When Jordan Detmers purchased a hundred-year-old home on Margaret Avenue, it was, in his words, “a mess.” Though set up as a multi-unit rental property, it was currently vacant — except perhaps for some raccoons in the attic. As Jordan notes, “All the homes in this neighborhood were built around turn of the century, around 1900 to 1915. The neighbourhood is very close to downtown, nice homes, a lot of professionals. But this place, for whatever reason, it fell into disrepair.”  

He knew the house would take a lot of work to make it comfortable and affordable to live in. Aside from being an eyesore, the home had major drafts and an outdated heating system that would be a big problem for potential renters — and for the environment.  

Updating…everything!

An energy audit identified a host of issues: an uninsulated basement, significant air leakage, older windows in poor condition, and an inefficient heating system that failed to reach all parts of the building. In fact, the audit estimated the home would use two and a half times more energy than a house built to today’s building code.  

Determined to make the house a home for his tenants, Jordan undertook a full renovation, financed in part by the Better Homes Peterborough program. He also received several rebates towards the work through the Home Renovation Savings Program. 

“We bought it vacant and then we fixed it up, brought it up to modern standards, updated everything in the home, plumbing, electrical, you name it,” Jordan said. 

To make the home more comfortable and energy efficient, spray foam insulation was added to the attic and the unfinished basement to reduce heat loss. A new air source heat pump system was installed, both centrally ducted and with ductless mini-splits for the third floor. In addition, a total of 14 windows were replaced with new Energy Star Certified windows.  

A new lease on life for a rental property

A sustainable future

With all the upgrades completed, the home is now fully rented and is — incredibly — even more efficient than a typical home built today. Total energy use was reduced by 62%, with greenhouse gas emissions cut by a staggering 90%.  

This reduction in emissions was in many ways its own reward.  “I have a master’s degree in sustainability,” Jordan explains, “so environmental stewardship has always been something near and dear to my heart. The city has its climate plan, where we’re trying to mitigate as much as we can, but you know, we’re up against the wall with a lot of these pieces. So having an incentive to do better? I was happy to take advantage of it.”