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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1977-11-10, Page 27Page 8 Furnace requires maintenance Most Canadian homes, especially older ones, are heated by oil furnaces. In Quebec and the Maritimes, residential heating .is almost exclusively by oil. In the conventional oil furnace, heating is ac- complished by mixing a spray of oil droplets with air and igniting it to give a flame. Toget the most heat, your fuel should be burned com- pletely. The oil -air mixture should use the minimum quantity of air thatnwill give a "clean" flame. Smoke at the tip of the flame will cause soot deposits, and rob you of heat. How well is your furnace working? Three ways to find out yourself: The major care of your oil furnace should be left to a qualified serviceman. But there are a few points that you can look after yourself : Look for a dirty flame. In the front of your furnace you'll find a flap covering a small hole. You can peek in here to see the flame. (Careful! If your furnace has been on for a couple of minutes the flap will be hot.) Black smoke coming from the tip of the flame is a sure sign that your ' burner needs ad- justment. Call a serviceman. Check for soot. When your furnace is not operating, take a flashlight and have a look inside the box. How much soot has built up? The more soot, the less efficient the furnace - and the more it's costing you to heat your home. If there's a soot build- up, arrange for an" "'ad- justment and cleaning. Even with a well- functioning burner there will be some build-up of soot during the / winter. This happens when the burner switches on, before the fuel oil is properly mixed with the air. The same thing happens when the burner switches off. you can buy a "clutch coupling" or "Solenoid valve" that will help to counteract this. Your ser viceman will have the prices and can install either one for you. Check the barometric damper. You'll see the barometric damper on the pipe leading from furnace to chimney. This valve bumps open and shut as the wind blows and as the furnace cuts in and out. (Occasionally mistaken for a noisy burglar!) It allows cool air to be drawn from the basement into the chimney, acting as a buffer to keep most of the warm air in the furnace. Check the damper and be sure it's swinging freely. If it sticks when you push it, clean the hinges and give them a drop of oil. When the furnace is on, check to see that it opens. If it continues to stick in any position, it means you're wasting energy and money. Call your ser- viceman. Twice -a -year service can cut 10 per cent from your heating bill. Both furnace and burner should be checked and cleaned twice a year - once in summer and once midway through the winter. This will save at least 10 per cent on your fuel bill. For every $400 you now pay for fuel oil, an efficient furnace -burner combination will save you at" least $40. If all Canadians saved this 10 per cent, Canada would save $90 million and 7.5 million barrels of oil a year. You can see how everydrop we save can swell into big savings for the country. Here are the six important checks your serviceman should .. carry out twice a year. Make sure he does: Remove soot. The firepot, heat exchanger and pipes should be completely cleaned. Some experts go so far as to say you should be able to see your reflection in the clean heat exchanger. We're Masfers At Our Craft! See us for the best in * COLLISION WORK * BODY WORK * SPRAY PAINTING "We're. Your Cars Best Friend" CLINTON BODY SHOP CARCOX 73 MARY ST. CLINTON 482-9531 Inspection Door Air Blast Tube (contains nozzle) Transformer Control Box OII Pump Air Control Typica1011.Burner Tell that to your serviceman! Check stack temperature,. The largest heat loss will be in hot gases going up the chimney. To keep this to a minimum, your serviceman should measure the tem-, perature of the gases leaving the furnace. It should be between 300 degrees F (148 degrees C) and 450 degrees F ( 230 degrees C). Often this temperature is over 600 degrees F (316 degrees C). Much too high: It can be reduced by increasing the speed of the circulating fan. This usually requires" an adjustment of the. motor pulley. If this doesn't work - or if you have a hot water or Moto Power Supply steam heating system - possibly the burner is putting out too much heat for the furnace and you need 'a smaller oil nozzle. Try a smaller nozzle -size. Try a nozzle -size 20 per cent smaller or the lowest firing rate recommended for your furnace - whichever results in the. greatest improvement. Your flue gas temperature will drop.,.furnace efficiency will increase and your comfort level should not change. If you feel cold when the furnace is operating, use a nozzle -size only 10 per cent smaller than the original. Better still, improve the insulation in your house. Check smoke number. Your serviceman should draw a small amount of stack gas through a smoke density measuring device. In an efficient furnace, the stack gas will be virtually free of soot. If not, the burner should be re -tuned. Check carbon dioxide level. The amount of carbon dioxide in the stack gas will give a further measure of the fur- nace's - thermal efficiency. Measured in this way, the best efficiency you should expect is about 80 to 85 per cent. Check draft and adjust barometric damper. Your serviceman should check the draft or draw of air