Reap the Rewards of Building a Certified Energy Efficient Home!

Posted by Keith Sawlor on 28 May 2012 | 0 Comments

Tags: Energy, Design, Energuide, R2000, Efficiency Nova Scotia

Energy Efficiency has always been an important consideration when building your new custom home. With the cost of electricity and oil escalating at a rather alarming rate Energy Efficiency has become one of the most discussed items when planning your new home. Our government, thru Efficiency Nova Scotia, has 2 very good programs available to help educate consumers and builders, R2000 and Energuide. A Certified R2000 home has been an option for Canadian Home Builders and Owners since the early 1980’s. R2000 continues to be the highest standard of energy efficiency available. The program also incorporates indoor air quality, water conservation, and Green products into their evaluation and Certification. An R2000 home must be constructed by a Certified R2000 Builder.  Your Home is enrolled in the program, has a Design Evaluation completed, is subject to 3^rd party Inspections during construction, and will have a Certificate issued after construction is complete. Some Builders may offer to build your home “just like” R2000  but with “lots of savings” because it is not certified. The actual cost of enrollment is only $ 900.00 plus hst, so the savings is minimal. The value of the Certification is huge when it is time to sell your home. Government inspection and Certification will offer potential buyers of your home great piece of mind and will certainly increase your re-sale value. In addition there are rebates available that range from $3,000.00-$7,000.00. To learn more about R2000 click here.

 The Energuide Program will provide you with an Energuide Rating for your new home (similar to the stickers you get on a new appliance). The higher the number the better. This program works in conjunction with R2000 and the rebates available are based on the Energuide Rating (ER). An ER rating of 83 offers a rebate of $3,000.00, ER 85 is $5,000.00 and ER 88 or higher is $7,000.00. Most R2000 homes have an ER rating of 83-88. To learn more about the Energuide program click here.

 In summary, as we work toward the final design and specifications for your custom New Home, in addition to room sizes, kitchen layout, and color choices, we will discuss insulation levels, product efficiencies, and indoor air quality. And yes, your home will be Certiifed R2000, it will have an ER rating, and you will qualify and receive all available rebates.