San Francisco Environment Department

Overview

The San Francisco Environment (SFE) Department will work with the Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) to add heat pump water heaters to residential childcare facilities already receiving repairs and renovations through the Child Care Facilities Fund. Because these sites are both homes and trusted community spaces, they offer families a visible, familiar setting in which to see electrification at work. The project provides visibility to a clear health benefit by replacing gas appliances with equipment that can support healthier indoor air for children, caregivers, and the families who rely on these spaces every day. 

By weaving heat pump water heaters into LIIF’s existing renovation pipeline, the project aims to move fuel substitution from a special case to a more routine part of repair and replacement work. SFE will also train contractors who already serve these sites, particularly Cantonese-speaking contractors from the communities involved, and offer installation opportunities that let them build experience without taking on added financial risk. In doing so, the project links community-serving facilities, contractor readiness, and an established renovation program in a way that could help inform how other repair-and-replace programs approach appliance upgrades statewide.

Research Questions:

• Can fuel substitution be layered into existing renovation and repair programs in a way that is replicable, scalable, and financially sustainable for programs and contractors? 
• After receiving training and hands‑on experience, do contractors feel more confident recommending heat pumps to their clients? 
• How viable is this contractor training model for scaling heat pump installations across childcare facilities and other small buildings? 
• What can we learn from the operational realities of childcare sites that could improve broader decarbonization program design?

Market Barrier

Low-income renovation and repair programs are well established and have been providing critical rehabilitation of homes for many years. A standard offering within these programs is replacing broken or inefficient appliances, but typically these replacements have been made with a like-for-like appliance with the same fuel type. Contractors in these programs often have limited experience with heat pumps, which means limited confidence in recommending or installing them.  

Proposed Solution

This project aims to make heat pump replacements the new standard for renovation and repair programs. The team will gather baseline data on cost, feasibility, and satisfaction to create a ready‑to‑use product offering that programs can adopt. 

At the same time, the project will expand the pool of skilled contractors—especially Cantonese‑speaking contractors from the communities being served—through targeted recruitment and training. These contractors will be equipped to deliver culturally relevant, in language services long after the pilot ends.

Theory of Change

By integrating heat pump water heaters into routine repairs and renovations at residential childcare facilities, this project introduces fuel substitution at moments when equipment decisions are already being made. Rather than treating electrification as a special or separate upgrade, contractors encounter heat pumps as part of everyday repair and replacement work, with training and installation opportunities that allow them to build experience without taking on added financial risk. Over time, repeated, supported installations help normalize heat pump technology within familiar workflows and increase contractor confidence in recommending these systems. 

Because childcare facilities are both homes and trusted community spaces, these installations also make electrification visible in settings that matter to families. Parents, caregivers, and contractors can see how the technology performs in real use, while the project team captures lessons about cost, coordination, and feasibility within an active renovation program. By grounding learning in operational experience, the project helps clarify how repair-and-replace programs can shift from like‑for‑like gas replacements toward electric options that support healthier indoor environments and can be carried forward in future renovation efforts.

Project Status:

In Progress

Housing Type:

Residential childcare facilities

Technology:

Heat Pump HVAC and Heat Pump Water Heaters

Location:

San Francisco