through the firebox and in the stack. The barometric damper should be adjusted if necessary. There are a number of other checks and procedures which a good serviceman will undertake. Ask " your ser- viceman to do them on each visit. Grounds at Ontario Hydro's Pickering generating station, east - of Toronto, are being developed to provide recreational areas for district residents. A storage com- pound ,used during initial station construction has been transformed into a 28 -acre hilly parkland and material excavated during the present expansion program is being piled into a hill designed foi skiing. When it comes to Autos - come to McKerIie-MijIen WE CARRY A COMPLETE LINE OF AUTOMOTIVE SUPPLIES INCLUDING ... C.I.L. AUTOMOTIVE PAINTS • FRAM FILTERS °• NASCO REBUILT PARTS • WALKER EXHAUST SYSTEMS M! • CHAMPION SPARK PLUGS • GUARANTEED PARTS IGNITION • VICTOR GASKETS • MANY MANY. NAME BRAND ITEMS McKerIieMfIjen Inc. 86 Albert Street, Clinton Call 482_3445 a. +1, ',i 0 1)) ., 10 • e • ok• i • Page 9 Kinds of lighting make difference "There's lots of electricity around. Surely this is one kind of energy that I don't have to worry about saving." This is an all too common view. Turning out lights that aren't in use is definitely an important energy saving. You save electricity and in many cases you also save the coal, oil or natural gas used at the generating station. Even hydro sites are now limited. Developing future nuclear and hydro facilities will be very expensive,,,_ So, yes, turn out those lights. Incandescent: This is the familiar light bulb found in most homes. Light is produced by heating a tiny filament until it glows. Unfortunately it produces much more heat than light — • about 95 percent heat and 5 percent light. This heat is usually wasted because it's generated at the wrong place. It's easy to be confused by all the different incandescent lamps on the market — general service, eye saver, shadow ban, extended ser- vice. The most energy-efficient is the general service which gives the most light (measured in "lumens") for the watts consumed. Strange as it may seem, one lamp of higher wattage will give more light than the same wattage from two smaller lamps. Example: one 100 -watt lamp will give more light than two 60 -watt lamps (1740 vs. 1720 lumens). Most fluorescent lights are found in offices and schools, however they can bring important energy -savings to the home as well." Fluorescent lighting is over 5 times as efficient as in- candescent lighting. It produces about 30 percent light and 70 percent heat. Fluorescent lighting can also be confusing. There are two main types on the market: "cool white" and "daylight'-' (or "warm white"). Cool white produces the 'most lumens, while daylight is a softer light. Cool white also produces more glare unless shaded. Fluorescent lights are best used in work areas and in bathrooms, kitchens and recreation rooms. Whenever you leave a room be sure to turn off the lights behind you, even if it's only for a short time. There's a general misconception that leaving lights on saves more elec- tricity than turning them off and then on again. Not true! There's a momentary surge of power when a light is turned on, but it's equal to only a second or two of lighting time. How much light do you really need? Try putting lower wattage bulbs in hallway's, basements, bedrooms ,and wherever close work is not done, For reading, sewing, cooking, games or hobbies, use good localized lighting from lamps or specially ip- stalled fixtures. When you're renovating or installing new lighting, try fluorescent fixtures. They're much more efficient. A neglected heating system can let you down when it is most needed. Have yours checked before winter sets in. A barely visible- ac- cumulation of dust will lower the lighting level. And may cause you to turn on more lights. Dust lamps regularly. Think about a dimmer for the dining room. You'll be able to turn the lights down low for a romantic touch, especially if you have candles on the table, The ideal shade is white or near - white and conceals the lamp bulb, both when you are standing and sitting. The shade should be dense enough to keep the bulb from glaring through (but not opaque) and should reflect the light. The light should be sent upwards as well as downwards; with the shade wide enough at the bottom to spread light over a fairly wide area. Light paint finishes on both ceilings and walls will reflect 'the light and perhaps reduce the number of lamps you need. Use a long -life or extended service lamp in those awk- ward hallways and cupboards where it's tough to replace a bulb. This' type will cost a little more. Keep in mind that a long -life lamp produces lower lumens than an equivalent wattage general service type. Be sure that lighting equipment does not reflect on shiny surfaces — the - television screen or a pile of glossy magazines. The glare will tire your eyes. Do you really need a 100 - watt lamp in the light stan- dard at the end of the driveway? Wouldn't a 60 -watt or maybe a 40 -watt do just as well? Are floodlights necessary in front or back? Can you reduce the quantity. or size? Think about an automatic timer to control the time when they are actually in use. Christmas lighting has become a tradition in Canada, but that doesn't mean we can run wild. Keep your lights to • a modest display, unless of course your electrical utility recommends