Kelly is a retired musician and Tom is a retired scientist with a background in medical device research & development.

In 2016, Tom and Kelly purchased a large 150-year-old red brick house with its original wood trim and its main floor windows intact. It came with a gas furnace and water heater, gas stove, and a gas fireplace insert. And like most old houses, it was leaky. Finally, the house had inadequate ductwork, so the temperature in different parts of the house varied greatly. 

Being concerned about their environmental footprint, Tom and Kelly always set the thermostat to 19 during the day and 15 at night during winter and wore lots of warm layers. And they would have continued that way, delaying an energy efficiency upgrade to the heating system, if not for the demise of their furnace just before Christmas 2022.

Great job Kelly and Tom!

This meant learning about heat pump technologies and the heat requirements for their own house. They also read extensively about heat pump types (central vs mini-split), and heat load calculations, which are used to size a heating system so that it meets the consumer needs. 

They were the ideal couple to take on such an effort because they were already committed to living a sustainable life and reducing their carbon footprint. For example, Kelly had completely transformed her front yard from grass to pollinator and vegetable gardens and Tom purchased a hybrid vehicle for transportation. 

Ultimately, Tom and Kelly chose to insulate their house, reduce air infiltration, and invest in a heat pump with the help of the Canada Greener Homes Grant Program. They upgraded their electrical panel from 100 to 200 Amp for the heat pump and other electrical appliances and insulated with spray foam and blown-in insulation. Finally, they completed a room-by-room heat load calculation as an input to the design of their heating system.

Through their research, Tom and Kelly installed two Mitsubishi ductless mini split systems with wall-mounted indoor heads installed by a Mitsubishi MEQ-certified installer. The gas appliances were removed from the house. The gas water heater was replaced with an energy efficient electric version and the gas stove was replaced with an induction stove. These changes eliminated Tom and Kelly’s gas use and left the house fully electric.

Tom and Kelly note that the heat system initially did not operate properly because the heads were installed too high above the floor. With the help of Mitsubishi and the installer, the indoor heads were moved to an appropriate height and the system now provides uniform heat throughout their house.