Energy Efficiency Rebate Program

Overview

In Manitou Springs, there are now incentives to make energy efficient home improvements on your residential property! In partnership with the Housing Advisory Board, the City’s Planning Department is providing $10,000 in funding towards the Energy Efficiency Rebate Program, a program that rebates homeowners or residents via their water bill for the cost of insulation, air sealing, heat pumps, water heaters, high efficiency toilets, and irrigation equipment. This program will continue through the end of 2022, or until the budgeted amount runs out.

Potential applicants must apply for a Property Improvement Permit and have receipts of purchased equipment to be eligible. The City is allowing residents to retroactively apply for a rebate, as long as they follow the aforementioned rules, and the fixture was purchased and installed on or after January 1, 2022. 

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General Rules

  • Applicants must be residents of Manitou Springs and the products must be installed in a residential occupancy.
  • Qualifying purchase must be new. Products that are used, rebuilt, rented, leased, exchanged, won as a prize, get one free offer, or purchased at auction or online auction are not eligible. 
  • Qualifying equipment must be purchased & installed between January 1st  – December 31st of the current calendar year. 
  • Qualifying purchases do not guarantee approval of a rebate. Rebates are offered on a first come, first serve basis and are subject to availability of funds. 
  • A copy of the purchase receipt(s) must be provided. Paid purchase receipts must clearly identify the approved equipment and include date of purchase, purchase price, make/model, and quantity purchased.
  • Applicants must apply for a permit through the City of Manitou Springs and pay any required use tax. Total eligible rebate amount will be calculated as the sum of the individual product rebate(s) and the use tax paid by the applicant for the rebated product. 
  • Applicants must apply for a permit through Pikes Peak Regional Building Department (PPRBD) if required for the scope of work. The PPRBD permit number must be provided and the work pass inspection to qualify for the rebate.
  • Rebates are issued as a credit to the Manitou Springs Water service account. 
  • The City of Manitou Springs reserves the right to verify compliance with these terms, including but not limited to a physical site review. If review deems qualifying equipment was not installed, Utilities reserves the right to remove the non-complying participant from the program and the amount rebated will be charged back to the utility account. 
  • All terms, conditions and rules of the program are subject to change. 

Rules for Individual Rebates

Energy Efficiency Rebates

Insulation and Air Sealing 

  • Work must be performed by a Colorado Contractor. Do-it-yourself work does not qualify. 
  • Available for retrofit applications only and does not apply to new construction. 
  • This rebate applies to living quarters only, no garages or other unconditioned spaces. 
  • Installed insulation totals must meet the Department of Energy recommendations for the Manitou Springs region (climate zone 5).
    • Attic insulation must meet R-49 or greater, calculated as the weighted average across the entire attic space. Attic insulation must include bypass air sealing to be eligible. 
    • Wall insulation must meet R-20 or greater in 2x6 wall cavities and R-13 or greater in 2x4 wall cavities.

Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pump 

  • Work must be performed by a Colorado Contractor. Do-it-yourself work does not qualify. 
  • Available for retrofit applications only and does not apply to new construction. NEEP
  • The appliances must be certified by the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnership (NEEP) through the current version of the Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pump Specification. See the NEEP website for a list of qualified products: https://ashp.neep.org/#!/
  • The appliances must be installed as an AHRI matched system with the AHRI certificate provided.
  • Existing gas-fired heating appliance may be left in place to handle extreme conditions with documented sequence of operation to prioritize heat pump operation.

Heat Pump Water Heater 

  • Work must be performed by a Colorado Contractor. Do-it-yourself work does not qualify. 
  • Available for retrofit applications only and does not apply to new construction. 
  • The appliances must be certified by the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) through the current version of the Advanced Water Heating Specification. See the NEEA website for a list of qualified products: https://neea.org/resources/residential-unitary-hpwh-qualified-products-list
  • Must be installed according to manufacturer’s instructions, including ducting for heat exchanger airflow where recommended by manufacturer.
ItemEligibilityRebate
Attic insulation & bypass sealingTotal insulation ≥ R-49$400
Wall insulationR-20 in 2x6 walls, R-13 in 2x4 walls $400
Cold climate air source heat pumpNEEP certified Cold Climate Air Source Heat Pump$500
Electric heat pump water heaterNEEP certified Advanced Water Heater$200


Water Efficiency Rebates

Irrigation Equipment 

  • Available for replacement and new construction applications.
  • Rebate not to exceed the cost of the irrigation equipment excluding tax.
  • Smart irrigation controller must be WaterSense certified. See the EPA website for a list of qualified products: https://lookforwatersense.epa.gov/Product-Search-Results-IrrigationController.html. Limit two (2) rebates per service address.
  • Any irrigation rain sensor, wired or wireless, qualifies. Limit two (2) rebates per service address.
  • Sprinkler heads and nozzles must be listed on Colorado Springs Utilities’ list of qualifying equipment which is available on the CSU website: https://www.csu.org/Documents/QualifiedSprinklerHeads.pdf?csf=1&e=lXNIVV. Limit eighty (80) rebates per service address.

High Efficiency Toilet

  • Available for replacement and new construction applications.
  • Rebate not to exceed the cost of the toilet excluding tax.
  • Tier 1 toilets must be WaterSense certified. See the EPA website for a list of qualified products:ws-aboutus-watersense-logo https://lookforwatersense.epa.gov/Product-Search-Results-Toilets.html
  • Tier 2 toilets must have a Maximum Performance (MaP) Flush Performance Score of no less than 600 and must be listed on Colorado Springs Utilities’ list of qualifying equipment which is available on the CSU website: 
  • Portable toilets do not qualify for rebate.
  • Limit three (3) rebates per service address.

Please read: we recommend you speak with a professional before installing a high efficiency toilet. Some locations in Manitou Springs may not have the sewer infrastructure to support these types of toilets!

Showerheads

  • Available for replacement and new construction applications.
  • Rebate not to exceed the cost of the showerhead excluding tax.
  • Showerheads must be WaterSense certified. See the EPA website for a list of qualified products
  • Limit three (3) rebates per service address.

NOTE: The City offers free water efficient showerheads via our Showerhead Exchange Program!

ItemEligibilityRebate
Smart irrigation controllerWaterSense Certified$50
Wired rain sensorConnected to an automated in-ground sprinkler system$25
Wireless rain sensorConnected to an automated in-ground sprinkler system
$50
High-efficiency nozzlesListed on Colorado Springs Utilities certified list$4
Sprinkler headsListed on Colorado Springs Utilities certified list
$5
Tier 1 high efficiency toiletWaterSense Certified$50
Tier 2 ultra-high efficiency toiletListed on Colorado Springs Utilities certified list
$100
ShowerheadWaterSense Certified$25