Certifications, Upgrades and Still Things Left to be done

More insulation going into the attic

The insulation company came back to ensure we really have 2 ft of insulation in the attic. After their first visit we noticed there was not 24″everywhere. They claim that just the weight of the insulation causing some compaction. Few of their customers ask for 24″ so they don’t see this very often. Now I have at least 25″ everywhere. This should give me somewhere between an R-value of 80-100.

Opening up my wall to lower my toilets – my feet finally touch the ground

The plumber came and re-installed the toilets by lowering the blue frame by about 4″ such that my feet can be on the ground when nature calls.

I received my certifications as well – Net Zero Ready and Energy Star.

Net Zero certification

The certification for Net Zero assumes we are a 4-5 person household using electricity and water culminating in a usage of 61 GJ/year. Given I did not use that in my last 1970’s poorly insulated and drafty home, I think it is unlikely I will use that in this house. The Net Zero does not take into account the solar heat gain from my south facing windows or the shading in the summer. The modelling is not necessarily reflective of reality. Let’s see what I get after one year of living here. Stay tuned. Also, once I put the solar panels on this summer, the needle should move more into the green.

Energy Star certification – easier to get

I have started my application for the National Greener Home Programme (GHP) to qualify for the $5000 rebate on my solar panels and I will apply for my Better Homes Ottawa loan.

The GHP is a grant and the Better Homes Programme is an interest free loan that gets paid via your property taxes over the next 20 years. That way if you sell your house, the loan and the asset goes with the house. It helps people get access to capital to make the energy efficiency upgrades they need. Both programmes need an energy audit, so Homesol who already has an energy model for my house using the NRCan tool HOT2000 can perform the audit.

Next week I will get the shelves installed so I can finish unpacking my stuff. I am also still working on getting my water to a drinkable point – I spent another $400 on lab testing. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of this.

This morning at 7 am Joop was barking as she was watching 2 coyotes trotting down the river in front of our house. I was leery about letting her out until they were well past the house – we don’t want trouble. When I let her out she ran to the end of our driveway, gave a hearty bark and peed. That will show those coyotes!