A Pioneering Research Initiative for Sustainable Homebuilding.

The Wilden Living Lab is a collaboration between different stakeholders to co-create a technological idea and validate it through experimentation in a real-life environment.

In 2017, two different homes were built:

One features standard technologies according to the current building code. The other exceeds code requirements using the latest technologies to enhance energy efficiency.

Once families moved in, sensors throughout the homes started documenting energy consumption and cost efficiency. Currently, both homes are being monitored and compared by a research team at UBC Okanagan’s School of Engineering.

Intermediate Results after 18 months of monitoring and comparing the Home of Tomorrow with the Home of Today:

Additional investment into the Home of Tomorrow in $

The Home of Tomorrow

Less Energy

The Home of Tomorrow uses 67% less energy than the Home of Today (40.8 GJ/year)

Less Carbon Emissions

Carbon emissions are 99.63% less in the Home of Tomorrow

Year Payback Time

The additional $36,500 of investment into the Home of Tomorrow take approximately 42 years to pay back.
Payback periods for single components are between 6 and 50 years.

Long payback periods are due to two factors:

1. Carbon neutral heating and cooling uses expensive electrical power versus non-expensive natural gas.
2. The installation of a ground source heat pump and high-performance insulation are still very costly.

Government incentives as well as decreasing cost due to higher demand would shorten payback periods significantly.

Find More Results Here