Three generations in one healthy, sustainable home

When Debbie decided to renovate her home so her son and daughter-in-law could live upstairs, it was the chance to make many eco-friendly updates. This led to her home becoming 100% electric and even installing solar panels on the roof!

Debbie’s Words of Advice 

• If you’re planning to do multiple upgrades on your home at once, it’s important to plan ahead when it comes to the order of the renovations. Debbie learned this the hard way when she couldn’t get the hot water heater that she wanted. Make sure you take time at the beginning of your project (perhaps with an advisor) to plan out the order of renovations.

    

• Be patient with the solar panel process. It can all get a bit technical, but you’ll get through it if you just go along for the ride. 

At a Glance 

"What Debbie does notice is that their cold climate heat pumps have been performing well and distribute comfortable, steady heat throughout the winter."

Background 

Debbie’s house is a rather typical 3 story semi-detached near High Park. It’s an older home, built in the 1920s with double brick construction. The home upgrades began after Debbie’s son and daughter-in-law suggested they move in upstairs. In order to make that work, Debbie needed to make a substantial renovation. 

Since she was doing this big reno anyways, Debbie figured it was the perfect opportunity to focus on lowering her home emissions. She had been concerned about climate change for some time and was motivated after working in environmental issues for quite a while. 

Preparation 

This was a big job. The aim was to turn her house into a subdivided, multi-generational home. Debbie got down to the studs. It was a chance to put in new insulation, replace windows and doors, install new electric appliances and to move her home to 100% electric space and water heating. 

To prepare, Debbie got three separate energy audits. Unfortunately, due to timing, none of them were eligible for rebates. For the renovation and cold climate heat pump project she received an audit from Goldfinch Energy. The solar project began with a call to SolarTO about solar water heating which grew into plans for a full array on her roof. Energy Neighbour gave her guidance on that part of the project. 

Debbie notes that she was lucky to have family members with building science backgrounds to check in as they planned the work and to provide advice and recommendations. 

The Work 

A renovation is never easy. It’s difficult seeing your home torn up—not to mention all the decisions. “It’s hard to believe how many decisions you need to make just around kitchens!” says Debbie. 

She decided that ductless cold climate heat pumps for each unit (upstairs and downstairs) were going to be the easiest choice to replace their heating. The house now uses them exclusively for space heating and they haven’t had any issue yet. The heat pumps were installed by Imperial Energy, and they did need to get several separate units. Debbie notes that because of this, their costs were likely a bit higher than they would be for others. 

On their small Toronto lot there are only so many places to put the outside cold climate heat pump inverter. Debbie ended up having one right outside her bedroom window. In hindsight this was not the best choice, but she tries to be positive, jokingly commenting that she views it as a white noise machine at night to help her sleep! She had planned to install on-demand electric hot water heating, but unfortunately by the time she discussed this with the contractors the plumbing had already been done. Instead, they moved ahead with an electric hot water tank. 

Debbie reflects on two frustrating challenges during this renovation. The first was trying to break the contract for her rental hot water heater—they demanded a huge, and in her opinion, unfair fee! The second was cancelling their gas service. This was more difficult than expected, and Debbie had to write a physical letter to Enbridge to request that they shut off the gas line. Then there was a lot of back and forth to convince them to remove the meter.  

For the solar panel installation Debbie went with contractors from Heliotechnik, an organization recommended to them by Energy Neighbour. They did the full installation of the panels. According to Debbie: “getting solar is a bit of a rollercoaster...but I just went along for the ride”. She kept getting letters about inspections and things she could barely understand, but stuck with it and everything turned out OK! The array they have now isn’t quite enough to offset the house’s energy use given their increase in electrical consumption, and Debbie’s roof is relatively small. But, she says, it does feel good to know they’re producing clean energy towards their daily needs. 

The Results 

It’s hard to compare the house now to what it was before, given that there are three more people living there—Debbie's daughter-in-law, son and grandson. What Debbie does notice is that their cold climate heat pumps have been performing well and distribute comfortable, steady heat throughout the winter. The solar panels are cutting down their electrical bills and they should pay for themselves in about 20 years. 

What feels really great? Getting off gas! Debbie was tired of feeling ripped off and paying the monthly distribution fees. She says it feels amazing to be free of that! Debbie is also enjoying the fact that her house is home to a lot more people now, which means the per capita carbon footprint has dropped greatly. “I also get to live downstairs from my grandson, that’s pretty great too!”