The Canadian government is encouraging us to reduce our energy consumption and directing our retrofit investments towards this end.

For homes that are no more than three storeys high, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) is offering a new residential energy efficiency assessment service to owners of single family homes.  The maximum grant you can receive for a home is $5,000.

Here's a list of eligible retrofits or improvements covered by the ecoENERGY Retrofit program. You first have to get an energy audit by a certified NRCan advisor (which costs $375 and you have to complete all of the changes within 18 months of applying for the program. Then you have to get a second energy audit (at another $375) to complete your grant eligibility requirements.

In our case, we've already done some of the changes, like installing a high-efficiency boiler and our attic is insulated. But we could install a solar domestic hot water system (which qualifies for a grant amount of $500); replace our fireplace with a high-efficiency wood-burning appliance ($300 grant); seal our basement headers (grant $100); perform air sealing to improve the air tightness of our home (grant $150); replace our exterior front door (grant $30); and eventually install a ground-source (geothermal) heat pump (grant $3500).

There's nothing yet for installing radiant heat or installing a solar photovoltaic system.