Village of Rhinebeck Installs Heat Pumps at Two Municipal Buildings

Half of the Village’s municipal buildings are now fossil fuel free

(except for backup generators)

This June saw the completion of HVAC projects installing heat pumps and heat pump hot water heaters at two of the Village’s four municipal buildings. By taking the old equipment offline, the buildings will no longer be burning oil or propane, except for backup generators in case of emergency. The Village subscribes to a community solar farm, making the electrical powering of this HVAC equipment very eco-friendly.

The two projects align with the Village’s Climate Action Plan to reduce emissions from the heating and cooling of buildings. The two projects, one at the Police Department and the other at the Wastewater Treatment Plant, took advantage of $60,000 in NYSERDA grants that the Village earned through its participation in the New York State Clean Energy Communities program, as well as $14,700 in Central Hudson rebates. After these funds, the Village spent less than $14, 000. The technology allows staff to control the heating and cooling of different zones and is much quieter, cleaner, and more efficient than say the window unit ACs at the WWTP.  Of particular urgency was replacing the WWTP’s old furnace, which was past its useful life and about to fail.

“We are informing our community about this HVAC work so that they can see we are being accountable to our goals. We also want to spread the word to the public that they too can take advantage of CenHud rebates and NY State programs that incentivize folks to switch to heat pumps,” explains Village Trustee Vanessa Bertozzi. “Cold climate heat pump technology is much improved over the first generations of heat pumps,” points out Village Mayor Gary Bassett.

The heat pump systems can work with a building’s ducts or via “cassette”—those white oblong machines you’ve probably seen mounted on walls or ceilings in rooms—and are becoming increasingly popular in our area. They are known to provide a more comfortable solution. Will Caruso, the Village’s Chief Wastewater Plant Operator, described what it’s like to have the heat pumps at the plant, “They have been amazing, the air feels much fresher. There seems to be no warm spots in any room either.”

Visit www.climatesmartrhinebeck.org for more information on the Village’s actions and goals to reduce emissions and build resiliency