Air-to-water heat pump rebate

In order to qualify for this rebate, all of the following requirements must be met. Please read them carefully. Contact an Energy Coach if you have questions.

Requirements for the home

You must live in an eligible home:

• The home must be a year-round primary residence that is at least 12 months old.
• You must have a residential utility account with FortisBC, BC Hydro, or a municipal utility.
• The home must be one of the following types:
  • Single family home (detached dwelling)
  • Secondary suite in a single-family home (detached dwelling), with its own separate utility meter
  • Mobile home that is permanently fixed, sits on a foundation and is structurally complete with installed and connected plumbing, heating, electrical, water and sewer services; towing apparatus and axle must be removed
  • Duplex, triplex, row home or townhome, where each unit has its own natural gas and/or electricity meter; utility accounts must be in the name of the resident and/or homeowner.  Utility accounts in the name of a strata corporation are not eligible.
• Your home must be primarily heated with:
  • Natural Gas or piped-propane supplied by FortisBC
  • Natural Gas supplied by Pacific Northern Gas
  • Oil or propane not supplied by FortisBC
• Homes in non-integrated areas of the electricity grid that are primarily heated with oil, gas, or propane require pre-approval from the Province prior to installation of their heat pump to confirm eligibility. Contact betterhomesBC@gov.bc.ca to begin the approvals process.

Requirements for your contractor

The new heat pump must be installed:

• By a licensed contractor with a GST number and a valid B.C. business license for the trade applicable to the upgrade being installed (e.g. Heat pumps must be installed by a licensed residential heating and cooling contractor). Self-installations are not eligible, and
• In accordance with the Heat Pump Best Practices Guide for Existing Homes.

Requirements for the upgrade

The new heat pump must:

• Replace the existing primary heating system.
• Be sized to function as the primary heating system of the home.
• Have a minimum capacity of 12,000 BTU (1 ton).
• Serve a main living area (e.g. family room, living room, or open-concept kitchen-living room).
• Be on the Air-to-Water and Combination Heat Pump Qualified Product List to be eligible.
• Be installed according to the Heat Pump Best Practices Installation Guide for Existing Homes.

Please Note: The primary back up system must not be natural gas, oil or propane. Homes with a natural gas or propane fireplaces are eligible if the fireplace is a secondary heating system.

Requirements for the equipment being replaced

The old heating system must also meet requirements in order to be eligible for this rebate.

• The fossil fuel heating system must be removed.
• If the home’s primary heating system is a fossil fuel combination boiler providing domestic hot water and hydronic space heating, contact betterhomesbc@gov.bc.ca to receive instructions and pre approval on the removal of the hydronic space heating equipment.
• Emergency replacement of broken fossil fuel heating systems is eligible.
• Homes in non-integrated areas of electricity grid must contact betterhomesbc@gov.bc.ca for pre-approval prior to installation.