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Electrification 101

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Health & Safety Retrofits in Homes and Apartment Buildings

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Jeffrey Wong

Sustainability Analyst

City of Oakland

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IMAGINE | PERFORM | ACCELERATE | SUSTAIN

REVOLUTIONARY ENGINEERING

DEEP GREEN ENGINEERING

TRUST | NURTURE | INSPIRE

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Legacy of Redlining and Environmental Injustice

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WOCAP

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Why Building Electrification?

Safety and Resilience

Jobs

Climate

Health

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What is holistic electrification?

  • Transition from gas appliances to 100% electric power +
  • Energy efficiency +
  • Improved indoor air quality and comfort +
  • Reduced environmental health risks +
  • Energy resilience

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Examples of All-Electric Appliances�

Water Heating

Space Heating

Cooking

Clothes Drying

Residential

Commercial

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What is a heat pump?

Warm Air In

Cool Air Out

Hot Water Out

Heat Pump

Storage Tank

Cool Water In

A Heat Pump uses a small amount of energy to move heat from one location to another, like a refrigerator.

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Can be used for space conditioning (heating + cooling) as well as water heating

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Uses energy much more efficiently than traditional gas furnaces/water heaters

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How does induction cooking work?

Induction cooktop uses electromagnetism to heat cooking pan itself, which in turn heats the food or water.

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Cooking pan must be able to carry a magnetic field. Can test with a simple magnet!

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Ceramic top remains cool while cooking.

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Example projects and workforce development

Revalue.io x BlocPower- Dogtown Duplex

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  • Heat pump, insulation, lighting, smart electrical panel

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  • Oakland native, duplex rented for affordable housing.

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  • Stacked rebates, incentives and social impact financing to deliver affordable project with energy saving benefits

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  • Employed local minority, woman owned contracting firm + apprentices from Cypress Mandela.

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Example projects and workforce development

Revalue.io x BlocPower- Northern California Land Trust Peace Gardens

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  • Electrification retrofit complete with induction stoves, mini split heat pumps, and solar panels in 5-unit low income cooperative housing
  • Employed local minority women owned firm with apprentices from Cypress Mandela
  • Stacked rebates, incentives, social impact and forgivable loan funds to make project feasible for LMI residents and ownership group.

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Home Electrification Process

Understand your home

    • Self assess your home and your needs or;
    • Free consult with an energy assessor, BayREN Home Energy Score or Green House Call from Rising Sun
    • Talk with your landlord about the multifamily energy efficiency incentives available in Oakland

Plan your journey

    • Consider your priorities and budget with Electrify Everything guide
    • Consult a BayREN Home Energy Advisor (866) 878 – 6008
    • The City of Oakland’s Residential Lending program provides low-interest financing for low-income homeowners

Start electrifying

    • Take advantage of BayREN and California Energy Smart Home rebates
    • Find a qualifying contractor at www.switchison.org

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Home Electrification Checklist

  • Renewable electricity- opt up with EBCE, or install solar
  • Electrical service- 100 Amps can be sufficient with efficiency!
  • Heat pump space heating and cooling- maximize efficiency & Wx
  • Heat pump water heater
  • Electric cooking- portable induction cooktop uses 120V
  • Electric clothes dryer- combo washer + dryer, clothesline/drying rack
  • Electric vehicles + charger- 120V wall outlet or 240V appliance outlet
  • Home battery storage- standalone backup battery

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Incentives and Rebates

California Low Income Weatherization Program- https://www.csd.ca.gov/Pages/Low-Income-Weatherization-Program.aspx

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Rising Sun Center for Opportunity- https://risingsunopp.org/programs/ghc/

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Grid Alternatives- https://gridalternatives.org/what-we-do/energy-for-all

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East Bay Community Energy- https://ebce.org/clean-power-appliances/

- Induction cooktop loaner- https://ebce.org/induction-cooking/

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Incentives and Rebates (cont.)

BayREN- https://www.bayren.org/rebates-financing/single-family-homeowners

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California Energy-Smart Homes- https://www.caenergysmarthomes.com/alterations/

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PG&E- https://guide.pge.com/

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$100s to $1000s available for heat pumps, induction cooktops, electric dryers, insulation, air sealing, and more! Stay up to date on the latest incentives at Switch Is On (https://incentives.switchison.org/)

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Oakland Building Electrification Timeline

December 2020

Ordinance for New Construction to be All-Electric Adopted

Mar.-Dec. 2021

Electrification Workforce stakeholder series

Jan. 2022 - May 2023

Ongoing community and stakeholder engagement

Jul. 2023

Building Electrification Roadmap to Council

2040

All Buildings in Oakland are Fossil-Fuel Free

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Concerns & Needs

    • Cost
    • Education/outreach
    • Workforce training
    • Cultural customs
    • Weatherization & energy efficiency
    • Seismic upgrades
    • Permitting process
    • Relocation & Right to Return
    • Accessibility
    • Zero-emission/electric vehicles

Learn more:

www.oaklandca.gov/projects/building-electrification

Preliminary Community Feedback

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Thank you!

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Jeffrey Wong

jwong6@oaklandca.gov

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IMAGINE | PERFORM | ACCELERATE | SUSTAIN

REVOLUTIONARY ENGINEERING

DEEP GREEN ENGINEERING

TRUST | NURTURE | INSPIRE

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NCLT Peace Garden Project Details

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NCLT Peace Garden Project Details

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NCLT Peace Garden Project Details

Takeaways

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  • Solar energy offset 50% of energy consumption at property

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            • Net bill savings of 4% since going all electric (not factoring in new windows and insulation which can increase savings further)

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  • Local incentives (excluding grants) cover 15-20% of electrification project costs

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  • Battery storage for resiliency is extremely expensive (excluded from scope)

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Resources

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  • SPARCC- https://www.sparcchub.org

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