Acton Village Condominiums go big for heat pumps

One of the ways that the Town of Acton is getting behind ambitious climate action goals for the municipality is by promoting air source and ground source heat pumps as an alternative technology for heating and cooling our homes.

A model for what can be done in a condo community now exists at Acton Village Condominiums on Staffordshire Lane in West Acton. Our condo village has 26 units, including both town houses and multi-dwelling garden apartment buildings. All units were built with electric baseboard heating and wall-mounted air conditioners. It was very expensive and inefficient for all of us using this built-in equipment.

As a result of Acton’s forward-looking climate action policies and the active interest and involvement of our condo board, our owners were educated in 2022 about what heat pumps can do; and many became quite excited by the potential for heating and cooling their whole homes with this new technology. As of now, just about half of our 26 unit owners have either installed whole-home heat pump systems or have initiated the process of doing so. Speaking as one of those who have completed an installation, I am very pleased with the results, especially at the affordable price I got once 2022 rebates of $10,000 were applied.

If you are currently heating your home with electricity, oil, or propane and would like to find out more about heat pumps and heat pump rebates, go to the Town of Acton website and visit “Heat Pump Rebates for Your Home”  You will learn there that the town has well informed heat pump coaches who will guide you through the whole process, from deciding whether you want a heat pump system, to selecting an installer, getting an estimate, carrying out the installation and applying for a rebate. If you heat with natural gas, check MassSave.com.

Bob Andrews is a resident of Acton and  a current member of the Acton Village Condominium Board of Trustees.