The Goderich Signal-Star, 1983-10-26, Page 50- •
An idle
As, all, : gar, many. Canadians in l
Whim areas are con-
Si(idlti, fU I.of their forefathers -
' EIowever, the situation has changed
since those earlier days. Cities are larger,
while woodlots are not only smaller but
further from the population centres. Is
Wood heat still a viable option? Like any
heating fuel, woodhas its advantages and
its disadvantages.
(Renewable Fuel
At its best, wood 1 heating. can be
economical, reliable, and comfortable. If
forests are well-managed, wood is a
renewable fuel. Harvesting fuel wood in
the right manner can also improve the
quality -of a woodlot or forest. Money spent
on fuelwood stays within the local
economy.
There can also be personal benefits such
as exercise, fresh air and a sense of self-
reliance when you heat your homw with
the wood from your own woodlot.
Can Be Expensive
At its worst, unless a reasonably priced
source of firewoods is available, wood
heating can be as expensive as heating
with oil or electricty. Wood, cut with a
chainsaw, and transported long distances,
may also have a high energy cost. Har-
vesting wood can also be very dangerous,
even for the experienced.
Wood heating could cause some en-
vironmental pollution in heavily populated
areas. Wood heating, unless careful in-
stallation standards and maintenance
procedures are followed, can pose a fire
hazard.
Before you Buy
if after weighing the pros and cons,
you've decided that wood heat is suitable
for all or part of your heating needs, you
wood. .
must now set out to acquire the skills and
knowledge that our forefathers (sad
mothers) tools for granted.
Here are seine Paints to consider when
choosing and inistalling a wood stove or
furnace.
+ Do you have access to a reliable source
of wood at a reasonable price?
+ Is your home suitable for heating with
wood? Will you, for example, have to in-
stall . a chimney? If this is the case, a
building permit may be necessary.
+ Have you determied whether a wood
stove or furnace is best -for your needs? A
fireplace, pleasant as it may be, is not an
efficient way to produce heat. In fact,
because cold outside air is drawn in to
replace warm room air that is sucked up
the chimney, a fireplace contributes little
or no heat to a room.
+ Is the heater you're considering well
made and ight?
+ Have you considered all aspects of the
heating system? This includes not only the
heater but also the stove pipe, chimney,
floor and wall protection as well as any
modifications that may be required. Look
for the Canadian Standards Association or
the Underwriters' Laboratyr of Canada
stamp of approval.
+ For safe, efficient, wood heating,
correct installation procedure is essential.
The Canadian Heating, Ventilating and Air
Conditioning Code sets out specific
guidelines for installing all types of wood
heaters.
+ Your insurance agent must be notified if
you install a wood heater. Since insurance
premiums for wood heated homes can
vary, you may want to do some com-
parative shopping.
+ There are a growing number of books on
wood heat that can be helpful to the new
buyer. Talking to reliable dealers and the
owners of wood heaters is also a good idea.
Check all systems....
• from page 8
they don't appear to need it. Replace them
sooner if you do a great deal of driving.
3. Starter. There used to be a general
rule of thumb suggesting that a battery
should have one amp of starting power for
every cubic inch of engine displacement.
Although this rule generally held true with
yesterday's V8's and big V6's, today it is
simply not a valid statement. The ability to
crank the engine efficiently without drain-
ing the battery, but with enough speed to
start the car, is measured with an
amperage draw test.
Trouble spots
If problems with your starter are in-
dicated, trouble spots can be pinpointed
with ground circuit or insulated circuit
resistance tests.
4. Alternator. An amperage output test
should be done on your car's alternator to
determine if your alternator is performing
well enough to keep the battery charged
and serve the needs of other electrical
systems. Defective alternators will not
supply enough voltage to recharge the bat-
tery. When necessary, full field voltage
and circuit resistance tests can help
isolate problem areas.
5. Voltage Regulator. A faulty voltage
regulator will over or undercharge the bat-
tery, possibly shortening battery life.
Under -voltage and over -voltage checks
are essential for determining if your bat-
tery will stay charged or if your battery
could potentially overheat. Circuit
resistance checks should be performed to
identify potential faults when indicated.
6. Cables and Terminals. Dirty or loose
connections can rob a battery of the • cur-
rent it needs to operate efficiently. Ter-
minals, connectors and posts should be
cleaned as necessary to allow maximum
current to flow.
Visual checks
In addition, frayed or corroded wires
and connectors can hurt the battery and
the starting and charging performance.
Visual checks as well as voltage
drop/resistance tests should be performed
to prevent trouble.
With winter around the corner, a
thorough check of the electrical system
should be a part of any winterizing
schedule. But, this alone will not
guarantee you safety from cold weather
problems. A winter tune-up and a com-
plete cooling system check are also essen-
tial.
Home of the future:
time, energy saver
Picture this. You are at the office and
have invited the boss to dinner. It's one
hour before quitting time, so you call home
and tell the microwave to warm the roast.
Then you instruct the air conditioner to
cool the house to a pleasant 71°F. Finally,
you tell the blender to have the Pina Col-
adas mixed when you arrive.
Sound far-fetched? Maybe not. General
Electric's Video Products Division has
developed a computerized home -control
system that can do all this. With the televi-
sion set as the "port -of -access," the
system links all electronic and electric ap-
pliances in the house.
Homeowners can operate the system
directly through a keyboard attached to
the TV, or by telephone if away from the
house. Once a command is delivered, it is
carried through the home's existing elec-
tric wires to the selected appliance and the
order is carried out.
The electronic "language" GE
developed to carry these messages is call-
ed Homenet.
"Homenet is really a set of directions for
transferring information between ap-
pliances," says Jack Francis, General
Electric's chief engineer for home control.
"It is what enables the `smart' TV to
communicate with other appliances. If this
language becomes an industry standard,
all brands and types of appliances will be
compatible with any home control
system."
Energy saver
A home control system will offer con-
sumers a number of benefits. A very im-
portant one is saving energy.
Heating and cooling systems and major
appliances, frequently energy wasters,
can be controlled and monitored for top ef-
ficiency. Turn to page 16 •
...we won't leave
you out in the cold
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