From an early age I was interested in nature conservation. I won public speaking contests in elementary school speaking on this topic and I went on to graduate from University with degrees in chemistry and biology.
In 1967 I purchased a lake lot on which to build my house. I built it myself with reusable materials and that is a story unto itself. It involved cleaning 20,000 bricks, 3000 blocks, and 50% of all the lumber used had to be refurbished.
My father-in-law gave me the idea as he had built his home using material salvaged from buildings destroyed by the 1953 Sarnia tornado.
An innovative friend of my father-in-law passed on some information on heat pumps and mentioned that they were testing them in Peterborough. I reached out to the town and obtained the information I needed to get in touch with the three companies that were testing them. I chose to work with Westinghouse. However, as they did not have dealerships, I decided I would install the heat pump myself.
A local company, Krieter Heating and Electric, did, however, open a dealership. With their help I went ahead and installed the first residential air source heat pump in Lambton County and possibly even in Ontario.
I was fortunate that I had not gone ahead on my own as Westinghouse offered to monitor the unit and they made modifications to the sensors to handle the humidity in this area of the province. At one point four scientists actually landed on the lake side of my house in a helicopter to monitor its operation.
This heat pump was very effective for its time as the forerunner of what we have available today. It worked well down to minus 4 degrees Celsius and at colder temperatures I had electric heating as back-up. This unit lasted for 19 years, at which point it would have cost $8000 to refurbish it.
So at that point, with my old heat pump dysfunctional, I decided to install a more efficient ground source heat pump. Although considerably more expensive to install than an air source heat pump it met all my expectations for economical and efficient heating and cooling in all seasons.
All went well until 30 years later. That was when my home was hit by lightning which caused irreparable damage to the heat pump. Thankfully, my home insurance covered the cost to replace it with an even more efficient ground source heat pump. I am very pleased to report that it continues to operate reliably and efficiently.
Heat pumps simply (not technically) explained
A heat pump is a unit that moves heat from one place to another. In the summer a heat pump can be compared to a refrigerator. The heat is extracted from the compartment where the food is kept, and you can feel it blowing out the back of the fridge and is similar to the operation of a home’s air conditioner.
In the winter heat is extracted from the air outside and its temperature increased to the desired level to heat the home.
With a ground source heat pump the heat is extracted from under the ground. This is a more efficient method as water in the ground can hold more heat than air.
Heat pumps reduce heating and cooling costs
Because heat pumps operate by electric power instead of natural gas or oil, they are much more energy efficient, typically using 50 percent less energy and saving the homeowner on heating and cooling expenses.
I would encourage everyone to consider installing a heat pump to replace both a natural gas furnace and central air conditioning unit. Air source heat pumps are the more practical choice for most homeowners and are cheaper than ground source heat pumps. As a back-up heat source electric heating is preferred as it is economical to install compared to natural gas.
The Ontario government has recently announced a partnership with Enbridge Gas and “Save on Energy”. Known as the “Home Renovation Savings Program” it offers financial incentives to install heat pumps, heat pump water heaters and improve a home’s overall energy efficiency by upgrading windows and doors, adding insulation, installing solar panels and battery storage. Learn more about the savings at Home Renovation Savings Program | Save on Energy
If you decide to install a heat pump it will not only reduce your home heating and cooling expenses it will also help mitigate the effects of climate change by eliminating greenhouse gas emissions if you presently use a natural gas furnace.
A Clean Energy Community is Possible
Our municipalities should follow the leadership of a growing number of cities in Canada, the U.S and around the world by requiring all new homes and municipal/ commercial buildings not to install natural gas hookups but to heat and cool homes and buildings with air or ground source heat pumps and construct every building to the highest energy conservation standards.
I would encourage our elected leaders to follow their example and establish Sarnia-Lambton as a progressive community that will attract newcomers and new business investment. Let us go boldly into the future and join with other communities on the path to a clean energy future!
Doug Winch is a retired teacher and realtor and a member of Climate Action Sarnia-Lambton, composed of volunteers who come together to promote greater awareness and understanding of the threat of climate change, also referred to as “global heating” and to advance and support meaningful local and global action.