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ENBIX: Industry Leader Profile: Chelsah Thomas
Check out the latest podcast on the Conscious Builder!
Check out the latest podcast on the Conscious Builder!
Chelsah Thomas is the founder of Sol Invictus Energy Services, located in Red Deer, Alberta. With a passion for sustainable construction and renewable energy, she founded her social enterprise in 2016. Chelsah’s motivation to help others build better flowed from her own experience in constructing Central Alberta’s first Net Zero, Passive Solar Home. Chelsah’s firm now serves Western Canada for residential energy efficiency needs and recently won “Business of the Year, 2020” for Young Entrepreneur.
1:10 intro
4:30 - building their own net zero house, focus on consulting, getting to net zero, holistic approach
6:50 what is a social enterprise
12:15 What are earthships
15:00 What is a B - Corp
19:00 What is the Thomas House Project - solar panels and credits
23:40 Wall Assembly - windows, etc, architect?
32:20 what would you change, aging in place
Coffee Talk with Chelsah Thomas
Chelash Thomas discusses her experience in constructing the "Thomas House Project" where theory meets practice in high-performance home construction. The objectives and outcomes of this project will be highlighted, as well as lessons learned through building her own net-zero home based on Passive House theory.
Passive house construction diagram with high insulation windows
Diagram by NeuFenster
Passive House Windows - How Do Passive House Windows Reduce Your Energy Expenses
an article by Neufenster
How do Passive House windows reduce your energy expenses?
A Passive House is thoughtfully designed to reduce a home’s energy consumption by 90%, while improving the air quality, insulation, durability, and overall comfort experienced in the home. Its design takes into account all functional elements within a home and its external environment to produce a harmonious and self-sufficient building. The Passive House standard has also been applied to windows and doors, in order to meet the stringent construction requirements.
Alberta’s First Passive Solar Net Zero Home
It was pleasure to be a part of our clients’ dream project – their custom energy-efficient home and Alberta’s first “damn near” Passive Solar Net Zero Home. This home was thoughtfully designed to minimize energy use with key design principles and energy-efficient building materials. “We wanted a future where when our mortgage was paid for, we would have 0$ annual utility costs, while building a cozy healthy home that produced zero greenhouse gas emissions.”
0$ annual energy cost
Building premium costs are offset by NO natural gas delivery charges
Build a more efficient home and pay the same amount annually
Chelsah Thomas and her husband built their home using passive house principles and solar energy, to live sustainably and self-sufficiently.
Chelsah Thomas and her husband’s dream project called “The Thomas House”, a high performance eco home built with energy efficiency in mind, using energy-efficient building materials. As a result, their annual energy costs are zero, hence being called a “net-zero eco home”.
Red Deer Chamber honours local businesses with in-person award ceremony
Category: Local News
Published: Thursday, 22 October 2020 10:57
Written by Jordan Davidson
The 37th annual Red Deer and District Chamber of Commerce (RDDCC) Awards were held on Wednesday, October 21st at the Cambridge Hotel and Conference Centre.
Winners of the Young Entrepreneur of the Year award was Sol Invictus Energy Services, an energy solutions company with a focus on home energy efficiency and eco-home construction.
Jesse Thomas and his wife Chelsah says while COVID prevented them from expanding as they planned to this year, he says being honoured by the Chamber will help get their name out there more and act to further legitimize what they are doing.
"I think it just helps us get our name out there more and be more recognized in the community more than we already are now, and skies the limit from here!"
The Lending Cupboard picked up Non-Profit of the year, and Troubled Monk Brewery picked up the award in the 21 or more full-time equivalent employees category.
CEO of the RDDCC Rick Moore says honouring the hard work of locals wasn't the only cause for celebration last night, saying this was the first public, in-person event a lot of the people in attendance have been to in months.
"To be honest it was a little nerve-racking going into it. No one's really attempted anything, the events have all been cancelled, but we headstrong went with this because we thought it was so important to recognize our heroes, our business people. We kept it safe, we did all the protocols correctly, and again we can prove that we can put some "normalcy" into our lives and celebrate those that need to be celebrated."
Also honoured Wednesday night was KCB cabinets & Renovations in the 1-10 full-time equivalent employee's category, and Stride Physiotherapy and Wellness, who took home the honours for 11-20 full-time equivalent employee's category.
Source: Lacombe Online
Read the article below:
Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce announces business of the year winners
All finalists ‘displayed courage’ this year, says chamber CEO
Five years ago, Troubled Monk brewery had the capacity to produce 60 barrels of beer.
