FortisBC heating system optimization rebates for existing gas boilers

The heating system optimization program funds measures that improve the efficiency of existing gas boilers and related equipment rather than replacing the boiler itself. The published measures include stack economizers that pre-heat make-up water from flue gas, condensing economizers that also capture latent heat, parallel positioning systems that optimize combustion air and fuel valve control, combustion oxygen trim that adjusts air supply from real-time flue gas measurement, total dissolved solids (TDS) blowdown control that manages scaling and corrosion, hydronic additives, heat or energy recovery ventilators, ozone laundry systems and boiler tune-ups.

The rebate table is divided by boiler size. Small boilers are hot water or steam boilers up to 150 hp; medium boilers are 151 to 299 hp; large boilers are 300 hp and up. The combination offer of parallel positioning plus combustion oxygen trim with controls pays $49,000 for any size steam or hot water boiler, but it is an existing-boiler-only offer and is not available for new boiler systems or new construction.

Boiler tune-ups pay $0.75 per MBH, up to 75 per cent of project cost, and the rate applies to process boilers, greenhouse boilers, space heating boilers and domestic hot water boilers. A tune-up must be completed by an approved technician, follow the boiler tune-up scope checklist, and the boiler must be at least 36 months old and must not have been tuned in the last 36 months.

The same page lists furnace and rooftop unit tune-ups at 100 per cent of project cost up to $400, hydronic additives for hydronic-heated buildings that are on the qualified product list, and heat recovery or energy recovery ventilators at $3.30 per cubic foot per minute for a standalone or bolt-on unit meeting the stated efficiency and economizer requirements. Some products may be eligible for instant rebates at the point of sale through FortisBC's Trade Ally Network equipment suppliers.

Applicants must be FortisBC gas customers under any rate class except Rate 1, and must be the property owner or long-term leaseholder of an existing building, or a builder, developer or property owner of a new construction project. The hot water or steam boilers must be used to meet the site or facility's loads, such as process load, sanitization or space heating, and must use gas only. Boilers installed for backup, standby or secondary use are not eligible.

Non-profit housing providers, including non-profit, co-op and Indigenous housing serving income-qualified people, have a parallel version of the program with the same measure amounts, advertised as rebates of up to 75 per cent of the cost of optimizing existing gas heating equipment.

The work should start with a gas or mechanical contractor licensed with Technical Safety BC. If a product is not eligible for an instant rebate at the point of sale, the heating system optimization rebate application is submitted within 365 days of the purchase date shown on the paid invoice. FortisBC states that once approved, the rebate is normally received within six to eight weeks.

Because the program distinguishes between retrofits of existing boilers and new installations, the application has to make the scope clear: the retrofit-only combination offer is not available for new boiler systems or new construction, and tune-ups are limited to boilers that meet the age and interval rules.

The application requires copies of the fully paid invoice including the make and model number of the eligible measures purchased and installed, or the services provided. For tune-ups, the boiler tune-up scope checklist or the furnace and rooftop unit tune-up scope checklist is part of the requirements.

The invoice date also anchors the 365-day application window, so the paid invoice has to be retained and submitted with the rest of the documentation. FortisBC's terms and conditions for the commercial product rebate apply to the application.

This program is for keeping an existing boiler and making it perform better; a new boiler system does not qualify for the optimization measures. Where the existing boiler is at the end of its life, the replacement path is the separate FortisBC Gas boiler rebate for eligible high-efficiency process boilers, which has its own efficiency floor and eligibility lists.

For a building owner, the practical sequence is to have the boiler assessed first: if the unit is sound, optimization measures such as an economizer, oxygen trim or a tune-up can reduce operating cost with a rebate attached. If it is not, replacement planning starts with the eligible model lists and the process-heat test that the Gas boiler rebate applies.