DracoFelis
12-06-2006, 09:31 AM
Since winter is upon us, I figured I would start a thread with good "energy efficient" ways to stay warm. With that said, here are some of the "tricks" I've picked up over the years...
Make sure your windows are well sealed:
It's amazing how much difference in heat retention, just making sure all windows are properly latched (vs closed, but not latched) can make. Other good ideas include (but are not limited to): Checking/replacing the weather stripping in the window; taping the storm windows shut before sealing up the interior window (less air leakage via the storm windows); calking (I like silicone caulk myself, as it's flexible and water tight) around the window frames; and even those temp plastic kits can help a lot.
Caulk is cheap:
Have a calking gun handy, with good all-weather caulk in it (as mentioned above, I like silicone sealer type caulk). Then whenever you find any "draft" (leaking air), put the caulk in. And it doesn't hurt to put a bead around at floor/ceiling seams as well. It's amazing how much heat/energy is lost just due to air drafts, and caulk is amazingly effective at helping this (for very little cost).
When you get the chance, insolate:
It's really hard to have too much insolation, especially with outer walls and/or the roof. Now, in many (most?) cases it can be a PITA to add insolation, but you should almost always take the opportunity to add it when you otherwise have things opened up. For example, when we had to replace all of our exterior siding (due to hail damage), we had the exterior surface of our walls uncovered (because the siding was off). So we spent a few hundred dollars to buy enough "bubble wrap insolation" (this stuff, which I picked up for around $30 per roll at a local hardware store: http://www.reflectixinc.com/technology/products.asp ) to cover our outside walls. We then had the contractor lightly tack this stuff up on the outside walls, before attaching/nailing the siding through the thin reflective insolation layer. Result? For under $1000 added to our siding project (we had to do the siding project anyway, due to the hail damage) virtually all of our exterior walls got an extra layer of insolation (and the heat difference in the house is very noticeable in the winter)!
Don't forget "ad-hock" insolation against exterior walls:
And remember, it can be useful to just put insolation up against walls. There are many places in the house where I have a shelf/desk/etc up against an exterior wall. Putting a sheet of Reflectix (mentioned above) behind those furniture items, does make a small but noticeable difference (i.e. extra insolation on the inside of the wall).
Help retain heat, while in bed:
You don't want to be cold when lying down (which you do for several hours/day, if only to sleep). Blankets are an obvious answer here, but not the only one. For example, I have found that it makes a very noticeable difference to put a sheet of Reflectix (the "bubble wrap insolation", mentioned before) between the box-springs and the mattress. Doing so won't make the bed any more lumpy (as the Reflectix is soft to lie on, and you have a full mattress between you and the insolation anyway), but will reflect a lot of your body heat back upward. The result? The bed isn't exactly "hot" (this is a passive tech, after all), but almost all of the "winter chill" of the bed goes away (as the bed no longer drags your body heat away from you, but now instead bounces it back at you).
Use "waste heat" around the house, when feasible:
This is an old "low tech" trick that people used to know, but many in our modern society forget. Since heat is a by-product of much of what you otherwise usefully do, try to retain some of that "waste heat" to heat the home (instead of using extra power, just to power your furnace to produce heat alone). There are many ideas here, that are easy to do. Some of the ones I do include: 1) Use the main kitchen oven to cook in the winter, thereby getting two uses (cooking your food, and heating your house) out of any gas you use (whereas your furnace uses the gas to only heat your house, and so only gives you one task for the gas used). 2) When taking a bath/shower, consider leaving the water in the tub for an hour or two, instead of draining it right away. After all, you have already paid to heat that water, so why not use that still warm water to heat the room before you drain it away. 3) If you need to heat with electricity anyway (a fairly inefficient way to heat, if other options exist, but...) try not to use a "space heater" if you can help it. Instead, turn on an appliance (TV, computer, a light, etc) that you have some reason why you need to use anyway. Since most electrical appliances turn most of their energy into "waste heat" you have just heated the room and done something else useful with the electricity (a 2-for-1, whereas a space heater only heats with the power it uses).
Take advantage of the "greenhouse effect", by properly opening/closing your window blinds:
Remember, even in the winter, you can passively warm your house by letting the sun in via the windows (assuming your windows are sufficiently insolated, to not have a lot of cold/drafts come in at the same time). This is exactly the same principal a "greenhouse" uses, hence the name "greenhouse effect". Likewise, when the sun goes down, you can help keep heat in by closing your drapes. So simply properly opening/closing your drapes can make a noticeable difference.
