On Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 3:25pm, Greg Elzinga wrote to Eric Schapira:

Of all the HPO seminars I have been to over the years, this one was the most exciting; and exciting not just for the future of our industry, but also for the future of residential green building! The instructor, Murray Frank is an excellent, professional trainer. If you see him teaching a seminar, sign up for it!

The BC government’s “Climate Change Action Plan” & goal of being energy independent by 2016 is mandating some sweeping changes to Part 10 of 2011 BC Building Code (released Oct 2010 & enforced Oct 2011) that will apply to all Part 3 (multi-family & commercial) & Part 9 (single-family) structures. The most exciting is the application of the EnerGuide system to all homes.

None of the items have been officially confirmed as it still needs to be dove-tailed with the National Building Code (there is no Part 10, only in BC & Ontario; though Alberta, Saskatchewan & Quebec are actively looking at adopting BC’s model). Also, the Ministry of Housing is still consulting with industry stakeholders. The information provided to us at this time is to be considered ‘expectations’ for the 2011 BC Building Code.

To sell a new BC home in 2011 it must comply (this is certain) with a minimum EnerGuide 80 rating (80% efficiency), likely upping to 85 for the 2016 BC Building Code & 90 rating by 2021. All resale homes must also be rated (this is confirmed); anticipating that an average home built from the 1950 to 1975 will achieve an EnerGuide 50 rating or marginally better. The BC Real Estate Association endorses this program as it applies to all homes for sale, thus a level playing field.

The EnerGuide assessment must be completed by a certified auditor using a fan test & verification of  receipts of installed appliances & fixtures. The BC-CHBA enthusiastically supports this as it will go a long way in eliminating the underground construction economy & drive people to use professional services.

Basically every 10 point difference from 50 to 80 represents $1,000/year in energy costs. The instructor detailed there are numerous ways to achieve higher EnerGuide rating more effectively during renovation than just costly insulation retrofit installations. Insulation will still play a significant role but not with batt insulation.

The number one way to gain efficiencies is with air-tightness (not to be confused with vapour barrier). Murray explained how the poly vapour barrier does far more harm & other techniques to achieve high performance vapour using paint & caulking. That Perfect Panel link you showed me & other innovative wall systems similar to those (SIPS: Structural Insulated Panel Systems) are going to rapidly gain market share. The days of traditional wood sheathing & batt insulation are going to be relegated to renovations, only used to match up to existing assemblies.

The most cost-effective, though it requires a larger outlay of cash is installing heat pumps on forced-air systems, ditching the gas-fired furnace & installing 100% efficient electric booster system. In the Lower Mainland a heat pump operates with 300-400% efficiency. It starts to dip to efficiencies around 200% at -30°C. This one change nets the largest amount of EnerGuide points.

The third significant EnerGuide point gain is with solar energy, be it heat recovery or photo-voltaic. The 2011 BC Building Code may be mandating similar construction techniques as the Vancouver Building By-law i.e. 24V connection “rough-in ready” for the electrical panel and/or a shaft for solar heat recovery piping to the mechanical room. It is recognized that solar energy collection will not be optimum for each site but good design in new construction can maximize its potential. Mechanical rooms will be getting larger, with heat recovery ventilator, recovery tanks, on-demand domestic hot water, booster boilers & in the future grey water/purple pipe systems.

The purple pipe system, grey water distribution system, was considered for the 2011 BC Building Code but is was deemed too much for the housing industry & consumer to bear on top of the EnerGuide compliance. Murray Frank’s professional opinion was definitely to anticipate it in the 2016 edition.

One final system of note… Heat Recovery Ventilator. Murray thinks we should be moving to the most value-priced system; a simple, properly sized & balanced heat recovery ventilator installed with a few zone-controlled electric heat coils in key duct locations. It is 100% energy efficient with heat only delivered to where it is required instead of blasting the whole house. For a heating system, it is practically elegant.

As you can see from the length of my email, this seminar was beyond useful & informative!

We, here at Klondike Contracting, are very excited for the new challenges  these anticipated changes will pose because it the means to better and healthier homes for all our clients in the long run!

• Be familiar with your home warranty insurance policy and maintenance manual (if provided), and keep these documents in a secure place.
• Know when the relevant warranty periods for your home expire.
• Carry out regular maintenance on your home in accordance with the maintenance information from your warranty provider or builder.  If you have not received a maintenance manual, ask for one.
• If a suspected defect arises with an item covered by your home warranty insurance, immediately report the problem in writing to the warranty provider and the builder.  Defects must be reported within the relevant coverage period.
• Take reasonable steps to minimize further damage to your home that may result from a potential defect.  For example, if a broken pipe is leaking into your new home, you may be able to minimize damage by shutting off the water supply until the warranty provider or builder can inspect it.
• Provide warranty insurance policy documents, the maintenance manual and other warranty information (e.g. for appliances, products or systems) to subsequent purchasers of your home.

