Eighty-three per cent. That’s how much Mike Layton and his partner Brett Tryon reduced their home’s EnerGuide score after tackling a renovation and energy efficiency upgrade on their Toronto home. They also reduced the greenhouse gas emissions generated by their home to near zero. It took roughly five years and $48,000, including $6,000 in government rebates.
“When we purchased the house, we wanted to see what energy efficient measures we could take to make the house more comfortable and less expensive to operate,” says Layton, a City of Toronto councillor and environmentalist.
As Layton knows, homes and buildings account for 57 per cent of Toronto’s community-wide emissions. Natural gas use alone is responsible for 92 per cent of total home emissions. To reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2040, which is the City’s target, emissions from all sources must first be cut in half in the next eight years.
Looking to start? Here’s what you can do right away.
Identifying energy overloads with an audit
It all begins with an energy audit. Sarah Grant, an energy advisor and co-founder of Goldfinch Energy, says an audit is an informative experience to help identify the reasons why, for example, the top floor of your home is too hot in the summer or you have moisture issues. A home energy auditor will go through your home to do a full assessment and identify opportunities to improve energy efficiency.
READ MORE: TransformTO: An inside look at a net-zero home in Toronto
“There are a lot of measurements and photo documentation taken. This is part of the rebate process, to show where the house is now,” says Grant. She is also in the midst of a retrofit project for her own home. “It’s looking for things like detecting the levels of insulation in the walls and how well-fitting the windows are.” A client-favourite part of the process involves putting a large fan in the front door to depressurize the home. This reveals the amount of air leakage in the home.
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Next up is addressing that air leakage, especially around windows and doors and assessing the insulation. In Layton’s home for example, the assessment revealed only one inch of foam insulation in the basement walls. Three inches of insulation was added there and to the outer walls and attic space. “They were already opening up the walls, so it seemed like a good time to do that,” says Layton.
The home’s windows were another issue. “When we were in there for a couple of winters, there was a lot of condensation on the windows, so we upgraded because we knew there was a lot of heat loss there,” says Layton.
Biggest challenge: heating and cooling system
The third step in the retrofit process is likely the largest one — addressing the heating and cooling system. “This is usually done near the end because you’ve reduced the loads in your building by air sealing or through better insulation, so you now have a tighter “envelope” and don’t have to consume as much energy to heat your home,” says Rae-Anne Miller, manager, existing buildings unit, in the City’s environment and climate division.
For Grant, this last step of the retrofit means replacing the hot water tank and gas furnace with an electrically powered heat pump. (She already has an electric tank for water heating.) For Layton, it was installing an air-source heat pump to provide both heat and air conditioning.
READ MORE: Toronto offering zero-interest loans up to $125K for green home retrofits
Like in algebra class, the order of operations counts says Miller. “You first identify your current use and reduce it where possible,” says Miller. “Then you look at your windows, doors and insulation. After that, you can properly size your heat pump or HVAC system.”
Both Grant and Layton have taken other steps to retrofit their homes. They have solar panels. And Layton has additional features, including installing an induction stove (the final step before cutting the gas line to the home) and a Tesla power wall in the basement. And many of those choices depend on what findings of the energy audit, timing and budget. “That’s where the City’s Home Energy Loan Program and the Canada Greener Homes Grant comes in because it provides you access to financing,” says Miller. Find more about the loans, grants and incentives available from the City of Toronto and other sources here.