Make sure your windows are well sealed:
It's amazing how much difference in heat retention, just making sure all windows are properly latched (vs closed, but not latched) can make. Other good ideas include (but are not limited to): Checking/replacing the weather stripping in the window; taping the storm windows shut before sealing up the interior window (less air leakage via the storm windows); calking (I like silicone caulk myself, as it's flexible and water tight) around the window frames; and even those temp plastic kits can help a lot.
Caulk is cheap:
Have a calking gun handy, with good all-weather caulk in it (as mentioned above, I like silicone sealer type caulk). Then whenever you find any "draft" (leaking air), put the caulk in. And it doesn't hurt to put a bead around at floor/ceiling seams as well. It's amazing how much heat/energy is lost just due to air drafts, and caulk is amazingly effective at helping this (for very little cost).
When you get the chance, insolate:
It's really hard to have too much insolation, especially with outer walls and/or the roof. Now, in many (most?) cases it can be a PITA to add insolation, but you should almost always take the opportunity to add it when you otherwise have things opened up. For example, when we had to replace all of our exterior siding (due to hail damage), we had the exterior surface of our walls uncovered (because the siding was off). So we spent a few hundred dollars to buy enough "bubble wrap insolation" (this stuff, which I picked up for around $30 per roll at a local hardware store: http://www.reflectixinc.com/technology/products.asp ) to cover our outside walls. We then had the contractor lightly tack this stuff up on the outside walls, before attaching/nailing the siding through the thin reflective insolation layer. Result? For under $1000 added to our siding project (we had to do the siding project anyway, due to the hail damage) virtually all of our exterior walls got an extra layer of insolation (and the heat difference in the house is very noticeable in the winter)!
Don't forget "ad-hock" insolation against exterior walls:
And remember, it can be useful to just put insolation up against walls. There are many places in the house where I have a shelf/desk/etc up against an exterior wall. Putting a sheet of Reflectix (mentioned above) behind those furniture items, does make a small but noticeable difference (i.e. extra insolation on the inside of the wall).
Help retain heat, while in bed:
You don't want to be cold when lying down (which you do for several hours/day, if only to sleep). Blankets are an obvious answer here, but not the only one. For example, I have found that it makes a very noticeable difference to put a sheet of Reflectix (the "bubble wrap insolation", mentioned before) between the box-springs and the mattress. Doing so won't make the bed any more lumpy (as the Reflectix is soft to lie on, and you have a full mattress between you and the insolation anyway), but will reflect a lot of your body heat back upward. The result? The bed isn't exactly "hot" (this is a passive tech, after all), but almost all of the "winter chill" of the bed goes away (as the bed no longer drags your body heat away from you, but now instead bounces it back at you).
Use "waste heat" around the house, when feasible:
This is an old "low tech" trick that people used to know, but many in our modern society forget. Since heat is a by-product of much of what you otherwise usefully do, try to retain some of that "waste heat" to heat the home (instead of using extra power, just to power your furnace to produce heat alone). There are many ideas here, that are easy to do. Some of the ones I do include: 1) Use the main kitchen oven to cook in the winter, thereby getting two uses (cooking your food, and heating your house) out of any gas you use (whereas your furnace uses the gas to only heat your house, and so only gives you one task for the gas used). 2) When taking a bath/shower, consider leaving the water in the tub for an hour or two, instead of draining it right away. After all, you have already paid to heat that water, so why not use that still warm water to heat the room before you drain it away. 3) If you need to heat with electricity anyway (a fairly inefficient way to heat, if other options exist, but...) try not to use a "space heater" if you can help it. Instead, turn on an appliance (TV, computer, a light, etc) that you have some reason why you need to use anyway. Since most electrical appliances turn most of their energy into "waste heat" you have just heated the room and done something else useful with the electricity (a 2-for-1, whereas a space heater only heats with the power it uses).
Take advantage of the "greenhouse effect", by properly opening/closing your window blinds:
Remember, even in the winter, you can passively warm your house by letting the sun in via the windows (assuming your windows are sufficiently insolated, to not have a lot of cold/drafts come in at the same time). This is exactly the same principal a "greenhouse" uses, hence the name "greenhouse effect". Likewise, when the sun goes down, you can help keep heat in by closing your drapes. So simply properly opening/closing your drapes can make a noticeable difference.