Types of Protection

Mandatory home warranty insurance applies to all new homes offered for sale or under a construction contract with an owner unless there is an applicable exemption.  This warranty insurance is sometimes called a third-party warranty, the mandatory warranty or 2-5-10 warranty.

Mandatory home warranty insurance is for three different time periods, covering three different aspects of home construction: 2 years on labour and materials (some limits apply), 5 years on the building envelop, including water penetration, and 10 years on the structure.  This is often referred to as “2-5-10″ coverage.  The requirements for a minimum 2-5-10 warranty insurance policy cannot be waived by any separate contract between you and the builder.

Coverage period commences on the date of first occupancy, date of occupancy permit, or date the home was completed and ready for occupancy, which ever comes first.  If you buy an existing or resale home that is covered, the coverage remains with the new home until the expiry of the 2-5-10 coverages.  All of the applicable benefits under home warranty insurance that have not expired are available to subsequent owners.

For more information, please contact the Homeowner Protection Office (HPO).

We’re bursting at the seams and are very excited for our upcoming move to Hemlock Station.  The new space is a 2000 square feet showroom/office located at Hemlock & 6th Ave, just right outside Granville Island.  As it is also a showroom, we welcome you to visit our new space in the new year and perhaps get some design inspiration for your next renovation!  We are also going as green as possible with LED lighting throughout, low to zero VOC products, FSC products, etc.

We will update you once a move-in date is established.  Until then, make sure you watch videos of our renovation progress.

BC Hydro has eased the installation cost for laneway housing by permitting an overhead option from the house (or adjacent power pole) to the laneway house.  In most cases, you can connect from the main house to the laneway house via an overhead connection.  This will require a new panel at the laneway house and the meter/connection at the house may also need to be upgraded.  The cost of this option will vary between $500 and $900.  In some cases, an underground connection may be necessary to provide clearance above ground.

The cost to install a separate meter for a laneway house could cost between $2000 and $5000 from BC Hydro.

Fortunately in all cases, these costs are far from the $20,000 that was rumoured to be in the media awhile back.

As part of the building permit application process for a laneway house, the homeowner should arrange for a BC Hydro technician to perform a field review of the proposed connection and to provide a cost estimate.  This could take up to six weeks and a $1000 deposit is required by BC Hydro.

Klondike is featured in the October/November 2009 issue of BC Homes Magazine. The article discusses our Laneway Housing program, and our Chief Relationship Builder, Eric Schapira, provides answers to many questions we have received about Laneway Housing and how it could work for you. To read the article, click here.

Pre-qualification Questionaire

Services Questionaire

LWH Pre-Application Checklist

This is a list of items you will need to bring to your meeting with a planner. The more prepared you are for this meeting the more time you will save in having to schedule multiple meetings with planning.

Other

Make sure to apply with the Homeowner Protection Office once your application is ready to submit.  This is in order to obtain a new house warrantee.

Klondike Contracting would like to thank the City of Vancouver and GVHBA and their staff for organizing this session to keep us all informed.

The 16th annual Parade of Renovated Homes – with the most participating homes ever – showcases leading-edge design, advanced construction techniques, and innovative building products.

Projects include a complete transformation of a Mission rancher, restoration of a 1906 Kitsilano craftsman-style bungalow, and extreme facelifts of homes built in the ’20s right up to the ’80s.

GVHBA Renovation Council Chair Daine Halley says B.C. homeowners will spend a record $7 billion sprucing up their homes this year, and this popular one-day event offers exceptional sample renovations.

“Professional renovators, many of them award winners, will be on site to offer expert advice and discuss their craftsmanship. Projects range from $70,000 to more than $700,000, offering people an abundance of ideas they can possibly incorporate into their own renovations,” says Halley.

Admission is by passport, available at each home for $10 per person. Children 17 and under are free. Passports can be purchased at any home, and then used for entry to the remaining 16 homes. Part proceeds will help fund the purchase of tools, building materials and safety gear for a carpentry training program offered by Guildford Park and Frank Hurt secondary schools in Surrey.

The event is limited to six hours, so visit www.gvhba.org to review the selection of homes, then plan your route to ensure you have sufficient time to visit specific homes that capture your interest.