ecoENERGY Retrofit-Homes

The ecoENERGY Retrofit – Homes program operated from April 2007 to March 2012. It successfully helped homeowners across Canada save an average of 20 percent on their home energy use.

The program provided grants up to $5,000 to help homeowners make their homes more energy-efficient and reduce the burden of high energy costs. Among other eligibility criteria, participants needed to obtain a pre-retrofit evaluation by a certified energy advisor before starting work and then complete a post-retrofit evaluation within program deadlines.

Over 640,000 homeowners received an average grant of almost $1,400 since 2007 – the equivalent of one-in-twenty households across Canada. In total, Canadians are now saving more than $400 million on their annual energy bills. Program spending for 2011-12 will reach between $183 to $190 million, bringing total program spending to over $934 million.

There are many complementary regional programs which Natural Resources Canada supports with its EnerGuide Rating System. EnerGuide home evaluations are the first step in smart home renovation even in regions where there are no incentives. The EnerGuide Rating System provides solid guidance to homeowners looking to improve the energy efficiency of their homes. Government of Canada licensed service organizations can send a certified energy advisor to evaluate a home.

For a list of these please visit: http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/residential/personal/retrofit/272

In addition, the Government of Canada is supporting energy efficiency by investing $195 million through the ecoENERGY Efficiency Initiatives from 2011-2016. These programs will benefit Canadians directly by improving energy efficiency through Canada’s building codes, new housing standards, industrial practices, vehicle labels and consumer appliances.