HVAC
During the winter, a natural reaction is to turn up the heat--crank it, in some cases--to get warm air flooding through your home's interior. But thanks to a tip from this New York Times story, I've been introduced to an opposite species--those who prefer to live without heat (or a frigidly low thermostat setting) during the year's coldest months.
Arguably the biggest advantage to keeping your home's temperature at 55 degrees and lower is a sizable energy savings, especially if you rely on a propane or gas-fueled heat source. Yet several of these homeowners are inspired to go without heat because of the expensive financial burden inflicted by making necessary structural or insulation repairs, especially to old homes and loft buildings.
I love the smell of propane burning at the Builders' Show! Fireplaces were in abundance and one in particular only Liberace could love (Swarovski crystal enhanced beauty shown above). Maybe you'll see one to your liking in our photo gallery of fireplaces from the 2010 Builders' Show.
Coronado Stone
Mantis
This little furnace gave off the most heat and was the most energy-efficient. You could put your hand up to the exhaust vent and keep it there.
Although you can't seem them, ducts are one of the most important components of a home, carrying air from your home's furnace and central air conditioner to each room. If your sheet metal, fiberglass, or other material duct is not sealed properly, you could have an energy leak that is costing you money.
Follow these tips adapted from Do It Yourself to ensure proper duct function:
1. Check for leaks. Any minor leaks can be sealed with duct tape.
2. To prevent moisture buildup, make sure a well-sealed vapor barrier is on all cooling ducts.
3. Use a professional to repair and seal all ducts as well as ducts in unconditioned spaces.
Gizmodo usually sticks to tech but they've come across a couple awesome fireplaces that we wanted to share. This futuristic fireplace looks strangely at home in a rustic environment but for some reason we're scared it would start talking to us or begin sucking everything in the room up through the chimney.
This next one turns in place along a swivel and seems a bit more contemporary. It not only presents the fire in a well designed package it also will hold the wood.
Our main question is where do the ashes go and how do you clean them out???
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We absolutely love having a fireplace in the winter. Even though we're now in LA our fireplace gets put to good use. It doesn't give off much heat but it really makes the living room cozy and adds a pleasant element to the small space.
The fireplace has a gas burning element which we keep covered with faux tinder and logs (found on Craiglist) but we could burn logs if we wanted.
Here are some steps we need to take to make our fireplace more efficient and give off more heat.
1. Get rid of the screen and add doors - Fireplace doors reduce the amount of air that would otherwise be siphoned up the chimney. Depending on the type of glass in the doors, some heat still radiates through the doors into the house.
2. Replace the damper - The damper is located just above the fire and is a metal plate that regulates airflow through the chimney. Some dampers fit snug when they're new, but frequently warp within a year or two, producing a loose fit and allowing air to leak past them. Chimney cap dampers close the entire top of the chimney.
Our old house has a gas floor heater and no air-conditioning (it's always 75 in sunny Southern California). The thermostat seemed almost as old as the house and we're not to sure it registered temperature correctly anymore so we just used it as an off/on switch which is inefficient and costly.
We decided that a programmable thermostat would be needed and would save us on our gas bill as well as not waste as much energy when we don't need it on.
That's when Trane stepped in to let us test out their XL800 Programmable Thermostat. It works with all types of heating and cooling units including gas and electric. There are four programmable settings that for different temps for day, night, wake and sleep. We only have a heater so setup and wiring was a cinch.
Here are the basics to installing a programmable thermostat.
The folks at DAP have passed along a few tips for weatherizing your home for the winter. Since it's National Energy Awareness Month and the temps are dropping across the country, make sure you give these tips a try.
Keep in mind that, according to the experts at EPA ENERGY STAR, improving your home's envelope can save you up to 20% on heating and cooling costs, or up to 10% of a total annual energy bill. ENERGY STAR also states that air leakage accounts for between 25 and 40 percent of the energy used for heating and cooling in a typical residence.
What is home sealing and weatherization and why should you take action?
Weatherization is a term for improving the energy efficiency of a building's envelope. Air sealing is an important component of weatherization because it reduces the flow of cold outside air entering the house and heated air escaping in the winter. Air sealing is a very common energy efficiency measure and is also one of the most cost effective and easiest installations. In most cases, air sealing a home is a minimal investment and only takes a trip to the local hardware store and a couple hours of work. Home sealing not only saves you money, but also benefits the environment as it will require less energy to heat or cool your home.
What are some of the main sources of air leaks in a home?
The obvious ones are around windows and doors. But don't forget about the attic and basement. Leaks in the attic can create a drafting effect that lets warm air out through the attic, while pulling cold air in through windows, doors and up through the basement.
We're full of fall maintenance tips these days and hope to get everything accomplished this weekend which will be hard to do as we're headed to Seattle to bring in the new season and enjoy a few days in the PNW.
But if you're home these are some simple tune-ups you can do for your home that will save you time and money now and are much easier to perform in the mild post-summer weather.
1. Tune up your heating system. For about $80 to $100, a technician will inspect your furnace or heat pump to be sure the system is clean and in good repair so that it can achieve its manufacturer-rated efficiency. The inspection also measures carbon-monoxide leakage. And you minimize the chance of being 200th in line for repairs on the coldest day of the year.
2. Buy a programmable thermostat. Or, if you already have one, double-check the settings. Energy Star says that, on average, for an initial investment of $50 to $100, you will save $180 annually on heating (and cooling) bills if in winter you keep the thermostat set to no higher than 70 degrees
3. Hit the roof. Or at least scan it closely with binoculars. Look for damaged, loose or missing shingles that may leak during winter's storms or from melting snow. If need be, hire a handyman to repair a few shingles ($95 to $125, according to www.costhelper.com) or a roofer for a larger section ($100 to $350 for a 10-by-10-square-foot area).
The Home Depot Foundation and Habitat for Humanity today announced the national expansion of Partners in Sustainable Building, a $30 million building program dedicated to greening more than 5,000 Habitat homes across the country.
Below are five simple, inexpensive energy saving tips courtesy of The Home Depot Foundation and Habitat for Humanity.
+ Save 10 percent or more on your energy costs by plugging tiny air leaks. Caulk and weather-strip all seams, cracks and openings to keep hot air outside.
+ Clean or replace air filters. Dirty air filters cause the AC unit to work harder than necessary, increasing your energy use and bills.
+ Install a programmable thermostat to save up to $180 a year in energy costs.
+ Choose ENERGY STAR appliances which use 10-50 percent less energy and water than standard models.
+ Install low-flow bathroom fixtures and save thousands of gallons of water a year.
Jetson Green has highlighted 5 Common Green Building Mistakes and we couldn't agree more. They include:
1. Wasted Resources - use scraps where possible, save materials for other projects, or donate extras to reuse centers
2. Poorly Selected and Installed Insulation - use blown-in or spray foam insulation products to improve energy performance and minimize air leakage (and coordinate with ventilation system)
3. Improper Flashing and Drainage Planes for Water Management - update your know-how on flashing and drainage planes to control water and moisture
4. Tight Homes Built Without Intentional Ventilation - install whole house ventilation systems in all homes to provide fresh, clean air in tight homes
5. HVAC Ducts Installed in Unconditioned Space - layout and install all ductwork to run in conditioned space to improve efficiency and reduce wasted energy
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