Monday, April 06, 2009

Good summary of energy-saving incentives in Ontario

Tyler Hamilton nicely summarizes the available incentives for installing tankless water heaters, drain-water heat recovery systems (here are two examples), and solar hot water heaters.

Many of the rebates and incentives are time-limited, so it's worth considering for this year. (
If you are an Enbridge customer, here's a link to their rebate page.) However, he also notes that the Ontario government is musing about low- or no-interest loans for solar hot water. So, if you need to borrow to pay for your system you might want to keep that in mind.

I also received a flyer from Sears that says they now rent tankless water heaters, as well as drain-water heat recovery systems. We plan to call to get a quote, so when we get more info on that we'll pass it along.

Thursday, April 02, 2009

Now is a good time to install solar hot water heaters!

TheStar.com | Business | Ontario matching energy incentives: "The new EcoEnergy program offers a $1,250 rebate, up dramatically from $500 under the old program. A matching rebate from the province means the purchaser of a residential solar hot-water system can get back $2,500 on a purchase that ranges in cost from $6,000 to $9,000, including installation.

'It's meant to increase the market penetration of renewable technology, and specifically solar hot water,' explained Louise Roux at the ministry's office of energy efficiency.

On top of all rebates, Raitt reminded homeowners they can qualify next tax season for the Home Renovation Tax Credit, which amounts to getting 15 per cent back from the cost of a home renovation in 2009, up to a maximum of $1,350."