This are some useful links and publications!
We give you a copy of the paperback DIY book titled "Keeping The Heat In", published by Natural Resources Canada, and supplied to you free of charge when we visit your home. This 133 page book is a classic that has been continuously updated for many years, and is a good guide. You can also order this book by calling 800-387-2000. You can also obtain it as a PDF file download at Keeping the heat In
Manitoba Hydro has published a nice set of booklets called Power Smart guides. These are available online as PDF files. For example the one on basement and crawl space insulation is found at http://www.hydro.mb.ca/your_home/home_comfort/2_basement_crawlspace.pdf There are a total of 9 guides in this series.
The City of Ottawa has in the past, but is not currently offering a grant for low flush toilet upgrades. Keep a lookout in case this is re-introduced.
The Energy Star program has a great web site, and even though this is a US government program, Canada supports this as well. The main page link is Energy Star . The Canadian version of this is found at Energy Star for Canada
The web site for toilets that qualify for the NRcan administered grants are found at qualifying toilets.
Ottawa Public Library – Library patrons can save electricity and money with the new “Kill-a-Watt” lending program that allows OPL cardholders to borrow a compact digital power meter to measure the consumption of home appliances. The Kill-a-Watt meters help people become informed energy users and thus reduce their power consumption and costs. If you are not a member of the OPL, then there is another alternative. You can buy a different brand of meter at Canadian Tire for about $25.00 made by Blue Planet that will do a similar job. We carry an example of this device and can demonstrate its use.
With either, you can identify which devices have a significant standby use, and which you could unplug when not in use to save some standby energy use. You can also use these to see how much your old fridge or freezer is using, and see how this compares to a new Energy Star model. You may be very surprised.