Unitil, (unitil.com), a provider of natural gas and electricity to New England customers, and Concord Housing + Redevelopment recently completed a large-scale, energy efficient heating system retrofit at Concord’s 116-unit Crutchfield Apartments building. The project was made possible with the support of roughly $940,000 in Unitil rebates through the NHSaves Low Income Weatherization program, which helps New Hampshire ratepayers conserve energy, money and the environment by subsidizing 100% of project costs.
"We are thrilled with the result of this energy efficiency project... The retrofit took a lot of careful planning and execution from all parties, all with the goal of improving the lives of our Crutchfield Apartment residents and helping the environment."
Executive Director of Concord Housing + Redevelopment, John Hoyt
The apartment building was outfitted with a variable refrigerant flow (VRF) heating and cooling system. Unlike most residential HVAC systems, VRF is able to take thermostats and other conditions into account and adjust the flow of the refrigerant as needed to improve efficiency. The system can deliver both heating and cooling to the building at the same time to maintain a comfortable temperature for all individual units. New, intelligent thermostat controls also enable heating to be monitored remotely. As a result of the retrofit, the Crutchfield apartment building will save 282,408 kWh per year.
“We are thrilled with the result of this energy efficiency project,” John Hoyt, Executive Director of Concord Housing + Redevelopment, said. “The retrofit took a lot of careful planning and execution from all parties, all with the goal of improving the lives of our Crutchfield Apartment residents and helping the environment. We were happy to continue our long standing relationship with Unitil to provide Concord residents with reduced electricity costs and greater comfort.”
The project was undertaken and managed by Resilient Buildings Group (RBG), which specializes in a variety of services that help customers achieve energy efficiency and conservation. Under RBG’s direction, the building’s 1970s electric baseboard heating system was upgraded to modern heat pumps that use electricity to move heat rather than just generate it.
“A project of this scale is a first of its kind in the state of New Hampshire, and we were proud to partner with Concord Housing + Redevelopment and RBG to bring it to fruition,” said Alec O’Meara, Media Relations Manager for Unitil. “This easy-to-manage, highly efficient energy upgrade will provide many benefits to tenants and management alike moving forward. Many thanks to RBG for doing a fantastic job managing all aspects of this retrofit.”
More information on energy efficiency programs can be found at unitil.com.
