. If you are planning to participate in the Home Renovations Savings program, you can also contact:
- Canada Energy Audit Ltd – 888 -298-9458
- Energuy Holdings Ltd (Ontario) – 888 -442-9577
- Greenbrain Inc. – 866 -848-4998
- The Home Inspectors Group Inc – 866 -907-9206
- AmeriSpec of Canada (Kingston) – 613 -453-4856
- Energy Werx Corp (Eastern Ontario) – 613 -686-5949
- NRGwise Consulting (Northern & Central Ontario) – 705 998-2563
2. Building envelope
Simple first steps matter
Some of the most effective energy upgrades are also the simplest and should be part of any retrofit plan. It is exciting to install a new high efficiency technology, like a heat pump. To ensure you have the best experience it’s important to also make sure your home isn’t losing heating and cooling from the building envelope.
Your home’s building envelope are the building components that separate the interior of the home from the exterior – think walls, windows, basement walls and attics. Your building envelope plays an important role in ensuring comfortable and energy-efficient internal conditions and should be well sealed and insulated to avoid things such as drafts. Your home’s HVAC systems are also dependent on the quality of your building envelope to maintain optical performance and energy efficiency.
Improving your home’s building envelope can include simple air-sealing steps you can take yourself, such as caulking around windows and electrical boxes, or upgrades to the wall, basement, or attic insulation. GreenUP has some great videos how to reduce air leakage and DIY Draft Proofing that include tips on how to get started with air-sealing your home.
3. Go deep
Aim to maximize your impact
When it comes to home energy retrofits, doing more at one time often delivers the best results. This is what we mean by “going deep.” Rather than making one or two small upgrades every few years, a deep retrofit takes a more comprehensive approach by bundling multiple upgrades together into a coordinated plan.
Taking this approach can not only help you to maximize loan and rebate programs but also improve overall performance by allowing upgrades to work together as a system, rather than as individual add‑ons.
In addition, a deep home energy retrofit can:
- Reduce total project costs by streamlining labour, planning and contractor visits
- Minimize repeated disruptions by completing work in fewer phases
- Avoid common pitfalls, such as installing new heating equipment before improving the building envelope
When upgrades are planned and executed together, each improvement amplifies the benefits of the others.
Financing tools like the Better Homes Peterborough loan program can help make this approach more accessible, allowing homeowners to spread costs over time while enjoying the benefits right away. Through Better Homes Peterborough’s Local Improvement Charge (LIC) option, you can take 15 years to re-pay your loan, or you can work with Kawartha Financial Services and take 5 years.
4. Stack incentive programs
Participate in multiple programs at once
Many homeowners are eligible for more than one incentive program, including rebates and financing programs. Instead of relying on a single source of support, participating in multiple programs at once allows you to use what’s available at the same time to stretch every dollar further.
The Better Homes Peterborough loan program is designed to work alongside these other programs, and the program website outlines the currently available government funded home energy incentive programs.
Plus, the Better Homes Peterborough program offers one-on-one personalized project planning support through an Energy Coach. When you meet with your Energy Coach, a trusted Energy Advisor with GreenUP, they can advise you on other programs you can participate in, making it easier to accomplish all your home energy goals.
This approach can help you:
- Lower out-of-pocket costs by reducing the total amount you need to pay upfront through rebates and incentives
- Improve cash flow by pairing those incentives with affordable financing, allowing you to spread remaining costs over time
- Make deeper retrofits more achievable by providing more resources and support to your overall project
Taking the time to explore what programs you’re eligible for, and understanding how they can work together, can significantly increase the return on your investment. You can see all the existing programs being offered at Incentive Programs | BetterHomes Peterborough.
A successful home energy retrofit isn’t just about choosing the right technology; it’s about understanding how your home is performing now, making a plan that includes your building envelope, doing more at once, and streamlining incentive program participation. By incorporating these four ways to get the most from your home energy retrofit, you can maximize comfort, savings and impact.
Learn how others in Peterborough have made the most of their home energy retrofit by reading case studies here
Better Homes Peterborough is your pathway to a more comfortable, affordable, and efficient home. Our team of experts are available to help you with trusted resource and information sharing, personalized one-on-one Energy Coaching, and affordable financing options. You can find out more about the program, how we can help, apply for funding, and more here.
Do you have questions, want to learn more about the program, or are looking for advice? Call our home energy experts at 1-888-284-9417 or email us at betterhomesptbo@envirocente.ca