LEED farmhouse heating bill $60

February 20, 2018

Heating a renovated 2,530-square-foot farmhouse in a frigid Quebec winter for $60 a month may seem a miracle, but it is made possible with advanced green engineering.
Quebec homeowners Pierre Chevrier and Suzanne Rhéaume proved it could be done with the completion of their LEED v4 Platinum-certified house in Charlevoix.
The renovated house, contracted to Quebec LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Homes provider Écohabitation, is the second Quebec project to reach the LEED v4 Platinum level, according to the Canada Green Building Council (CGBC).
LEED v4 requires a building to reach extremely high standards of energy savings.
According to the CGBC, after seven months of living in their new home, the couple is seeing much lower operational costs for hydro and water consumption, and experiencing health benefits due to an indoor environment with clean air quality, no volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions, natural lighting and air circulation.
Their hydro bill of less than $60 a month is a fraction of the cost incurred at their previous home—despite using their heat pump and air conditioning infrequently. The house is kept cool during the summer and comfortably warm without overheating during the -34o C winters, the CGBC said.