Retrofits Incentives

Through a grant from Natural Resources Canada’s Clean Energy Fund and other funding partners such as BC Hydro, the City of Colwood will be providing incentives towards solar thermal hot water heating systems, ductless split heat pumps, home energy monitoring systems and more. Details of the program are being finalized, and the City hopes to launch the program and begin retrofits in May 2011. The goal is to retrofit 1,000 homes over the three year program.

The incentives will be greatest for those who join the program early. The first ten homes will receive a $3,800 incentive towards the cost of solar hot water heating; the next 200 homes will receive $3,000 each. An energy assessment will help you to identify other energy- and cost-saving retrofits, and the program coordinator will be working to make this process easy for homeowners to take part. http://www.solarcolwood.ca/home-business.php

Ductless Split Heat Pumps

Air source heat pumps are an increasingly common option for homeowners looking to reduce energy costs for heating and cooling their homes. These work well for homes with a ducting system (forced air system). For homes with no ducting system—for example, those with electric baseboard heaters—a ductless heat pump may be a great option. As the name implies, it is a heat pump without ducts. Instead warm (or cool) air is blown into the room where the indoor unit is located. Such a system is ideal for retrofits where installation results in minimal changes to the home. http://www.solarcolwood.ca/clean-energy.php

Ozone

Ozone is produced by ultraviolet light from the Sun hitting the Earth's atmosphere (especially in the ozone layer), lightning, certain electric devices (such as air ionisers), and as a byproduct of other types of pollution.

Ozone exists in greater concentrations at altitudes commonly flown by passenger jets. Reactions between ozone and onboard substances, including skin oils and cosmetics, can produce toxic chemicals as byproducts. Ozone itself is also irritating to lung tissue and harmful to human health. Larger jets have ozone filters to reduce the cabin concentration to safer and more comfortable levels.
Outdoor air used for ventilation may have sufficient ozone to react with common indoor pollutants as well as skin oils and other common indoor air chemicals or surfaces. Particular concern is warranted when using "green" cleaning products based on citrus or terpene extracts as these chemicals react very quickly with ozone to form toxic and irritating chemicals as well as fine and ultrafine particles. Ventilation with outdoor air containing elevated ozone concentrations may complicate remediation attempts.^[

Carbon Dioxide

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is a surrogate for indoor pollutants emitted by humans and correlates with human metabolic activity. Carbon dioxide at levels that are unusually high indoors may cause occupants to grow drowsy, get headaches, or function at lower activity levels. Humans are the main indoor source of carbon dioxide. Indoor levels are an indicator of the adequacy of outdoor air ventilation relative to indoor occupant density and metabolic activity. To eliminate most Indoor Air Quality complaints, total indoor carbon dioxide should be reduced a difference of less than 600 ppm above outdoor levels.

Carbon dioxide levels not exceed 700 ppm above outdoor ambient levels. Exhaust gas leakages can occur from furnace metal exhaust pipes that lead to the chimney when there are leaks in the pipe and the pipe gas flow area diameter has been reduced.

Asbestos fibers

Governments  have set standards for acceptable levels of asbestos fibers in indoor air. Many common building materials used before 1975 contain asbestos, such as some floor tiles, ceiling tiles, taping muds, pipe wrap, mastics and other insulation materials. Normally significant releases of asbestos fiber do not occur unless the building materials are disturbed, such as by cutting, sanding, drilling or building remodelling. There are particularly stringent regulations applicable to schools.  Inhalation of asbestos fibers over long exposure times is associated with increased incidence of lung cancer.

Asbestos is found in older homes and buildings, but it is most dangerous in schools and industrial settings. It was once widely used in shingles, fireproofing, heating systems and floor and ceiling, tiles in older buildings. When asbestos-containing material is damaged or disintegrates, microscopic fibers are dispersed into the air. The risk of lung cancer from inhaling asbestos fibers is also greater to smokers. The symptoms of the disease do not usually appear until about 20 to 30 years after the first exposure to asbestos. Removal of asbestos-containing materials is not always optimal because the fibers can be spread into the air during the removal process.  A management program for intact asbestos-containing materials is often recommended instead.