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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1981-10-28, Page 46Page 16 Are your dollars going up the chimney ? Imagine yourself at home on a, cold, rainy night. You've settled into your favourite chair, the family pooch is at your feet, and there's a warm fire in the fireplace. Every once in a while you lean down and toss a handful of crisp, new dollar bills onto the fire. If you can imagine everything except the last part, you may find it unsettling to learn that your heating system doesn't need any help from you to send your dollars up the flue. An inefficient furnace, poor insulation in your home, or an I -don't -care attitude toward energy con- servation, can make your fuel bill look like the national debt. A new federal gover- nment office, Enersave- Heatline, has information that can help you avoid the feeling you're shovelling cash directly into . your furnace. You can call them at 1-800-267- 9563 (toll free), or write to them at P.O. Box 9510, Postal Station E, Ottawa, K1S 5B5. The Enersave office has a number of useful free booklets, including "100 Ways to Save Energy and Money in the Home," "The Billpayer's Guide to Furnace Ser- vicing," and "Keeping the Heat In." The Enersave office can also advise you on the best type of insulation to use for various areas in your home. If you're just getting started on an insulation project, you may want to take ad- vantage of their com- puterized home analysis service. Based on a questionnaire , which you fill out, the service can pinpoint major areas of heat loss in your home, suggest modifications to correct the problem, and provide an estimate of the fuel savings possible by following recom- mendations. The "Billpayer's Guide to Furnace Servicing" is particularly topical as the cold weather closes in. Since your furnace uses most of the fuel you pay for, it's important that it do so efficiently. The booklet explains the importance of an annual inspection and describes the steps a good ser- viceman should take to ensure maximum fur- nace performance. "100 Ways to Save Energy and Money in the Home" also includes a section on furnaces, but generally covers a wide range of ideas for saving energy when using ap- pliances, electric lights, outdoor equipment, or disposing of garbage. "Keeping The Heat In" is a handy book for those planning to insulate. It explains where and how to install extra in- sulation, and offers hints on selecting a reliable contractor. If you are planning to insulate, you'll' be in- terested in the federal government grant for the purchase of insulation materials. Details are available from the Canadian Home Insulation Program. Start thinking about how you can conserve every day. Once upon a time, the word "energy" was defined subjectively. Either you had .it or you didn't and how much you had accounted for what you could or couldn't do. Today, energy (or lack of it) is something else. It makes people turn down thermostats, switch to small cars, miss the ever - fading Christmas lighting spectaculars and insulate everything insight. That kind of energy is on everyone's mind today as we face a world-wide energy shortage. And each of us is expected to do our bit for energy conservation. Recognizing that in- dividuals have almost no control over metering household energy use, the Canadian government almost a century ago enacted Electricity and Gas Inspection Acts to regulate any procedure used to measure. energy consumed and which would therefore be a factor in the final bill. To administer these acts, Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada begins with manufacturers of metering devices. Before any such equipment can be sold, it is submitted to Ottawa for rigorous testing as to per- formance, reliability and accuracy. When a meter is ready for service, it is inspected and sealed against tampering, then in- spected yet again on a periodic basis throughout its life. Even installation and service techniques are subject to expert department surveillance. But by far the most visible department function on behalf of electricity and gas consumers is its assistance in securing customer refunds. No other federal acts provide this avenue of redress for error, and benefits apply at all levels, whether industrial, commercial or domestic, so that all are treated fairly. The thing to do when you suspect an energy crisis in your home is to account for recent rate hikes or increased use of appliances. Then contact the consumer service people at your utility to see if they can help you find a reason for higher bills. If they can't, con- tact the district inspector at the nearest office of Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada. There's a small fee for testing your meter, refundable if errors in billing or meter accuracy are confirmed and you're, welcome to be present for the test. Should miscalculations exist, the department will arrange a full refund, with the co- operation of the utility concerned. Even if there's no crisis, start thinking about how you can conserve energy every day. It pays off — in lower bills and a brighter future! Fuel crisis fosters new gas savings A fuel crisis has fostered a flurry of ideas and inven- tions to save gasoline. Some carry extravagant savings claims, others are more con- servative and valid. The lat- ter applies to a $75 to $100 gas saver that can offer a 200 per cent return on invest- ment over the course of a year. It's called engine care. Car Care Council points out that these figures won't apply to everyone, but they are interesting nevertheless. If you drive 25,000 km a year in a cal that normally gets four km per litre, you are us- ing about 6,000 litres a year. At 34 cents a litre that's an annual gas bill of $2,000. But if your car needs spark plugs, an air filter plus possibly a few other parts and adjustments, you might by losing 10 per cent of your efficiency. That's $200 worth Ai gas down the drain. Now you speed $75 to $100 for a minor tune-up. Your engine runs efficiently once more and you have begun saving that $200 for a modest $75 to $100 investment. KERQ'SUN Portable Heaters from Edward Fuels THE GOOD NEWS IN HOME HEATING *99.9% FUEL EFFICIENCY *CLEAN -BURNING *NEEDSNOCHIMNEY * ADVANCED SAFETY FEATURES AND *SAVES YOU MONEY! Kero-Sun Portable Heaters resemble the old-fashioned kerosene heaters you may remember about as much as today's supersonic jets resemble yesterday's prop planes: This heater is 99.90/0 fuel-efficient. Even more importantly, it needs no chimney. So it delivers almost all of that heat'directly to you. and your family. Where you need it. When you need It. The average gas or oil burner Is. often no more than 45% to 65% efficient in delivering heat to you because it has a chim- ney and because the heat has to go a long way through ducts or pipes. This really. means that every time you pay a'100 oil or gas bill this winter, as much as '50 could be wasted. When you consider how much money you may be wasting with your central heating system', you begin to see a Kero-Sun Portable Heater is an idea whose time has come. Even if you only use it to supplement your central heating system, a Kero-Sun Portable Heater can cut your fuel bills by letting you lower your thermostat and heat only the rooms you're M. ,There are many Kero- Sun Portable Heaters to choose from. But a medium-sized one, the Radiant 10' can keep a 4.0 m x 7.5 m room cozy and warm all evening for a few cents an hour. Just compare that with what you're paying to heat such a large room judging from the size of. your last fuel bill! Come on in and let us give you a demon- stration. You'll be impressed. Omni 95*y Rated at 13 100 BTUs per hour Gives you a ported balance of high heating output plus long burning time tor any application from a living room to a garage Operates up 10 28 hours on 7 5 liters 11 56 gall kerosene 52 1 cm (21 ) high 442cm1173, Ibase 100kg 122 lbs. 1 Radiant en, Rated at 8,200 BTUs per hour The moat compact, most economical Kero-Sun radiant model. Great for smaller heating )obs. Operates from 28 to 39 hours on 6 4 liters (1 42 gal) kerosene 43 7 cm (173/4') nigh, 52.8 cm (203') wide, 34.2 cm (133/4") deep 9 6 kg (21 11bs ) 4 $179. Omni 15*r Rated al 6,700 BTUs per hour Smallest, lowest priced Kero-Sun is extra tough for camping or around the house Offers cooking surface Operates up to 38 hours on 6 4 liters (1 42 gal )kerosene 46 0 cm (18'4'' high, 41 2 cm (161/4") bade 6 4 kg (14 1 lbs ) CUT HEATING COSTS! See us today for a Kero-Sun Portable Heater EDWARD FUELS ANGLESEA ST., GODERICH 524-8386