Senior living provider The Springs Living has over 20 locations across Oregon, Washington and Montana. The organization has one goal in mind: treating their residents like family through quality service. Since 1996, The Springs Living has maintained a high standard of care at their senior living communities. Through regular facility improvements and upgrades, the organization continuously innovates to further enhance the lives of their residents. Heating and cooling equipment replacements are one of the most common projects their maintenance staff deals with.

To avoid compromising the quality of care they provide, community management looks for long-term solutions as opposed to quick fixes when problems arise. When old, inefficient HVAC equipment at one of their communities, The Springs at Clackamas Woods, “started to fail on a regular basis,” said Chris Shelby, director of design at The Springs Living, they began making strategic replacements to improve heating and cooling reliability while minimizing resident inconvenience. “Increased comfort and more dependable equipment make a big impact,” he said.

The organization’s desire to lower operational costs by reducing energy usage was an additional reason Shelby chose to replace equipment instead of continuing to make repairs. “We consider energy efficiency with all capital projects and maintenance costs were creeping up as well,” he said. Over the past few years, The Springs at Clackamas Woods has reduced energy waste and ensured more consistent HVAC performance by installing new packaged terminal heat pumps (PTHPs) and a new condensing gas furnace.

PTHPs provide quality heating and cooling that residents can count on

Since 2020, staff at The Springs at Clackamas Woods have replaced 47 space heating and conditioning units with energy-efficient PTHPs. The organization has received more than $12,000 in cash incentives from Energy Trust of Oregon for purchasing and installing these PTHPs. Combined, the superior efficiency of these units will save The Springs Living just over $11,700 per year in energy costs and pay for themselves in under three years.

The residents say the PTHPs are easy to use, and the dependable in-unit space conditioning is especially appreciated as recent summers have been very hot in Milwaukie. Reduced noise was another benefit residents noted. “The new PTHPs are so quiet. They don’t rattle like the old ones did,” Shelby said.

A new furnace made HVAC operations more environmentally friendly

Using energy more efficiently goes hand-in-hand with The Springs Living’s commitment to minimizing their impact on the environment, which is something their residents hold them accountable for. “As we make replacements, our residents expect us to take steps to be less wasteful,” Shelby said. “Many of them are really focused on sustainability and want our facilities to reflect that.”

In 2023, The Springs at Clackamas Woods installed a new high-efficiency condensing gas furnace that reaches an Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) rating of 95 percent. Older furnace models, like the one The Springs Living replaced, typically only hit an AFUE rating of 56 to 70%. The Springs Living received cash incentives from Energy Trust to help reduce the cost of the new furnace.

To save even more energy, The Springs Living added a secondary heat exchanger to the condensing furnace that recycles wasted heat from outgoing air. The captured heat warms incoming air, which reduces the amount of effort required by the furnace. “Removing heat from the air before it’s exhausted helps us provide residents with clean, fresh air while using less energy,” Shelby said.

Energy-efficient equipment helps keep residents safer and more comfortable

At every one of their communities, The Springs Living staff tries to go above and beyond code requirements to realize more energy savings and install better systems. In his opinion, the facility upgrades at The Springs at Clackamas Woods have only had a positive impact on residents. “By making the environment in our community better through new equipment, we’re improving our residents’ quality of life,” Shelby said.

The knowledge and experience The Springs Living staff gained through working with Energy Trust has made identifying potential projects and budgeting easier for their team. Shelby plans to replace aging equipment in other communities that need frequent maintenance to get ahead of potential failures. “Utilizing incentives from Energy Trust makes installing higher-quality equipment and systems possible,” he said. “It has really opened the door for us as we retrofit our current communities and plan new ones.”

Energy Trust can help your assisted or senior living facility become more efficient for less. Head to our multifamily property incentives page to learn how to get started.

Photo courtesy of The Springs Living