Energy Saving Tips for Winter

[RPM]

I'm interested to hear what energy saving tips you all have come up with over the years. Had a couple of shocking heat bills last winter and am trying to avoid this year!

My home is 'new construction' and I didn't have the chance to fully winterize last year. I'm therefore currently planning on going back around the house to do the following:

1.) Add another layer of insulation in the attic (not happy with current amount of blown-in insulation)

2.) Seal up air leaks around pipes, cables etc. in the basement and crawl-space that were missed

3.) ... that's about it

Any other suggestions that folks from frosty states have?

Patrick

 

[RJohnson]

One of the things I did was to get the little foam sheets that go behind the switch plates and outlet plates in the wall. This keeps the cold air from inflitrating into the house. Even though I live in Texas and don't know what real cold weather is all about/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif, it has helped with my bills.

Randy

 

[dummy]

Try calling your electric company. For $55.00 our elec.coop came out pressurized the house to find air leaks, caulked and sealed where reasonable, measured attic and floor insulation, wrapped hot water heater and installed timer ( lowering temp. can be a plus also, 120 vs. 140+). Also did an energy audit on appliances. Then they gave us a handful of coupons to buy flourescent bulbs and other energy savers. Waiting on cold weather, but summer cooling dropped off by almost $30/mo.

 

[heehaw]

wow, nice electric company; no indication of where you live in your profile, must be OZ???????? your really lucky to have an electric company that does stuff like that..the only recommendation i would make is to use cellulose insulation instead of fiberglass, it stops the airflow better..
our water heater, cloths dryer and cook stove are all on natural gas, plus our furnace; our summer gas bills are $15 a month, don't let folks tell you electricity is cheaper..i don't think you could heat your water for $15 a month, much less dry cloths and cook.
heehaw

 

[RichNJ]

We have a solar heated house so insulation and air leaks were a priority during construction. Some tips:

1. Used a caulk that is indestructable and very flexible called "Sikaflex". We used cases of the stuff. http://www.sikaflex.com/
2. Used spray polyurethane foam around all windows doors or other holes in the insulation. Be very carefull!
3. Used a great inexpensive clothes dryer vent that really works. Check out: http://www.northerntool.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=18121&prmenbr=6970
We used it for the Kitchen vent also.

As part of our utilities "Good Sense Program" they came out and did a blower door test to check for air leaks. They take a door off and put a "blower door" on in it's place. They have pressure gauges that will tell you how much air is leaving the house.
After living here now for several years we noticed one bedromm was up to .8 degrees cooler than the rest of the house. That may not seem like much variation but even the basement stays within .1 degrees of the rest of the house. So I wanted to find out if there were any insulation problems in the walls. Thought of those "This Old House" shows where they used an infra-red thermal camera to detect cold spots in the walls. Called the utility again and talked to them about this. They said they would come out with the thermal camera and check it out for free - but they siad they usually don't offer this service to residential customers. It turned out there were no insulation problems. The camera does not lie.
The solution was to adjust the air flow into the room.

 

[RPM]

Thanks to everyone for all the suggestions - I hope they keep on coming!

RichNJ - with regard to the call to the utility - was there any particular group you asked for? I am used to just dealing with the usual grumpy customer service reps for billing questions.

I am pretty sure that some insulation was missed out on one part of our house and I'd like to do one of those thermal camera pictures. With these modern house and all the changes in roofline you can't always get to these spots easily from the inside though. I would like to confirm my suspicions before I start cutting into anything!

Thanks,

Patrick

 

[TerryinMD]

Another thing that can help is to use programmable thermostats to control your heating/airconditioning systems. We have them on both of our heat pumps.

We also put a timer on our electric hot water heater.

We turn the heat down at night while were sleeping (65 degrees). Turn the heat up at 4:30 to warm things up before hopping in the shower (toilet seats also /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif).

The hot water heater is turned off during low usage periods with the timer.

Every little bit helps. Another thing to look for is older applicances. You would be surprised at how much juice those puppies can use. Case in point - my brother had a 1/2 keg beer tap in his house. When they turned it off, believe it or not, their electric bill dropped more than 30%. They were floored. So spend some time and look for obscure appliances (like your PC).

Terry

 

[MikePA]

Our electric coop gave us a discount on our rates if we'd permit them to shut off our hot water heater during peak usage times. Before that, like TerryinMD, I had a timer on it.

 

[RichNJ]

Ask for their Energy Efficiency Programs. My utility company emphasised that the thermal camera was not usually offered as a service (free or not) to it's customers. I even offered to pay them but thay said they wouldn't know what to charge. They said that since we were really trying to be energy efficient thay would give us a hand. They mentioned that since we were using solar heat and was in their "Good Cents Program" when we built that they would help us out. If your utility company does not offer this service or does not have a thermal camera then you could try finding a company that specializes in energy efficiency. Before I contacted the utility company I made calls and searched the web but found no-one in my area. There were many companies around the country - just no-one nearby.
If you get nowhere with these ideas you could buy a laser thermometer to spot check your exterior walls.
Try:
http://www.fluke.com/products/home.asp?SID=15&AGID=5&PID=17320
http://www.mcmelectronics.com
http://www.tenma.com/
http://www.jameco.com/
http://www.radioshack.com/category.asp?catalog_name=CTLG&category_name=CTLG_008_007_000_000&Page=1

 

[RPM]

I'm already resigned to having small gains in efficiency from different areas ...

