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*Due to manufacturer restrictions, Brooks, Nike, Saucony and Merrell have certain in-line products that are excluded from this offer.
SALE STARTS FRIDAY, JAN. 6
*Due to manufacturer restrictions, Brooks, Nike, Saucony and Merrell have certain in-line products that are excluded from this offer.
News
Thermal imaging pilot Naoibh O’Connor
noconnor@vancourier.com
Fifteen thousand detached homes in five different Vancouver neighbourhoods will be scanned with a thermal imaging camera mounted to the top of a car in coming weeks. Through a pilot project, the city wants to identify sources of heat loss in the homes so homeowners can consider options to improve energy efficiency. Homeowners of about 3,000 of the homes, which have the greatest potential for energy savings, will be sent the thermal images, as well as information on how to get an energy assessment and incentives they can take advantage of through companies like B.C. Hydro and Fortis to fix problem areas. The images will be taken over a couple of weeks between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. The effort could begin as early as Jan. 16 since the camera works in cold, dry weather. “This is a cost-effective way to help homeowners identify ways to improve the energy efficiency of their home and reduce their energy bills,” explained Sean Pander, the city’s assistant director of sustainability, during a press conference outside a home on Adanac Street in East Vancouver to demonstrate how the camera works. The camera detects temperature differences and shows them in different colours. When something is hot, the image shows bright yellow and red; if it’s cold, it shows as dark blue or purple, so homeowners can see where heat loss is occurring. Open houses about the program, which will cost
about $100,000 — an estimated $6 per home scanned — were held this week. The last one is set for Jan. 12. Pander said the city wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing homes and buildings by 20 per cent by the year 2020, as part of its Greenest City Action Plan. Neighbourhoods being targeted for the pilot include Strathcona, Hastings-Sunrise, DunbarSouthlands, Riley Park and Victoria-Fraserview. Privacy is being protected, Pander said. The cameras can’t see inside homes and no one has access to the images except homeown- j ers. The images also can’t be used for any other pur- b pose than helping home- t owners improve efficiency. w i Those who aren’t comfortable with their homes being imaged can b opt out by emailing the city at thermal.imaging@ t w vancouver.ca. The pilot project was h developed after a resih dent contacted the city to point out it’s easy to tell which homes aren’t properly insulated by looking at their roofs. The frost melts on ones with poor insulation and remains on the roofs of homes that g are well insulated. “[The resident] said this would be a really effecf tive way to get people to understand that they need h to improve their home,” i Pander said. “That got f us to start some research f around how we could do l this on a larger scale.” Thermal imaging has been used in Detroit and some smaller cities in Massachusetts, as well as in cities in Europe including Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool u t and London.
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