Cold climate air-source heat pumps for community housing

Cold climate air-source heat pumps (CC-ASHPs) are an energy-efficient retrofit solution. They represent a major leap in efficiency and functionality compared to older technologies. Traditional heating appliances (such as furnaces and electric radiators) have operating efficiencies of 60% to 100%, and can only provide heating. CC-ASHPs, however, can provide heating with operating efficiencies above 200%, and they can also provide highly efficient cooling.

CC-ASHPs are market-ready, but there has been very low uptake in Canada, particularly as a retrofit solution for community housing. The Accelerating Deep Energy Retrofits project will evaluate and demonstrate CC-ASHP performance as an energy efficiency retrofit solution for community housing. It seeks to increase CC-ASHP adoption in community housing currently heated with electric resistance, helping improve the sustainability of this sector.

Project scope and expected outcomes

Environmentally friendly ways for electrically heated buildings to lower energy costs

About 31% of Ontario’s community housing is currently electrically heated. The doubling of electricity prices over the past 10 years, however, has affected affordability for electrically heated homes and buildings. Natural gas is a cheaper alternative in Ontario, but it is also more carbon-intensive, which increases emissions. There’s a need for retrofit solutions to help electrically heated buildings lower their energy costs in an environmentally friendly way.

Most community housing facilities also either lack air conditioning entirely or provide partial cooling through inefficient window units. This is a growing problem for the community housing sector because of the warming climate. Residents are much more likely to have one or more health-related conditions that leave them vulnerable to extreme heat conditions. Seniors, low-income households and families with young children are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat conditions.

The Toronto Atmospheric Fund (TAF) will showcase the technical and economic benefits of CC-ASHPs for both heating and cooling. More specifically, it will demonstrate ductless CC-ASHPs as part of a broader package of efficiency, repair and renewal measures. These CC-ASHPs offer a cost-effective solution for community housing facilities, which generally lack the indoor space needed for ducted heat pumps.

Pilot projects will lead to full retrofits with complementary building renewal measures

The Accelerating Deep Energy Retrofits project will collaborate with two key partners: Toronto Community Housing (TCHC) and CityHousing Hamilton (CHH). These organizations are 2 of the largest housing providers in Ontario, operating 25% of Ontario’s community housing stock.

The demonstration will occur at 2 sites that represent key types of community housing: multi-residential buildings and townhome developments. These sites also feature 2 different demographics (seniors and families with young children) that are vulnerable to thermal stress.

Two approaches will be taken to implementing the CC-ASHP retrofits:

• A decentralized approach, where each suite is equipped with its own heat pump.
• A semi-centralized approach with larger heat pumps servicing multiple suites.

These 2 approaches will be piloted at the townhome (decentralized) and multi-residential (semi-centralized) sites. TAF will continuously monitor energy consumption and Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) at both sites.

The results of these pilots—including resident feedback collected as part of the pilots—will be the foundation for full retrofits. These will include complementary building renewal measures such as heat pump water heaters, smart thermostats, LED lighting and building envelope improvements. The CC-ASHPs will be the largest component of the project, both in terms of energy savings and total retrofit cost.

Measuring the financial, environmental and social benefits

The demonstration will measure the financial, environmental and social benefits of CC-ASHP as part of deep energy retrofits. It is anticipated that the full retrofits will reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by 40%. These estimated benefits might include over $178,000 in energy cost savings and 190 tonnes of reduced CO₂ equivalent.

• The 120-unit Toronto site could see 678,700 equivalent kilowatt hour (ekWh) savings every year. The 40-unit Hamilton site could see 342,500 ekWh savings every year.
• Annual carbon reductions are estimated at 126 tonnes CO₂ equivalent for the Toronto site. They are estimated at 64 tonnes CO₂ equivalent for the Hamilton site.

That would be an annual positive outcome for affordable housing providers, residents and the environment. It will also increase the sustainability of the sector as a whole, while improving resident comfort and indoor air quality.

Implementing retrofits and removing obstacles

TAF will work with its project partners to share key insights, lessons learned and recommendations from the project. These will cover implementing CC-ASHP retrofits and removing installation obstacles identified during demonstration. Results will also be shared with industry groups, utility stakeholders and building owners within Ontario’s community housing and residential building sectors. This will make it easier to replicate the proposed solutions and support their adoption.

The findings will be shared through many different materials. This includes case studies to summarize the key technical and financial performance features of CC-ASHP and the other retrofit measures. Recommendations will be developed to encourage using this type of retrofit in the social housing and broader residential sectors. Videos, online blogs and e-newsletters will also be produced and shared with interested groups.