There may never be a better time to upgrade or replace the insulation in your home or cottage.
The federal government’s Canada Greener Homes Grant is offering rebates to property owners who go through the program and meet their requirements.
“From top to bottom, there are rebates for insulation in every part of your home,” says Curtis Hinksman of Soundseals Insulation. “Upgrading or replacing insulation throughout your home could result in rebates of up to $5,000.”
The newly announced grant includes potential rebates for installing insulation in eligible areas of your building, including the attic or ceiling, exterior walls, exposed floor, basement or foundation, and crawlspaces.
To find out what areas of your home or cottage can qualify for the grant, the first thing property owners need to do is find a certified and approved energy auditor and have a full audit done.
The auditor will provide a detailed report regarding the energy efficiency of your home, with details on exactly what needs doing – the Canada Greener Homes Grant has rebates for more than just insulation.
“You’ll get a report that indicates your current insulation’s resistance to heat flow, shown in an R-value,” says Curtis. “The higher the R-value, the slower the rate of heat transfer through the insulating material. Then the recommendations on improvements and the amount of grant funding you could receive will use these values.”
Obviously, a common rule for every part of the Grant is that you must increase the R-value of the space you are insulating. However, there are other differences depending on each space in your home.
For example, attic and ceiling insulations require a minimum of 20 percent of the total area to be insulated to hit the minimum standards.
There are differences in R-values as well. For an attic or ceiling, the government is looking for an improvement which brings the R-value up to R-50 or greater; for a flat roof or cathedral ceiling, the minimum is R-28.
Exterior wall and exposed floor insulation needs to be improved to at least R-20 and up; while basement, foundation and crawlspace insulation must be increased to R-10 and up.
Soundseals Insulation can help their clients achieve the desired results by helping arrange the audit, scheduling the insulation installation appointment, and making sure the job is done right.
“Having the appropriate R-values in each part of your home or cottage will reduce the rate of heat loss and save you money on energy spending,” says Curtis. “Even without the Greener Homes Grant, having good insulation installed by experienced professionals is a sound decision.”
TEXT CHRIS OCCHIUZZI | PHOTOS ANDREW FEARMAN
