FYI: Energy Efficiency

[surf2wake]

i did a little work myself over the weekend to make the house a little more energy effecient...

caulking around windows on the outside (a few needed inside also).

we just bought this house a few months ago (it's 11 years old) so this is our first winter. with the dropping tempratures last week, i began to notice a draft in our master bedroom, and our master bath was ALWAYS freezing in the morning.

we have "bay" type windows in both of those, so on the outside of the house, the window sticks out about a foot or so w/ wood frame/support. i noticed the underside of the box had some decent size gaps in between the boards, and a little on the sides along the brick.

i used "great stuff" sealer underneath (since it isnt visible) and just reg caulking on the sides where it met the brick.

dont know if it helped yet in both windows, bc we havent had a good drop in temprature yet (man, this past weekend was NICE!!!)

i also installed a new thermostat (the old one was a honeywell that they dont even make anymore)

also insulated our gas hot water heater to try and keep that warm water a little warmer w/ out using much gas.

last month was our first full month in the house. our electric bill was $230 (electric/water/sanatation... Garland Power and Light), but that's with a pretty good amount of outdoor christmas lights running all night sometimes (woops!). still havent gotten the gas bill yet, so I'm interested to see what that is now, and what it is when i get it next month after i did some of the sealing off, etc. the gas bill was $80 for half of the month of nov.

i did buy some of the duct tape (not the normal stuff, but the peel off shiny silver) to tape around where the actual ducts hit the junction boxes.


does anyone have anymore tips?????

[lh_newbie]

It sounds like you're working on all the biggies - air infiltration is one of the biggest issues in a home. Check your door seals and replace them if necessary. That thermostat should make a difference if you have times when everyone is away from the home and can set it back during those times.

Good call on the metalic "duct" tape - you're using the right stuff.

If you have electrical outlets/light switches on exterior walls - buy gaskets at the local home improvement store - you can put your hand by them in cold weather and feel the temp difference. Cheap and easy fix! Those are the best kind.

11 year old home - you might want to pop your head up in the attic to see how much insulation you have. Measure the depth. If it's blow in insulation and it's less than 14-15 inches, that might be something to look at increasing.

Obviously, make sure a professional comes out to check your HVAC system - especially on a new home - have them clean out the furnace and check it for leaks (carbon monixide = bad). At 11 years of age, while the AC portion may work just fine, it may be nearing a point that it could be replaced and actually pay for itself in 5 or so years. Look up the model/make and find out the SEER rating - new units START at 13 SEER, which means it provides 30% more cooling for the same amount of electricity as a 10 SEER unit. At 11 years old, you might have a 9 or 10 SEER unit (assuming it's working perfectly), so it may be down to 8 or 9. Replacing it with a 16 SEER unit could cut your cooling bills in the summer by 30-40%.

Oh, and congratulations on the new-to-you home!

[KantLockeMeIn]

This is our first home with aluminum windows... they're brand new, but they're each like their own little cold radiator in the winter.

Any nifty solutions for these suckers without replacing them? We have all of our blinds closed to minimize airflow, but you can still feel a difference within 2' of the windows on a cold night.

One tip I have for everyone is another radiator in your home, your garage door. We were surprised that our builder went the cheap route since our last two builders installed insulated doors. We went to Lowes and bought 1/2" styrofoam panels and cut them to fit the door. We attached it with construction adhesive to each door panel. Even though the garage isn't a heated or cooled space, by keeping the heat or cold out it means your common walls and floors are more likely to retain their heat/cool.

[KBilly]

Originally Posted by lh_newbie

...........
Anyone have any experiences in gas-vs-elec dryers? I've heard elect dryers are less of a fire hazard from the lint in the exhaust line catching fire.

Brian

PS: We have a gas and elec hookup in the utility room.

Gas is always the way to go here if you have the line there already. Cheaper and less to break down internally. Lint is a function of the filter and line (don't use plastic exhaust duct!) and the fuel doesn't have anything to do with it catching fire.

[aeh]

As usual, LHNewbie, you have helped me again...moved into this 80 year old house and our electric bills are astronomical. As in $140 for 5 days!! Yep, you read that right. Well as we found out, the reason is the youngest of our five units is 16 years old. We were thinking we were going to replace those original windows, but are now thinking that the first thing to do is replace the AC units (one of which--the youngest--just died. It's a Trane and the previous owners never cleaned the compressor/coils). Also we are getting insulation blown in. Maybe windows will be a bit down the list. Goes to show maintenance is important.

[lh_newbie]

Thanks for digging up this thread - with energy prices increasing, everything in this thread is even more important!

Brian

[loves2read]

not a contractor but have read that replacing windows in most homes--even when originals are single pane--is really not that cost-efficient if you are doing it JUST for energy efficiency--because replacing windows is very expensive and their contribution to energy efficiency--IN MOST HOMES-takes a LONG time to pay for the upgrade...

if there are other issues like condensate forming and cloudy glass--not able to open very easily--then you might have other factors that weigh to replacement

max efficiency is from adding insulation and improving efficiency of the HVAC system...maybe with better tubing--
caulking windows to prevent air infiltration--maybe adding solar shaded or thermal window treatments might be generally effective w/o as much expense...