by Tim Snyder | Feb 17, 2014 | Energy Conservation, Q&A
A neighbor who lives in a house very similar to our house has lower electric and fuel bills. I can’t tell why I’m paying more than he is. What can I do to find out? The best way to find out why your house has higher energy costs is to have an energy audit...
by admin | Feb 17, 2014 | Basements, Heating Systems, Q&A
Q. Our house has forced-air heating and AC, with two zones. We replaced our old thermostats with programmable models to save energy, but we haven’t seen any significant savings this winter. What are we doing wrong? A. Research has shown that programmable thermostats...
by Joseph R. Provey | Feb 14, 2014 | Home Insulation, Q&A
My house is costly to heat and cool. Where should I begin to improve the insulation? As recommended by the myhomescience.com action plan, the best place to add insulation hands-down is the attic. In winter, air that you’ve paid to heat finds its way to the attic by...
by Joseph R. Provey | Feb 12, 2014 | Energy-Savings Tips, Heating & Cooling
Electric resistance heating is the most costly way to heat your home. In fact, it’s more than twice the cost natural gas per BTU. So it may seem counterintuitive to hear that using electric space heaters can lower your heating costs. Placing a heater in the rooms...
by Tim Snyder | Feb 10, 2014 | Building Envelope, Conditioned Spaces, Electrical, Heating & Cooling, Home Systems, Plumbing
It doesn’t take a big budget to make a big difference in your home’s energy expenses and environmental impact. Full disclosure: The inspiration for this blog came from a well-written post by Derek Markham at Treehugger.com. As Markham points out, humans have an...