Lightspark FAQ

A Lightspark Score is a number that represents the total amount of energy consumed and carbon emitted by a dwelling. Our platform utilizes artificial intelligence (AI) to generate this score, and to make the process of improving your home’s energy efficiency simple and comprehensive. 

The scores range from 0 to 100, with a higher score indicating less energy used and less carbon released. Both factors are weighed equally at 50 percent each. Lightspark’s platform generates these scores using international building scoring methodologies. Every dwelling’s Lightspark Score is locally scaled against other homes in the same city or region. This way, you can be sure that your score is relevant to the place you call home. 

Beyond providing your home’s score, Lighstpark will also provide comprehensive and energy-smart  recommendations to improve your energy efficiency and reduce your emissions. This has the added benefit of making your home more comfortable, reducing your power bills, and increasing the value of your house. In addition, our software finds the best home improvement incentives, and we can match you with loan programs to help you improve your home, make it more comfortable and create a higher home value.

Click here to learn more about the Lightspark Energy Score.

The energy score is measured by Gigajoules of energy (GJ). The Energy Score is one of two key components of a home’s overall Lightspark Score. Our platform makes use of granular property level data on homes in communities across Canada, and advanced AI-enabled algorithms to generate the Energy Score. 

This numerical value represents how well a home’s appliances, envelope, upgrades, etc., help it to reduce the amount of energy it uses, measured in GJ. The score makes up 50 percent of a home’s total Lightspark Score.

Click here to learn more about the Lightspark Energy Score.

Much like the Energy Score, the Carbon Score is one of two key components of a home’s overall Lightspark Score. The Lightspark platform uses machine learning, AI-enabled algorithms, and granular data on each property in a community to create the score.

The Carbon Score represents how well a home’s appliances, envelope, upgrades, etc., help it reduce the amount of emissions it reduces. Along with the Energy Score, the Carbon Score makes up 50 percent of a home’s total Lightspark Score.

Click here to learn more about the Lightspark Energy Score.

Lightspark’s technology is a modernized version of the Energuide rating that innovates on the Energuide technology and provides homeowners with an easy-to-understand 0-100 Lightspark Score, Energy Score (measured in GJ) and a carbon (measured in annual emissions) . In fact, Lightspark uses Energuide data in its calculations and approach. Lightspark uses Artificial Intelligence and algorithms to predict your initial home score. From there, homeowners can take digital home survey that uses building calculations to estimate their scores, and see high-level recommendations. The benefits of the digital home survey is that a homeowner can learn about the current and potential state of their home within minutes.

The Energuide rating relies on an energy advisor to come to your home and measure the efficiency of your home through entering various data inputs into the Energuide software that can give comprehensive calculations of the home’s assets and energy use. The Energuide rating is measured primarily in energy (the GJ of energy your home uses). Often the Energuide process can take a long time from waiting for an energy advisor to come to the house, and then performing the audit. 

The Lightspark technology can help a homeowner understand their homes and “get to first base” much faster. Lightspark hopes to connect energy advisors to its software to be able to do what consumers expect today, using digital technology to solve problems with more ease, efficiency and speed. In turn, this will help Canadians increase their energy and financial literacy and have better “decision assistance” on what home improvements they can make to save money, improve comfort and increase the value of their home.

Lightspark’s Energy Map provides a visual breakdown of Lightspark Scores across a city, town, or region. Each single-family dwelling is colour-coded according to the score our platform generates based on their energy consumption and carbon emissions. The colour scale ranges from green, a particularly energy efficient home, to red, a home that requires more work. The map and its intuitive search function allows you to see how your property stacks up against neighbouring homes, and homes across the municipality.

The Lightspark Energy Map is also an invaluable tool for municipal governments and real estate agents. The simple graphical interface gives city, town and region staff a wealth of insight into how homes in their jurisdictions are powered, and how neighbourhoods could be targeted for energy efficiency rebates and incentives. The granular, property-level data in the map can also help them understand the nature of local homes, and create tailored programs to help homeowners reduce their energy consumption and the locality itself cut down on emissions. 

For REALTORS, the Energy Map provides essential information both about the neighbourhoods in their municipality, and the individual homes within it. The tool gives them an easy way to understand the nature of energy consumption and efficiency in specific neighbourhoods and regions. Coupled with Lightspark’s ability to produce energy efficiency roadmaps for individual homes, the map can help REALTORS understand both the present and the future of the parts of town in which they work. The data can also help them sell individual properties with outstanding scores, or properties in desirable neighbourhoods with high rates of efficient homes. Armed with this data, REALTORS can provide recommendations for sellers looking to improve their property’s energy efficiency value before putting their home on the market. REALTORS can also give buyers a roadmap to improve their purchase’s score once the property is in their possession.

Click here to learn more about the Lightspark Energy Map.

Lightspark compares your home to every other single-family dwelling in your municipality. This way, you can see how your property stacks up.

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