Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

Peel Passive House Consulting (PeelPHC) is the most experienced Passive House (PH) consulting firm in Canada, delivering PH consultancy, training and certification services. PeelPHC is interested in developing a partnership with Humber College with the intent to advance the development of PH expertise in Canada and specifically in the GTA. This project involves a semi-detached home in Toronto that will be retrofitted to a 3-unit apartment to the EnerPHit standard (Passive House Institute, 2015). The house has a common design that is representative of many homes across the city. This project seeks to establish a technically and financially feasible model for low carbon residential retrofits that can be replicated at scale. It also serves to increase density without changing the characteristics of the neighbourhood. Both PeelPHC and Humber College will benefit from the knowledge, skills, and experience they develop that will be directly applicable to the emerging low carbon retrofit industry. PeelPHC will be well positioned to support other homeowners and developers in realizing low carbon retrofits. The results of the research project will contribute to the development of a process and published resources that will facilitate the scale up of retrofit projects in Toronto and beyond. Humber College's involvement will demonstrate their leadership in supporting the necessary transformation the construction industry must undertake to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.