Home FREE of Fossil Fuels
The HomeZero pilot project is complete!
When I called the gas company to cancel my account, the person promptly asked me to explain my reason for doing so.
Inside, I was excited to tell him.
I said, “I now have a geothermal heat pump, solar panels, and an electric hot water tank, so I no longer require it.”
Surprisingly, he said, “Oh, that sounds interesting.”
For most of us, heating and cooling our indoor spaces involves gas (coal, propane, etc.). To minimize my gas usage over the years, I would turn the thermostat off in late April or early May, let the sun (pre-solar panels) heat up the home, and turn it on again in Late October.
As you can imagine, in late June, July, and August, homes in Okanagan get VERY hot; in an attempt to reduce the heat, I would close all the blinds during the day, and we would use fans.
For the 13 years I have lived here, we made it work; as we (and many) have now experienced heat domes, it was becoming increasingly unbearable.
I was adamant that I did not want to install an air conditioner fueled by gas as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide are released during the combustion of fossil fuels, including natural gas, oil, and coal, to produce electricity.
This phone call to the gas company is one that I have wanted to make for a long time!
I applied for a pilot project from the Home Zero Collective in Vernon, BC, in Aug 2023 and found out my home was approved in February 2024.
Over the past several months, this 1972 home, with the assistance of many grants and an interest-free loan for ten years, was completely retrofitted and is now emission-free! Quite a few of the other ten pilot project participants chose to go with air-sourced heat pumps, which greatly reduce emissions, though a backup furnace is usually required in our climate.
The Process
Installing the geothermal involves digging boreholes deep into the Earth. In my case, three holes were dug, each at about 300 feet.
Yes, drilling to install the ground-sourced geothermal heat pump involves machines that are powered by gas and use oil; this is something I thought a lot about. However, for geothermal’s long-term heating and cooling ability in indoor spaces, I see it as a movement in a positive direction.
Once the boreholes were dug, Willow stood and observed the lines that were in the process of being connected to the mechanical room.
This is how the mechanical room off the garage looks once the work was completed. The gas furnace and hot water tank were removed to make room for the geothermal and the electric hot water tank.
The ground source (geothermal) heat pump provides a home's heating and cooling needs and an electric hot water tank, eliminating the need for fossil fuels!
Also, a 125 amp electrical box was installed to accommodate the new loads.
Finally, it was time for the solar panels to be installed, which only took a couple of days with many hands.
I took a screenshot of the app showing the generated watts and the C02 reduction in the first few days.
Today is August 17th. I checked the app when the sun came out after a cloudy morning. At that moment, it was collecting over 8,000 watts, and the home's carbon emissions have been reduced by 1 ton (so far)!!
*there was a slight hiccup because the electrical panel was not big enough to accommodate everything, and I could not use the panels for a few weeks while it was worked out.
So, how does it feel?
It feels aligned with my values and my deep love of the Earth!
Having a small part in keeping the methane in the ground and not supporting companies that cause profound and unimaginable harm to lands, animals, ecosystems, and people feels GOOD!
Does a shower feel different when the water is heated with energy from the sun vs the unending maze of gas lines under the infrastructure of towns and cities?
The answer is unequivocally YES!!!
Does the heat and cooling feel different coming from the depths of the Earth vs the same unending maze of gas lines?
Again, 100% YES!!!
Two years ago, I shared my feelings about our reliance on gas (and coal and oil) and my reasons for making this change.
I am eternally grateful that my no-fossil-fuel-reliance dream has become a reality.
Thanks to Amandeep Singh, the founder of the Home Zero Collective, Nick Croken of Okanagan Geothermal and his amazing team, Okanagan Solar, the Canada Greener Homes grant and loan, and other grants and rebates that are making it easier for us to make these changes.
HomeZero's goal is to transform entire communities and neighbourhoods one by one, and they are well on their way!
As part of the pilot project, the participants will hold open houses to share the transformations and experiences with the community.
The person at the gas company told me they would disconnect the gas, put a lock on it and cancel my account. He said someone would contact me in a few months to make absolutely sure I wanted it completely removed!
One million percent, I want it completely removed!
Hi Tam - Congratulations on the completion of your conversion. A huge project. You are amazing! We're very proud of you!!
Wow - this is so amazing! Massive congrats on getting to this point. I know there have been many hurdles to overcome. can't wait to see it all in person soon.