Today, the Red Deer business has the ability to turn out 600 barrels of beer.
Such extraordinary growth was recognized Wednesday night, when Troubled Monk won the business of the year award in the 21 or more employees category at the Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce’s 37th annual awards.
Brewery president Charlie Bredo credits Troubled Monk’s success to not only its beverages, but the experiences it creates, such as “giving our awesome customers a comfortable and eclectic taproom they can drink at.”
Chamber CEO Rick More praised all of the finalists ahead of Wednesday night’s ceremony.
“These finalists have displayed courage and their ability to adapt to what has been a challenging seven months,” More said, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Tonight we have shown that through all of this, we can come to some sense of normalcy.
“This chamber has been inspired by our members who continue to showcase the importance of small business in community involvement and employment to our citizens.”
KCB Cabinets & Renovations was the winner in the one to 10 employees category, while Stride Physiotherapy and Wellness was recognized among finalists with 11 to 20 employees.
Sol Invictus Energy won in the young entrepreneur category. The Lending Cupboard received this year’s best non-profit award.
The chamber celebrates and recognizes local businesses during Small Business Week every year, said More.
BILD-CENTRAL ALBERTA ANNOUNCES AWARD FINALISTS FOR THE PARTNER AWARD CATEGORIES!
Red Deer, AB – May 8, 2020 – The Awards of Excellence Gala is a celebration that the Association looks forward to each year. While we had to make the difficult decision to cancel the awards gala, the awards program must go on!
That’s right…pop the bubbly from the comfort of your own home and prepare to celebrate the 2020 Central Alberta Awards of Excellence in Housing via live stream.
More information on how to watch the virtual event will be sent out to members in the coming weeks.
At this time, the Building Industry and Land Development Association – Central Alberta is pleased to announce the member businesses that are Partner Award finalists for the 2020 BILD Central Alberta Awards for Excellence in Housing program. The awards program recognizes the best in the Central Alberta residential construction industry.
The categories represented in this press release include:
Trade of the Year
Supplier of the Year
Service Professional of the Year
Stayed tuned! We will announce the winners of the categories listed in this press release and the New Home, Renovation, Interior Design, Community Development, Safety Leadership, and the “Best of the Year” Awards, that includes Renovator and Builder of the Year over the coming weeks.
ABOUT THE BUILDING INDUSTRY AND LAND DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION – CENTRAL ALBERTA
BILD-Central Alberta is a not-for-profit organization with a regional membership comprised of new home builders, renovators, land developers, trades, suppliers, building material manufacturers and professional service companies involved in some aspect of homebuilding. Its vision: “To be the voice of the Home Building, Land Development, and Renovation Industry in our community”.
To learn more about the BILD-CA visit www.bildca.ca
Lacombe County News published a little blurb on Sol Invictus this week! Check it out:
"Despite the smell of spring in the air, many of us haven’t forgotten the frigid polar vortex that made itself at home here in January and February. Chelsah Thomas, a Lacombe County resident (who also has her masters in environmental sciences), used the frigid temperatures to test out her “passive solar, net zero” demonstration house.
She has also been working closely with organizations like Energy Efficiency Alberta, Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Home Builders Association and Sunridge Residential to understand their programs, grants and other funding opportunities that could help homeowners in the area to upgrade their homes in positive ways..."
[Click below for full article]
The Alberta Home That Can (Almost) Be Heated with a Hair Dryer
By: Deanna McArthur
At first glance, Chelsah Thomas seems like your everyday Albertan. The 34-year-old new mother lives in Red Deer with her husband Jesse, who has a background in construction.
Together, they built the home of their dreams, set against the river valley and surrounded by a thick patch of deciduous trees.
It only takes about five minutes with Chelsah before you get a feel for the passion, and depth of knowledge she has about energy efficiency and passive home construction…
Click link below for full article
Some uncertainty in future of solar in Alberta
Red Deer Advocate
The future of Alberta’s energy-efficiency industry is up in the air.
That has created uncertainty, says Caleb Schmidt, the owner of Red Deer’s Sunfind Solar Products Inc.
“Everything is unknown right now,” said Schmidt, adding he is waiting for more information from the new provincial government.
“We don’t know what’s going to happen.”
He has about 20 projects in Alberta in a limbo at the moment. A third of those are in central Alberta.
The former NDP government introduced energy efficiency programs that provide rebates to residential and commercial properties under the Residential and Commercial Solar Program.
