Did you know that buildings contribute almost one quarter of Ontario’s total greenhouse gas emissions? The Ontario government is trying to change that as part of its five-year mission to reduce pollution. To that end, it announced a new program late last year – the Green Ontario Fund — that offers property owners thousands of dollars in rebates to make their homes more energy-efficient.
It hopes this incentive will push homeowners to invest in reducing their carbon footprint.
Getting the rebate is fairly easy. You simply find an approved contractor to do the renovation. They submit an application, you send proof the work has been completed and paid for, and then you get a rebate cheque in the mail in two to three months.
Although this program applies mainly to owners, renters can apply with the consent of their landlords.
Related Read: 5 Items Homeowners Can’t Compost or Recycle in Toronto
Here are five rebate incentives to make your home more energy efficient.
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$100 for a smart thermostat
Isn’t it a waste to leave the air-conditioning on when you go to work? Wouldn’t it be nice to wake up to a warm and toasty home? You don’t have to worry about that with a smart thermostat, which you can program to suit your needs. Install an Ecobee or Nest thermostat and submit your rebate application through the manufacturers rebate portal online. This is perhaps the easiest option for renters.
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$5,000 for windows
We all want streaming sunshine in our homes, but window glass and panes are a key source of escaping heat. Get $500 per window up to 10 windows, or $5,000 when you upgrade to high performance windows, which are designed to reduce energy loss, condensation and outdoor noise.
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$5,800 for an air-source heat pump
Air-source heat pumps use heat exchangers to draw heat from the outside air to bring it indoors, keeping your home warm more efficiently. In the summer, it reverses the cycle to keep you cool.
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$7,200 for insulation:
Living in Canada with our defined four seasons, sometimes swinging, literally, 100 degrees Celsius up and down on the thermostat, makes indoor climate control all the more difficult. Older homes tend to have drafty attics and basements, but by adding insulation you can keep the heat in during cold winters, and the heat out during warm summers.
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$20,000 for a geothermal system
Apparently Iceland doesn’t have a monopoly on geothermal energy; even without volcanos, Canadians can also take advantage of the earth’s constant underground temperature by installing a ground-source heat pumps. These use the earth’s heat to warm homes, which can reduce heating costs by up to 50 per cent. In the summer, it reverses the cycle to keep your home cool.
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