a total ban. Don't put them up too far ahead of Christmas and take them down as soon as the holiday season is over. Try not to turn them on until after 6 p.m., so you won't add to the peak evening load, and turn them off before going to bed. In most cases, outdoor Christmas lighting can replace your normal outdoor lighting. Don't use both at the same time. Now that you've been enlightened, let's see how much energy you can save. Here's how to do it: For one day leave extra lights on; let the TV and radio play away. The next day be conservation minded; turn off everything you can find. On the first day, read the electric meter early in the morning and make a note of the reading. The next morning read the meter again at the same time, and calculate how many kilowatt hours were used. Read it again on the morning of the third day. Take the difference between the two days and multiply by 365 to find out the number of kilowatt hours you could save in a year. How much is this in cash? Check your last electrjc bill. It should show how much you pay per kilowatt hour. Why not encourage your children to carry out this project by themselves. Good con- servation training. The electric meter is normally on the outside wall of the house or possibly in the basement. If you live in an apartment and have your own meter, it's probably in the basement. (If you can't locate it, ask the superintendent.) The dials are normally organized from left to right. Some of these turn counter- clockwise. When the pointer is between two numbers, read the lower number. Your meter probably has four"dials. The right one gives the reading in tens of kilowatt hours, the next one in hun- dreds of kilowatt hour, and so on. Looking to cut heat consumption? Here are helpful household hints Homeowners everywhere sult an insulation con - are finding it will cost even tractor about insulating more to heat their homes closed -in ceilings and this winter, so the search walls. is on more seriously than Choose amounts of in - ever before for ways to re- sulation by Resistance duce fuel consumption numbers, which tell how and lower fuel bills, well insulation retards The 12 most practical heat flow, In new homes, ways to cut your fuel bills use at least R-19 (61/z are listed here, Qom pli- inches thickness) in ceil- ments of the Johns -Man- ings, R-11 13 7,1i inches to ville Insulation Center. 4 inches thickness) in 1. Insulate your home walls. Insulation in floors well. It's the most efiec- is needed for homes built tive thing you can do. With over open crawl spaces. adequate insulation, your 2. Use storm windows or home will require 'only insulating glass. Double about 50 per cent as much glass resists heat loss al - fuel as with no insulatidn, most twice as well as sin - according to the Insula- gle glass, says the J -M In - tion Center. sulation Center. To insulate an existing 3. Use storm doors, keep home, first pay attention there tightly latched. to the ceiling, where heat 4. Weatherstrip windows loss is greatest. You can and doors to keep warm generally insulate the ceil- air in, cold air out. ing, where heat loss is 5. Caulk cracks around greatest, You can gener- the outside of window and ally insulate the ceiling door frames. yourself by laying thick 6, , Call in a heating serv- but lightweight fiber glass ice man to ,clean and ad - blankets between joists in just the heating burner. the attic floor. He should also check bal- If you already have some ancing of the heat- distri- insulation, you can use an bution system to make "add-on" insulation such sure no room gets more as Johns -Manville's Re- heat than it needs, Insul, which is made spe- 7. Clean or replace fur- cifically to bring inade- pace filters. Dirty filters quate attic insulation up may severely hinder move - to today's standards, Con- ment of warm air, reduc- ing furnace efficiency and wasting fuel. 8. Set _the ' thermostat back at night, but only six or seven degrees. A bigger setback will require extra fuel for morning pick-up. Always set the thermostat back if you're going to be away for a weekend or longer. 9• Check the location of your thermostat. The J -M Insulation Center says it should be on an inside wall four to five feet above floro level. Keep it" away from heat sources such as a TV set or a lamp. 10. Turn off heat in rooms that aren't used. If you have zone thermo- stats -to control your heat- ing, consider keeping bed- rooms at a lower temper- ature during the day, If you like to sleep with a window open, make sure the bedroom door is closed. 11. Install a humidifier. When relative humidity is high, you will be comfort- able at a lower tempera- ture. • 12. Develop good heat conservation habits. Lock windows to pull sash tightly together. Close fireplace dampers except when a fire is burning. Close draperies at night, open them on sunny days. The Glassmon of Ontario WE ARE SPECIALISTS IN .. . GLASS AUTO & TRUCK GLASS CAMPER WINDOWS VAN WINDOWS CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT VAN ROOO'VENTS AUTO WINDSHIELDS TRIM... COMPLETE AUTO UPHOLSTERY PINSTRIPING VINYL ROOFS OPERA WINDOWS BODY SIDE MOULDINGS CONVERTIBLE TOPS INSURANCE CLAIMS CALL 524-2136 FOR FREE ESTIMATES ALL PARTS AND WORKMANSHIP GUARANTEED FOR 90 DAYS, REE MOBILE SERVICE ON GLASS TO HOME, OFFICE, FARM, FACTORY tandard AUTO • GLASS LIMITED 356 BAYFIELD RD. 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