10 mistakes people make with heat
November 15, 2010
(Photo: Getty Images)
Even with a constant flow of information about energy efficiency, homeowners make major heating mistakes that end in higher electric bills and larger environmental footprints.
Here are 10 of those errors, with the cause and effect of each decision.
1. Maintaining a constant temperature
Cause: A persistent myth suggests that you can save energy by leaving the house at a comfortable 68 degrees (a widely recommended winter setting), even when you are sleeping or away at work.
The idea is that it takes more energy for the furnace to reach a comfortable temperature than to maintain that temperature.
Effect: You could miss out on significant potential energy savings by not using a programmable thermostat and adjusting the temperature overnight and during the workday.
Though the impacts of adjusting the thermostat vary based on your climate and other factors, studies show that knocking the temperature down by 10 degrees for eight hours per day can cut heating bills by 5 to 15 percent.
Sure, the furnace will cycle on for a longer period to return to the more comfortable temperature, but it will be far outweighed by hours of savings when it didn't have to work as hard.
2. Cranking up the temperature to warm up the house
Cause: You come home in the middle of the day to a cold house. You want to warm back up to 68 ASAP, so you crank the dial up to 78 to get the furnace working harder and faster.
Effect: No time is saved in reheating the house. Most furnaces pump out heat at the same rate no matter the temperature. They just cycle on for a longer period to reach a higher temperature.
The furnace will take the same amount of time to return to 68 degrees regardless of the thermostat setting. By cranking up the thermostat, you are likely to overheat the house past 68 degrees and waste energy. Just reset the thermostat to 68, make some hot chocolate, and wait.
[ Learn how to get the most out of a programmable thermostat. ]
3. Closing off vents in unused rooms
Cause: You don't want to waste energy heating rooms you aren't using.
Effect: Again, this just wastes energy and makes your furnace run inefficiently because it changes the air pressure in the whole system.
Experts recommend never shutting off more than 10 percent of vents. Sealing your ducts is a more efficient way to save energy.
4. Using the fireplace
Cause: You found some free firewood on Craigslist and think you can burn up some free heating energy while enjoying a romantic fire.
Effect: While we can't make any promises about increased romance, we can predict increased energy bills. An open fireplace flue may suck more cold air into the house than the fire can radiate into the living space.
5. Using electric room heaters
Cause: You spend most of your time in a couple of rooms, so you figure you will just heat them with space heaters.
Effect: This could lead to higher energy bills and greater fire risks. Generally, a central gas heating system is cheaper and more efficient than a set of electric room heaters. Electric heaters also can be a fire hazard.
There are exceptions. A single energy-efficient space heater in a small, well-insulated room can save energy if the central heater is switched off.
[ Learn how to use space heaters efficiently. ]
6. Switching to electric heating
Cause: Electric heaters are more efficient than fuel-based systems, so they must be cheaper and better for the environment, according to this popular idea.
Effect: In most areas, simply switching to electric heat leads to higher energy bills and a bigger carbon footprint. Your heater may be more efficient, but most U.S. homes are still linked to coal-fired power plants. These coal plants and their transmission systems are extremely inefficient.
Of course, it's a different story if you have a large photovoltaic solar array or your utility company uses renewable energy.
7. Replacing the windows
Cause: Those big pieces of glass get so darn cold. They must be the reason your house is so drafty.
Effect: You could spend a lot of money to only take care of part of the problem. Windows must be installed properly to avoid drafts, gaps, and leaks.
Moreover, more heat is typically lost through poorly insulated walls and ceilings than through windows.
8. Replacing the furnace first
Cause: You blame high energy bills on an old, inefficient furnace.
Effect: Your energy bills will still be higher than necessary if you don't start with cheaper, smaller upgrades to improve the energy efficiency of your home, such as caulking around windows and doors and adding insulation.
9. Upgrading to the most efficient furnace on the market
Cause: You want the sleekest, most energy-efficient furnace available because it will be the most cost effective as well.
Effect: You may end up replacing an over-sized furnace with another (albeit more efficient) over-sized furnace. The U.S. Department of Energy reports that most U.S. homes have over-sized HVAC systems.
Again, insulate and weatherize to maximize efficiency, then get the smallest system that will comfortably meet your heating needs, which will be substantially reduced. Also make sure it is professionally installed.
10. Using incandescent light bulbs for heating
Cause: Incandescent bulbs give off more heat than light, so they must be warming up the house.
