We the plunge and committed to the Canadian government’s ecoENERGY Retrofit homes program in a big way. As you can see from our previous posts in this blog, we had an eco audit and based on those recommendations we added more insulation, replaced windows and doors and upgraded to a high efficiency furnace and air conditioner.

By doing this we have accomplished what we set out to do:

1. Lower energy consumption (i.e. our September 2011 energy usage was 30% lower than 2010).

2. Increased the resale value of our home by having an EnergyStar rating of 79 (vs. 61 before we start renovated) which is very good for an older home we are told.

3. Maximized government rebates available (total rebates totaled more than $7,000).

The OPA solar program installs panels on your home's rooftop

Now we are moving on to a new eco-adventure in the form of solar power!!

Not only will we be installing solar panels on our roof but I have just started working for one of Ontario’s biggest and most experienced solar installation companies, SolarLogix.

SolarLogix designs, install and maintain roof top and ground mount solar arrays under the Ontario Power Authority’s MicroFIT program, which is:

• Establishing Ontario as the leader in green renewable energy in North America by encouraging individual property owners to install clean energy solutions that feed into the power grid and allowing them to earn 10% or more return on investment
• Is good for the environment
• Is good for the economy (creating tons of Ontario jobs, more on that in a later blog post)
• Is great for Ontario residents who choose to participate.

( Subscribe to this blog’s RSS feed (top right corner) so you don’t miss any updates.

So the direction of this blog will now change slightly. We will keep you up to date on our own solar panel installation as we go through the process, but we will also use this space to inform you about what’s happening in the green energy movement and what you can do to make a difference.

I look forward to your comments – both about solar energy for homeowners, but anything you read here about our own eco renovations!

Call me at 905-512-8500 or email Doug@ecorenovate.ca

While we would like to replace them -  the ecoENERGY retrofitting rebate from the government is not very much ($80 per rough opening). And our home auditor told us that new windows don’t really bring much energy savings in terms of lower heating bills.

Since this winter is so ridiculously mild (NO SNOW and it’s almost February!) we just went around and sealed the old windows on the main floor and basement, like we have other winters. (Shown here is one of our basement windows with its 50-year-old single-pane glass.)

We bought a window-sealer kit at our local hardware store: plastic wrap (thin, like Saran-Wrap) and double-sided tape. You put tape on the window frame, attach plastic to the tape, and then use your hair dryer to shrink the plastic so there aren’t ripples in it.

All the main floor windows aren’t done yet (only the huge front bay window in the livingr00m) but we don’t have the same sense of urgency we have in past winters… Because our newly insulated main floor walls are making the rooms toastier. No more wind whistling through the plaster to make our guests shiver, with us running to jack up the thermostat! And our new EnergyStar steel front door had made the front hall warmer, too!

Maybe next year – but in time to meet our specific deadline of Feb. 2011 – we will purchase new EnergyStar qualified windows and have them installed on the main floor. But as mentioned, at only $80 each in combined fed and provincial rebates, that grand total of $640 won’t make much of a dent in the thousands they will cost.