Program Announcement

Program/s: Comfort Home
To: All Comfort Home Contractors
Summary: Comfort Home Updates
Contact with Questions: Please reach out to Contractor Support at 1-800-284-9069 with any questions

Details:

1. Photos are required for Comfort Home projects with:
   1. Attic work that’s requesting package B incentives for “wall” work. Before and after photos of the walls are required. Applies to gable end walls, knee walls, cheek walls, access stair walls, etc.
   2. Dense-packing above-grade exterior walls. Per Program Announcement from November 2024: Work scope submissions that include the dense packing of wall cavities or ceiling slopes where the proposed cavity includes pre-existing insulation must include photos of the existing wall cavity conditions to support that the combined R-value and density of new and existing insulation will meet manufacturer installation specifications. Building component example that does NOT qualify: 2×4 wall cavity that has two inches (or more) of pre-existing fiberglass insulation. Building component example that DOES qualify: 2×6 wall cavity that has 3 inches (or less) of preexisting fiberglass insulation.
2. To help in situations where the blower door test might not be performed in the first assessment visit (customer doesn’t commit to work): The assessment blower door test incentive is being adjusted to include blower door test done before work and before assessment submission in the New York Home Energy Portal (NYHEP).
3. If Calculate Savings fails fast with a generic error, check the ZIP Code. Check the Installation Address ZIP Code on the Applicant Information page for a typo. Enter the full address into Google to see if the result comes back with the same ZIP Code or an adjusted ZIP Code.
4. Ensure that uploaded documents are attached in the right slot in NYHEP. Use the Customer Release Form slot to upload the release form. Don’t use the New button or Other Attachments slot and try to label the upload as the release form. NYHEP still sees the Customer Release Form upload slot as empty and will enforce an upload there. The same applies to the Load Reduction Contract.
5. A second project for the same home is eligible for a total of $1,000 incentive if completed within a year of the first project and a total of $2,000 incentive if completed more than a year after the first project.
6. CLEAResult will now be looking for prior projects during Assessment Review and advising, via Notes, if a prior project is found and what package was installed. This will provide notice of incentive expectations sooner than Install Review.
7. Comfort Home package incentives apply when the home is improved to meet all of the performance criteria in the applicable package. The incentives are not based on how much of an area is treated. If the whole attic isn’t improved, then the project isn’t eligible for Comfort Home. If the rim joist isn’t accessible and hasn’t been air-sealed and insulated, then the project isn’t eligible for Comfort Home. An exception of less than 10% may be allowed for a small inaccessible area or small decked area of an attic floor. If you have any questions about whether a potential project is eligible, please reach out to Contractor Support at Support.Residential@nyserda.ny.gov.

These updates were covered during the October NYSERDA Home Modernization Monthly Contractor Webinar.