• The existence of construction or consulting businesses that aid individuals in renovating their homes to be net-zero (transition your house net-zero) or whether such companies exist only on the commercial construction scale.
• Whether or not there are companies that recommend ways to make houses more net-zero.

• Case studies or examples of existing companies that consult or operate in the net-zero housing and/or construction space.
• Insight into what the process is for individuals to transform existing structures into net-zero instead of building net-zero from the ground up.

Data Availability

• The initial round of research indicates that data on construction or consulting businesses that aid individuals in renovating their homes to be net-zero is available in the public domain

Net-Zero Housing Companies

• On October 29th, 2021, The Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) officially kicked off the Net Zero Home Labelling Program for Renovations.
• The Program "provides the industry with a clearly defined and rigorous two-tiered technical requirement that recognizes Net Zero and Net Zero Ready Homes (for new and now also existing homes), as well as the builders and renovators who provide them."
• A pilot version of the program for renovations ran from April 2020 to March 2021 to validate technical and administrative details.
•  Examples of construction companies that help individuals to transition existing homes to net-zero from the program include Solar Homes Inc., Steve Snider Construction, Butterwick Construction, My House Design Build Team Ltd., and RDC Fine Homes.
• Other examples of such companies in the United States are Dwell Development, Sweenor Builders, The Eversource New Construction Energy Efficiency team, and Balfour Beatty.

Case Study

• In 2017, Peter and Lianne Hoogers contracted Steve Snider Construction to help convert their Lakeview Farm home, a 3,500-sq.-ft. bungalow in Scugog Township less than 20 years old into a net-zero home.
• The couple hired Steve Snider, of Steve Snider Construction, a qualified R2000 and Net Zero/Net Zero Ready new home builder and member of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) Net Zero Energy Housing Council.
• Snider left the home’s original brick and stone façade intact but gutted the interior to the studs and trusses, then replaced the insulation and windows.
• A new geothermal heating system, which utilizes energy from the ground to heat and cool the house, was installed and numerous finishes and details upgraded.
• A solar panel array was installed on the south-facing barn on the 100-acre property.
• Snider’s crew built an air barrier system to make the house as air-tight as possible, used a high level of insulation on the interior walls and attic, and spray-foam insulation on the exterior basement walls.
•  New triple-glazed windows, a dual heat system using a gas furnace with a separate boiler for basement in-floor heating, an electric heat pump, and Energy Recovery Ventilator were installed.
• The homeowners have the alternative of installing a solar array in the future.
• After the renovation, the number of air exchanges per hour for the house plummeted from five to just .7, making it highly energy efficient.

Summary

• In the initial hour of research, we were able to identify an example of a construction firm that aids individuals in renovating their homes to be net-zero.
• We also provided a case study of how this has been done in the past.
• Based on the data availability, we anticipate being able to fully answer the research question.
• It is also worthy of note to point out that some examples (case studies) available in the public domain are a mixture of home conversion to net-zero and near net-zero energy homes (NNZEHs). As a result, this might be reflected in the final research brief based on the case studies identified and selected.
• Therefore, we recommend continued research to provide additional case studies on this topic, including any existing guidelines/templates for individuals to transform existing houses into net-zero homes.
• No geographical focus was communicated for the research. As a result, we have assumed a global focus. In a case where a different geographical focus is expected [for example, the United States], this has to be communicated to us in the form of a comment in the approved research path.
• Details of our proposed research parts are provided below in the research proposal section.