A report from Energy Efficiency Alberta in October confirmed central Albertans embraced energy efficiency initiatives.
Red Deer had one of the highest per capita participation rates in the Residential No-Charge Energy Savings program, with one out of every 10 homes (a total of 4,778 residences) taking advantage.
The city was one of the top communities for participation in home improvement and online incentives, with 285 participants adding insulation, replacing windows, opting for drain water heat recovery or installing a tankless hot water heater.
If Premier Jason Kenney decides to scrap the rebates, there may be a short-term drop in people’s interest in the energy-efficiency programs, because Albertans look at both savings and the subsidies attached to the initiatives, Schmidt said.
“The rebates will definitely make a difference, but there are other factors, such as low energy prices, which also hinders our market,” he said, adding if the future is not favourable, it will impact his business.
“There are very few people who switch for the environmental reasons alone.
“The bottom line is there’s a ton of uncertainty – all the changes and everything is a bit frustrating right now, but that’s where we’re at.”
Another central Alberta business owner said the energy-efficiency movement has already started, regardless of what Kenney decides to do.
The Sol Invictus Energy Services co-owner in central Alberta, Chelsah Thomas, said what the new government decides to do with these programs will not have an impact on those who want to be more energy efficient.
“The grants provided exposure, accessibility and options to Albertans, and because of the exposure, lots of Albertans know about it and know it’s an option for them, so I think the job has been done.”
She also noted the solar industry is “still extremely low priced” in Alberta, even without subsidies.
Both Thomas and Schmidt agreed if municipalities stepped up like Edmonton has done, it will be a motivator for people to become more energy efficient.
mamta.lulla@reddeeradvocate.com
View the full article by clicking the button below
How to save on monthly energy bills? Central Alberta woman explains
Jan. 29, 2019 2:26 p.m.
How much would you save if you didn’t have to pay for energy for your home every month?
A home in Lacombe County is central Alberta’s first “damn-near” passive solar net zero home.
Chelsah Thomas, who built the house along with her husband Jesse, explained a net zero home generates as much energy as it consumes over the course of a year. Located just outside of Blackfalds, the home uses solar energy to passively heat itself, has solar panels, along with other forms of energy, and an off-grid and a grid-tied system.
“So we technically don’t pay any energy bills,” she said Tuesday.
The house is designed to capture passive solar heat or “free heat.” Net zero homes are constructed as high-performance homes, heated electrically and powered by solar energy.
As of 2018, Alberta had three certified passive homes, and some other uncertified ones, the wife and mother confirmed.
The Thomas house, constructed last year, was built using the principles of a passive house. The high-performance home did not meet the stringent requirements, however, and remains uncertified, and is being considered a “damn-near passive house.”
Thomas, 34, explained her house produces more energy in the summer than in winter. This means the family earns credits in the summer months from its utility provider, and pays for energy in winters, which evens out the costs over the course of the year.
The Sol Invictus Energy Services co-owner said Alberta and Sasktachewan use the most energy to heat their homes in all of Canada, based on numbers from Statistics Canada.
In Red Deer, energy efficiency programs are becoming more popular due to funding and grants available from the government of Alberta, said Thomas.
A report from Energy Efficiency Alberta in October confirmed central Albertans are embracing energy efficiency programs. Red Deer had one of the highest per capita participation rates in the Residential No-Charge Energy Savings program, with one out of every 10 homes (a total of 4,778 residences) taking advantage.
The city was one of the top communities in Alberta for participation in home improvement and online incentives, with 285 participants adding insulation, replacing windows, opting for drain water heat recovery or installing a tankless hot water heater.
Home owners wondering about their usage and how it compares to others can go to myheat.ca and type in their address. The map shows potential heat loss and provides a heat rating compared to other homes in the neighborhood.
Thomas advises people to install LED lights, have short showers, wash clothing with cold water and install window shading and air sealing to start saving on energy bills. Those who are buying a home or renovating can add insulation in walls, ceilings and floors, install triple pane windows, and replace old appliances with high-efficiency models.
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"Energized by Passion"
Founder of Sol Invictus Energy Services, Chelsah Thomas, was featured in this years "Notebook 2018", Red Deer College's Alumni publication.
"There's a lot of energy illiteracy, and not jus tin our area. People don't know about the technologies, design, and construction methods available, so it is important to have - not just advocacy for solar and renewables and energy efficiency design methods, but and education component."
Check out the details of Chelsah's journey from RDC to Sol Invictus below!