"For me, it wasn't difficult," says Darlington, owner of an exteriors contracting firm. First, he super-insulated his 1,600-square-foot home, installed solar panels to power the home's electrical needs, and added high-performance windows and energy-efficient lighting and appliances. Soon, he was able to produce more energy than his house uses—which, he adds, "also prevented 13 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year from entering the atmosphere."
Building a net-zero house from the get-go is one way to help curb greenhouse gas emissions. From a climate perspective, though, an even better option is renovating an existing home. According to the World Green Building Council, that renovated home retains the materials and embodied energy (energy required to produce, transport, and install those materials).
In Calgary, says Darlington, most homeowners' heat is powered by natural gas. "Because our grid is dirty, our eventual goal for a net-zero [energy renovation] is to disconnect from fossil fuels altogether and self-generated renewable energy," he told Ensia.
Darlington's renovation was so successful that today he's president of another company he founded, Solar Homes Inc. His renovation is also the first Net Zero Energy home renovation labeled under the Canadian Home Builders' Association Net Zero Energy (NZE) Renovation Labelling Program Pilot. Darlington is also taking his renovation experience and sharing it with colleagues across Canada during training sessions as a member of RenoMark.
"I connected with a net-zero group after finishing my project," he says, "and also got involved with other renovators to move the field forward. Once I'd done my home, I realized how easy it is to renovate a home, and it made sense to see what I could do to help other people."
