Application rates for Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart and Clean Air subsidies provided through the Otago Regional Council and the Dunedin City Council have increased in the past month.
Otago Regional Council regional services director Jeff Donaldson said the warm summer had seen applications for insulation and clean heat grants drop off.
''Since it's cooled down, we're getting 15 applications a day.''
There had also been some confusion due to the introduction of the Dunedin City Council's new Warm Dunedin programme, which was a separate scheme to the regional council's, although both were funded by theEECA Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart and Clean Air programmes.
Warm Dunedin allowed a rates advance for the cost of insulation for up to 1000 homeowners .
Ratepayers who met criteria could apply to the council for up to $5000 for insulation and heating, which would be paid off over a 10-year period through a targeted rate.
So far, 266 applicants had been approved. Ratepayers had borrowed $3380.78 and 194 had used EECA subsidies.
The council received about 130 applications in May alone but that was partly due to people applying before the end of this year's programme.
The regional council offered the opportunity for homeowners to apply for a interest-free loan to cover the cost of insulation and a clean heat appliance, minus the subsidies - 33% for homeowners and 60% for community service card holders - with no limit on the amount.
Under the authority's Heat Smart programme 12,460 Otago homes had been retrofitted with insulation or a new clean heat appliance or both from 2009 to last month. Of those, 355 were clean heat retrofits.
In Otago in 2011-12, 4260 retrofits had been completed and so far this financial year 2700 had been done.
