The End of Oil, The Start of Savings

Tom Rand – Walker Climate Care

For many of us in the city, heating with oil is a foreign concept. We’re accustomed to the convenience of being connected to a grid of never-ending natural gas or electricity. For those of us in more rural settings – and even some older neighbourhoods within the city – we don’t have these options. Many of us rely upon propane to fuel our furnace and/or our fireplace(s). Some of us, though, still have an oil tank in our basement or yard that requires refilling. I’m happy to write that our days of refills and high utility costs can be over – and with a huge financial incentive to act quickly!

You’ve probably already read about the Greener Homes Grant, a federal initiative through Natural Resources Canada to incent homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of their homes with upgraded windows, more efficient HVAC systems and so on. Most recently, a new grant was announced for qualified homeowners to financially incentivize them to move away from oil.

Heating with oil is notoriously inefficient. While modern propane and natural gas burning furnaces have efficiencies of 95-97%, many oil furnaces operate closer to 60%. That’s to say that about 40% of the oil you’ve paid for and your furnace burns goes up the chimney and doesn’t provide any heat to your home. Most local homeowners in this situation know that last winter cost them several thousands of dollars in heating oil. The decrease in popularity of this fuel type, as well as delivery costs and inflating federal Carbon Tax have all accelerated the significant cost increases in recent years.

To encourage homeowners to move away from this environmentally unfriendly and costly heating method, NRCan has just announced a new extension to the Greener Homes Grant program. It’s called the Oil to Heat Pump Affordability Program, and qualified homeowners can receive up to $10,000 towards a new high-efficiency heat pump. The “median” income definitions are quite generous, too. For example, a family with two parents and one child and a household income (after tax) of $100K qualifies. That number is $122K if there are two dependent children.

Whether you’re interested in greener heating options, or to stop the bank-breaking costs associated with heating with oil, now is the perfect time to upgrade your antiquated oil furnace to a modern, high-efficiency heat pump … which by the way, also works a central air conditioner. The timing couldn’t be better! Be sure to ask your contractor about their experience and qualifications in working with fuel conversions, as well as their partnerships with local energy auditors to expedite the process and get you the maximum grant money for your home’s upgrade.

 

Originally Published by Cornwall Seaway News: linked here

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