The timer on the water heater makes sense. Mine is propane powered - but the thermostat is on an electric circuit that I could put on a timer. Saving on propane or electricity doesn't make any difference - it's all $$$!

We also just have one of the basic Honeywell circular thermostats for the main furnace / AC. Looks like I'll be putting in a programmable one.

These (along with the foam inserts behind the wall-plates for outlets) all seem like they'll have a good return on the cost ...

Patrick

 

[RPM]

Those laser thermometers look like pretty darned cool toys! I'm almost hoping that when I call the local utility that they won't be able to come out with an infra-red camera now!!!

Thanks for the info,

Patrick

 

[RichNJ]

If you find a thermal camera to use make sure you have a VCR and enough wire to run the video output of the Camera to the VCR and record the whole thing for later. Ask up front what type of connector the camera uses. In my case it used a BNC connector. I used a BNC to RCA converter at the camera and then had about 50 feet of spare cable wire (RG-58 or 59 I think) to run to the VCR. At the VCR end I soldered a RCA connector onto the wire to plug into the video input.
I may still buy a laser thermometer for other things. Just think of the possiblilties. Check your kids temperature. The radiator temp on the tractor. Hydraulic fluid temp. Your wife's facial temp when you tell her you need another 3 point implement. It may give you a split second advantage over the frying pan flying your way.

 

[TerryinMD]

When looking for your programmable thermostat, make sure that you get one that works with your furnace/AC unit. There are some minor differences between heating systems. Take a look at your furnace owners manual to make sure you get the correct unit.

Terry

 

[fishman]

TerryinMD,

That begs a question: What programmable thermostat did you get to work with your heat pump? All of the ones I have seen at Home Depot and the like say they don't work with heat pumps. Did you have to special order it? Was it pricier than "normal" digital thermostats? I would really like to get a unit that works with my Lennox heat pump system.

 

[ronjhall]

John
I replaced my complete heating and cooling system a couple years ago. I had a Honeywell PC9800 installed. This unit is not cheap. It has capability to run any forced air home heating and cooling system that is made. It may be more than you need. But the site has information on thermostats.

 

[TerryinMD]

John,

I have two different models of the programmable Honeywell themostats.

The newest one has a few more bells and whistles than the one Ron suggested. The older is a little more like the one in the link. Yes, you'll probably have to look around for one. Check out some web sites. You might be able to find one for a decent price. If my memory serves me right, the first one was around $150 installed and the second was a little more and included with the installation of the system.

As a side note, we went from one 4 ton unit with propane backup to two smaller units 2 and 1.5 tons. The larger one has propane backup (first floor) and the second (second floor) just has a small electric backup.

I have had them for every house that I have owned. They pay for themselves fairly quick.

Terry

 

[PaulInMi]

Have you considered a wood burning stove or wood burning add-on that attaches to your furnace ducts?

My uncle has an add unit that he can pretty much heat the whole house, unless it gets really cold. He has a free supply of wood though, which is something that needs to be considered.

Good luck.

Paul

 

[PTRich]

RPM:
I love to burn wood. My personal feeling is if you like it warm (70-75) it is cheaper than oil or electricity. Because we heat with wood I don't worry about air leaks very much, introducing fresh air in your house I figure is a good thing if you use a wood stove. Our house is very well insulated though.

PTRich

 

[StoneHeartFarm]

RPM

If you use spray foam to seal around doors and windows, look for the new stuff from "Great Foam". Comes in a blue can and is guaranteed not to warp your doors or windows. I've sealed around both of my doors with it. Pumped in enough that it came out the other side. Worked great and didn't bother the door at all.

Additional attic insulation will also help. If you check Owens Cornings website they have a link to the DOE that will allow you to type in your zip code, heat type, etc and it will tell you how much insulation you need. There are also many pages of instruction on installing the product--how and where.

A big thing to check for is the rim joists. (aka box rims, end rims, end board-- basically, the upright board that lies ontop of the foundation that the floor joists connect to.) Older homes usually do not have any insulation in this location. The problem is that this is a portion of the exterior wall (especially in 2 story homes), so you wind up with a wall that is say R19 with a 10" strip around it that is only R1. Also, if you are on a crawl space, try insulating the floor. I can give you the recommendations for my locality, but I think the DOE would do you better as you will get the info for your state. If you insulate the foundation it will also help, but be aware that my own testing has proven that pink foam must be covered to below the grade level to prevent roots, mice and bugs from penetrating. Penetration is bad as it can make a channel for water to wick your heat away.)

The good news it that home heating fuel is anticipated to be lower this winter.

SHF

 

[RPM]

Thanks for the tips on thermostats and insulation guys. I'm assembling a good list for a visit to Home Depot.

SHF - when you refer to insulating around the doors - I assume you did this during construction? Or did you take off the trim and do it retroactively?

Patrick