When I purchased my three-decker on Jones Hill in 1984, I didn’t give much thought to the fact that it wasn’t insulated or had knob and tube wiring. Built in 1916 on a classic granite foundation, it has served me and my family well, providing rental income from two units and a family home in the third.

But times change, and the nagging guilt that I was contributing to global warming prompted me to call Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan at Revise, the state’s energy program for an in-home audit in October 2021. 

A Revise representative came out and determined that I needed to install an air return, upgrade to 220 amps, and eliminate all knob and tube wiring before Revise would work with me on the insulation and heat pumps.  The entire transition off oil was completed eighteen months later, in April 2023.

Now my three-decker is insulated, has no knob and tube wiring, is upgraded electrical to 220 amps, has multiple Fujitsu ductless heat pumps on floors two and three and a ducted Fujitsu heat pump for the first floor. My three oil tanks and furnaces have been removed. Original three-deckers like mine are challenging to retrofit without gutting.  But it is possible, and it is worth it. I believe the state could, and should, make the process of conversion easier.

I have never had air conditioning, preferring ceiling fans and open windows.  But on my third floor one night last summer with the ceiling fan churning away, it was 92 at 9 p.m. That discomfort strengthened my resolve to finish the job that had already been underway nine months. The hidden benefit with heat pumps is that they function as air conditioners, too. 

There were detours and false starts partly because my building never had an air return installed in the basement. After inviting four heat pump companies to provide a solution to the lack of an air return — each different and with widely varying price tags  and code compliance issues — I chose DiPietro Plumbing because they made a compelling case for removing all three of my oil tanks and furnaces, thereby eliminating the need for an air return.  Not installing one into the stairwell, which was of dubious code compliance, saved me $8,000.

DiPietro has a strong track record working with Revise, which has separate departments for energy audits, heat pumps, and insulation. DiPietro’s Domenic Carito, in particular, became my ally, advocate, coach, and contact for organizing what turned out to be a complicated job.  We were on speed dial with each other.   He’s a patient teacher, because I was new to the subject of heat pump models, design for my apartments’ layouts, and things like that.

Then I hit another problem.  Revise cannot authorize a Mass Save loan or rebates to install heat pumps unless the building is already insulated and has an air return for the existing oil furnaces.  Dom helped broker a creative work around that required cooperation, precise timing, and ingenuity in terms of sequencing the heat pump and insulation work.  Let’s just say we got them installed pretty much simultaneously but only because I was working through Revise for both jobs and had Dom as my advocate.  Insulation was installed at no cost.   

A third challenge was that one of my units is Section 8. Mass Save rebates and the zero interest loans don’t apply to Section 8 housing.  Instead, a circuitous route of separate meetings, inspections, and paperwork were required. Fortunately, Ed McDonough, the lead inspector at ABCD, oversaw my case and sped the process forward with the cooperation of my tenants, while his agency covered the cost on the condition that I not increase rent for two years. 

For my other two units (five ductless heat pumps for $23,500 and one ducted heat pump system for $28,000), I was eligible for the $25,000 Mass Save seven year, no interest loan. I look forward to receiving $20,000 in rebates. I know that will take time.  There’s a backlog of requests.
Transitioning my three-decker off oil took more time, money, research, and persistence than I had imagined it would, but it also required keeping an open mind.  I thought heat pumps would look hideous in my living space.  Now I barely notice them. 

I had recently painted my house a russet color and I thought the white pipe lines on the outside would be an eyesore. Again, I barely see them.  What if it got too cold for the heat pumps to work?  I read so many articles and talked to so many people who had preceded me that I was willing to take that risk.  I bought several electric space heaters in case I’d ever need them.

I am retired and organized, and all of this still took 18 months.  The pandemic made it harder, too, because getting my gifted electrician Peg Preble to squeeze me into her busy schedule to replace all the knob and tube wiring was a challenge, so we took that part of the project in stages.

If our Commonwealth is serious about getting thousands of homes off oil, we need to streamline the process and provide the equivalent of case managers to work with residents. I am fortunate to be able to float the $20,000 for my anticipated rebate, but many people who need heat pumps do not have that cash.  

Yet it is a vicious cycle. You must pay in advance and then apply for your rebate.  The expensive electrical upgrade was a separate, more complicated job performed by a specialty electric firm. If my hoped-for case manager had told me to wait until Jan. 1, 2023, instead of scheduling it for December 15, 2022, I would have been eligible for a 2023 special rebate for that.  The state is never going to reach its ambitious climate change goals without revamping how residential properties get off oil.  

My next frontier is exploring solar, where again I am in a surreal loop.  Until my heat pumps have been generating months of electric bills, not one of the four companies I have spoken with is willing to estimate what kind of solar array might be best for my flat roof at the top of a hill.  My pre-heat pump electric bills are deemed too low to warrant solar energy.

In my dream green world, my case manager would work with me to come up with the best solar solution, independent of the sales pitches of each company.  But for now, good luck!