Effect: It is hard to see this logic as anything but a weak excuse for holding on to the Edison bulbs rather than switching to CFL and LED lighting.
In fact, one German entrepreneur is marketing incandescent bulbs as "heat balls" to skirt EU laws against the old-style bulbs. However, I doubt he is keeping cozy this winter simply by sleeping with the lights on.
More from Networx:
- DIY Home Winterizing
- Best Energy-Efficient Heating
- Cutting the Costs of Home Heating
- Autumn Storm Window Guide
- Monitor Your Home Power Consumption
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Grow food in a shoebox
November 12, 2010
(Photo: Dan LaVange)
I once heard Michael Pollan evoke our relationship with food in a way that profoundly resonated with me. He said:
For a long time, the environmentalist movement had a blind spot for agriculture. It has turned around as it's realizing that food grown with respect for the environment offers us a new positive model for our relationship with nature.
For those of us who live in urban centers, as do more than 50 percent of the world population, our relationship with nature is mostly limited to the experiences we may enjoy on vacation away from the city.
How do we nurture that relationship in our daily urban lives so as to keep alive the connection to our essence and to the whole of creation?
That's where natural food comes in. It embodies the vital link between soil, plants, animals, and mankind that Sir Albert Howard, and many others after him, have upheld as the cycle of life that we depend on. A cycle whose health, vibrancy, and balance is a huge component of the overall health of our planet.
Now, what if we took that cycle home? On our decks or even straight in the kitchen if natural sunlight allows?
That's what Earthbox, a Pennsylvania-based company, has been proposing to do since 1994. Its concept is beautifully simple and effective: Bring nature to you in the form of a food-growing box designed to yield gorgeous, delicious crops with minimum effort. No farming skills necessary. Just enough direct sunlight and follow the instructions!
(Photo: Earthbox)
Earthbox was brought recently to my attention by Jonathan Gomwalk, a cofounder of Upinde ROOTS. This social enterprise is focused on improving food access in Oakland, California's poorest neighborhoods also known as "food deserts."
Upinde ROOTS' strategy is to teach people with no easy or affordable access to fresh produce how to grow their own food. It has secured a retailing licence with Earthbox and provides workshops to educate its customers about how to make the most of their new gear.
I started having visions of home-grown greens, peas. and radishes the moment I heard about Earthbox. Unfortunately, my bright apartment receives no direct sunlight past the early morning hours, which is too bad.
I love receiving my weekly allowance of fresh produce through my CSA membership. And visiting the farmers' market is always a lot of fun. Just as importantly, I strongly believe in supporting farmers. After all, growing food is what they do for a living. And they are way better skilled and equipped for it than I'll ever be.
(Photo: John Athayde)
This being said, there is undeniable magic in watching one's food grow. Witnessing the miracle of nature at work, from a seed buried in the soil to a plant ready to be picked and enjoyed, is bound to transform our relationship with food.
In fact, this is precisely the premise that inspired Seb Mayfield to create the One Plot Pledge campaign that launched in Britain on March 25. Mayfield says:
I've been enrolling people into growing their own food because I believe it is crucial for them to experience the delayed satisfaction of watching something grow. Once this experience has captured their imagination, it is a lot easier to bring them into the conversation about food security and farming-related environmental issues.
My friend Francois, who adopted a very health-conscious diet to support his wife through breast cancer a few years ago, also shares this vision. I was pleased to hear that he recently bought two Earthboxes to create a fun project with his children. No matter how far away they may stray from healthy natural foods as they grow older, their knowledge of food and diet will be forever informed by their experience of a home food-garden cared for with the help of their dad.
Laetitia Mailhes is a French journalist. After many years as the technology and innovation correspondent of the French "Financial Times" in San Francisco, she recently decided to focus on what truly matters to her: sustainable food and farming. Her blog, The Green Plate Blog, launched last summer.
Related:
- Inspiration From Alice Waters’ Home Kitchen
- The Fall (Nature) Collection
- Vaccine-Associated Pet Cancers
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Are most electronics designed for the dump?
November 11, 2010
This eight-minute animated video, produced by Free Range Studios and hosted by Annie Leonard, explains the concept of "planned obsolescence" -- products designed to be replaced as quickly as possible -- and its often hidden consequences for tech workers, the environment, and us.
The film concludes with an opportunity for you to send a message to electronics companies demanding that they "make 'em safe, make 'em last, and take 'em back."
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