My energy use

How do I earn rewards?
If you’ve signed up for FortisBC’s Account Online you can earn reward points that can be used towards your bill as a credit. If you have been a FortisBC customer for at least one year, you can earn points when you complete the online home assessment and items in your action plan.

What are the points worth?
One hundred points is equal to $1. You’ll need to collect 1,000 points (worth $10) before you can redeem them for a bill credit. After that, you can redeem your points in increments of 500 points ($5).

Is there a maximum number of points I can get?
The maximum number of points you can collect for completing items in your action plan is 500 per week, to a maximum of 2,000 per year. These are in addition to points for signing up, and completing a home assessment.

How do I redeem my reward points?
Once you’ve collected your initial 1,000 reward points and are ready to redeem them for a bill credit, go to the My rewards section of My energy use and click the redeem button.

How long will it take to receive a bill credit for my rewards?
It will take from six to eight weeks, depending on your billing cycle.

How is my action plan created?
The action plan is developed by characterizing how your home uses energy based on your answers from your home assessment. The plan evaluates the combination of upgrades/changes that are possible for your home (excluding those you have told us you don't want to consider). Each option is evaluated based on your energy bill and energy prices, and the costs of upgrades.

How can energy-efficiency upgrades improve the comfort of my home?
Even if your heating and cooling equipment is efficient, if your home isn’t properly sealed and insulated, you won’t be as comfortable as you could be and your heating and cooling systems may have to work harder. Plus, if you have leaky or poorly insulated ductwork, your home might have humidity problems, excessive dust, or rooms that are never quite comfortable. Sealing heating ducts, improving your home’s insulation, draftproofing and weatherstripping can help make it less drafty and more comfortable.

Are there ways to improve my home’s energy efficiency without spending money?
In addition to your action plan, you can search through our energy-saving tips. The tips include ideas for quick behaviour changes, weekend projects, easy to do maintenance, such as weatherstripping, and other energy saving ideas. You can easily add them to your action plan.

How do I set up a goal?
You can set up a goal by clicking on Set a goal and then setting your target savings, as well as the nickname of your goal. Your goal result will appear one calendar month after setting up the goal.

What is the purpose of doing a home assessment?
Completing the home assessment in My energy use will help you determine what appliances and equipment in your home are using the most energy and provide recommendations to improve your home’s energy efficiency. 

What if I don’t know the answer to some of the home assessment questions?
If you don’t know an answer skip the question and we’ll assume a default answer based on your climate region. The default answer will enable us to complete the calculations, but if you learn more about your home, you can revisit the assessment and update the answer for a more accurate set of recommendations.

What is weatherization?
Weatherization, or draftproofing, is the action of sealing air leaks around windows, exterior doors, outlet and switch plates, plumbing, light fixtures and ductwork and filling cracks and small holes in your home’s exterior walls to reduce heat loss in winter and heat ingress in summer. 

How do you know the amount of energy consumed by different appliances in my home?
By comparing your home assessment answers with your past year’s energy consumption, we can estimate your energy use of the major appliances and heating equipment in your home. The calculation takes into consideration the age of your home and appliances and heating equipment, estimated use of e.g., laundry and dishwashers, fuel types and the number of occupants in the home.

How do I use the results of my home assessment?
The assessment is designed to help you be more aware of how and where energy is used in your home. The pie chart will reveal what the major energy consuming appliances are, and the recommendations will guide you to the highest return on investment (ROI) improvements you can make. The accuracy of the results is dependent on how well your answers reflect your actual home and energy use.