Why Choose Induction Cooking

Did you know that induction cooking offers many benefits over gas? Yes, gas has been the preferred cooking fuel but like with heat pump space and water heating, induction is rapidly being seen as the premium option for the following reasons.

1. Control - set precise temperatures with faster response time

2. Safety - surface is cool to touch after cooking, no gas leak potential

3. Healthy - no CO and no NO2

4. Clean - easy to clean and lower carbon footprint especially with on-site solar

5. Cost - no needed gas infrastructure run to home

Healthy Homes & Home Performance - Indoor & Outdoor Water

Check out this video to learn about strategies for using less water and reducing your bills! Repairing leaks, using faucet aerators and irrigation timers are all cost effective tips.

Healthy Homes & Home Performance - Ventilation

Ventilation is the V of HVAC that often gets forgotten. It is important for every home to have a ventilation strategy to ensure occupants have clean, fresh air in the home. In older existing homes, by default this is air leaks through the building enclosure i.e. walls, floors and ceilings. That air is not filtered or conditioned so it can create health issues in the home like asthma. This is why new construction takes on the motto, “build tight, ventilate right.” Controlling where the air comes from helps create a cleaner, healthier indoor air environment. A balanced ventilation system is the best solution because it minimizes uncomfortable pressure imbalances by bringing in fresh outdoor air and exhausting stale indoor air. through a heat exchanger core in a heat recovery ventilator aka HRV or through a separate supply in the heating system and exhaust fan. The benefit of the HRV over the two part system is that the heat exchanger core transfers the heat of outgoing air in wintertime to incoming air so the furnace doesn’t have to work as hard.

***One other really important thing you can do is check that every bathroom, especially those with a shower, have a bath fan that is directly sealed to the outside through the wall or via ducting through the attic. Too often, during a home assessment we have seen fan ductwork laying amidst insulation in an attic creating mold issues on the sheathing.

Healthy Homes & Home Performance - Water Heaters

Do you heat your home’s water with gas or electric heat? Chances are you have a 50 or 65 gallon tank water heater installed in your home. Let’s say that tank is 70% efficient. So for every dollar you put into water heating, 30 cents is wasted! New water heaters waste much less and are something to consider if your water heater is 10 or more years old. If you have a gas water heater, you could replace it with a 97% efficient gas tankless water heater. Then only 3 cents to every dollar is wasted. If you have an electric water heater, you could replace it with a heat pump water heater aka HPWH which is over 300% efficient! But how can that be? Well they use the heat pump technology like your fridge except instead of expelling warm air to keep your beer cold, they take in surrounding warm air to heat the water and expel cold air. Pretty cool right? Most of them have multiple modes for heating including heat pump, hybrid and vacation. Hybrid is a great option during times of higher water heating demand because it combines the heat pump action with the traditional electric resistance elements in the tank. They are also starting to include smart technology so you can monitor and control them remotely from your device!