Woodstove Replacement Program

2020 Woodstove Replacement Program Commencement Date: January 15, 2020

Replace your old, smoky, inefficient wood burning appliance with a new, cleaner-heating appliance and receive up to $2,000 in rebates.  

  • An $1,850 rebate plus $150 retailer discount is available to replace a wood burning appliance with a new heat pump. 
  • A $300 rebate plus $50 retailer discount is available to replace an old woodstove with a new, EPA-certified woodstove or pellet stove.

Heat pumps not only save time hauling and chopping wood, but also reduce health and safety risks associated with burning wood. EPA- or CSA-certified woodstoves over five years old and wood burning inserts installed in open hearths may be eligible for replacement. Please read the Program Guidelines to find out more about the requirements before applying for a rebate. 

Cowichan Air Quality and Healthier Home Heating 

Reduce Woodsmoke - Tips for Burning Cleaner 

Woodstoves and Air Quality

Did you know that smoke pollution from woodstove burning can impact your health, as well as the health and well-being of your family and neighbours? While woodstoves may provide a warm, cozy livingroom atmosphere, old, inefficient, uncertified woodstoves contribute greatly to poor air quality. Particulate matter (PM2.5) released from activities such as wood burning has been proven to negatively impact the body, especially the lungs and heart.

Check out real-time air pollution levels in the Cowichan region

If you heat your home with a woodstove, following safe burning practices improves your heating efficiency while reducing air pollution. To help you get the most out of your wood, only use dry wood (wood with less than 20% moisture content). Otherwise your fire won’t burn as hot and you will be producing harmful smoke by drying wood in your woodstove.

15 minutes after starting a fire in your woodstove, there should be no visible smoke emitted from your chimney. Use of a $20 moisture meter will verify the moisture content of a log; simply insert the probes into the firewood log to obtain a reading. If you don’t have a moisture meter, check the firewood log ends. Dry, seasoned wood should have cracks and split ends. Also, if you knock dry wood together, you should hear a hollow sound, not a wet ‘thud’.

Check out the Provincial Wood Burning Guidelines or the Guide for Residential Wood Heating for more information on how to properly dry, store and build your woodstove fires.