HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1988-10-19, Page 7Just how much do you know about the
energy factor in your home?
One way to find out is by taking this home
energy quiz. It's an entertaining way to test
your energy IQ, and possibly increase your
knowledge of home energy issues. En-
courage family members to join in a little
friendly competition to see who has the best
knowledge of home energy issues.
If you pass the quiz with flying colours,
chances are you're already living in an
energy-efficient home. You are also fully
aware of such benefits as reduced heating
costs and increased comfort.
If your results aren't so great, don't
despair! You should learn enough from the
quiz to take the first important steps toward
making your home more energy-efficient.
Inexpensive measures such as caulking,
weatherstripping and extra insulation
usually pay for themselves quickly, and
you'll enjoy the benefits for years to come.
For free information on any of the sub-
jects covered in this quiz, simply write to
the Residential Energy Management Divi-
sion, Energy, Mines and Resources Canada,
580 Booth St., Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E4.
1) In the average Canadian home, the area
of greatest energy loss is the:
a) attic .
b) doors and windows
c) basement
d) air leaks throughout the building
e) walls
2) After space -heating, which of the follow-
ing accounts for the largest portion of your
energy consumption?
a) major appliances
• b) lighting
c) water heating
d) minor appliances
3) How often should your heating appliance
(furnace or boiler) be serviced?
a) after every heating season
b) before every heating season
c) about every other year
d) when you notice decreased performance
or have problems with the system.
4) The filter in a forced -air furnace should
be cleaned or replaced:
a) whenever it is dirty, but at least once a
month during the heating season
b) once a year after the heating season is
over
c) every six months or so
Oil Furnace Efficiency Table
Test your home energy IQ
5) Condensation (the release of water
vapour from the air) occurs when warm
air) comes into contact with a cold surface.
Too much condensation in a home can result
in:
a) rotting of wooden window frames, sills
and trim
b) wet, compacted insulation with reduced
thermal resistance values.
c) peeling, mouldy paint and wall finishes
d) rotting of the building's structural
materials
e) all of the above
f) none of the above
6) The first step to take to reduce condensa-
tion problems in a house during winter is to:
a) buy a dehumidifier and run it constantly
until the problem disappears
b) limit the amount of moisture produced in
your home
c) open windows slightly, even in the
winter, for a few hours each day
7) The main reason for having a conven-
tional fireplace is to:
a) enhance the aesthetics of a room
b) supplement the primary heating system
c) heat the entire house
d) help reduce the amount of energy used
by the primary heating system
8) When insulating a basement wall that
has a history of major moisture problems,
you should:
a) use a waterproof insulation material
b) install a heatiyy-duty moisture barrier
c) insulate from the outside
d) not insulate until the moisture problem
has been eliminated
True or false?
9) An insulation material's ability to keep
the heat in your home is based solely on its
thickness. One millimetre of any type of in-
sulation will always insulate as well as one
millimetre of another.
IC) Installing extra insulation is always the
first step you should take to improve the
energy efficiency of your home.
11) Hot air rises, so insulating the attic will
make a house energy-efficient.
12) To remedy condensation problems, the
earth floor of a crawl space should always
be left uncovered so that it can dry out
naturally.
13) Windows typically account for 10-25 per
cent of a house's heat loss.
14) Caulking and weatherstripping
materials are all the same. Any one type
can seal the different joints in your house as
well as another, so it makes sense to buy the
least costly product.
15) It is important to seal the sill plate (the
joint where the house frame meets the foun-
dation wall) because this area can be
responsible for a large part of the total air
leakage in a house.
16) If weatherstripping is properly applied
to doors and windows, the unit cannot be
opened.
17) For each degree you set your thermostat
above 20°C (on a 24-hour basis), your fuel
consumption will increase an average of
five per cent.
ANSWERS
Score one point for each correct answer.
More importantly, remember that each
question you have answered incorrectly
Flue Gas
(Stack)
Temperature
„(' (..1;)
V.{ (2(l))
121 (250)
149 (300)
177 (350)
204 (400)
232 (450)
260 (500)
288 (550).
316 (600)
343 (650)
371 (700)
399 (750)
Carbon Dioxide (CO,) Content of Flue Gas
2 4 6 8 10 1`_' 14
71
63
55
46
38
29
21
13
4
83
78
74
70
66
62
58
54
49
45
41
37
8O
84
81
78
75
73
70
67
64
62
59
56
88
86
84
82
80
78
76
74
72
70
68
66
89
88
86
84
83
81
80
78
77
75
-73
72
9O
89
87
86
85
83
82
81
80
78
77
76
')1
90
88
87
86
85
84
83
82
81
79
78
Gas Furnace Efficiency Table
Flue Gas
(Stack)
Temperature
"C ("F)
38 (100)
66 (150)
93 (200)
121 (250)
149 (300)
177 (350)
204 (400)
232 (450)
260 (500)
288 (550)
316 (600)
343 (650)
371 (700)
Carbon Dioxide (CO,) Content of Flue Gas
2 4
86
81
75
69
63
57
51
46
40
34
28
22
16
88
85
82
79
76
73
70
68
65
62
59
56
53
6 8 10
89
87
85
83
81
79
77
7,5
73
71
69
67
65
89
88
86
85
83
82
80
79
77
76
74
73
71
89
88
87
86
84
83
82
81
80
78
77
76
75
may be costing you money!
1. d)
2. c) After space -heating costs, water
heating accounts for the largest portion of
your energy consumption. In fact, water
heating uses more energy than all of your
lights and appliances combined.
3. b) Annual servicing prior to the heating
season is the best way to ensure safe and ef-
ficient operation of your heating system.
4. a) This will help the furnace deliver
heated air to all the rooms in your house.
5. e) If untreated, large amounts of conden-
sation can result in all of these problems.
6. b) Simple measures such as cooking with
lids on your pots and avoiding hanging wet
clothes to dry indoors will reduce moisture
production in your house. Opening windows
can help reduce condensation, but this isn't
a practical solution because of the vast
amount of heated air it wastes.
7. a) Fireplaces can enhance the aesthetics
of a room tremendously. However, they can-
not serve as effective primary or sup-
plementary heat sources, and often cause
the primary heating system to work harder
than if the fireplace wasn't operating.
8. d) Concrete basement walls with
moisture problems should be insulated only
after the problem has been eliminated and
the wall thoroughly damp -proofed.
9. False. A material's thermal resistance
value, or ability to resist heat flow, is
measured in RSI (metric) or R (imperial).
The higher the RSI or R value, the better the
material insulates. In some , cases, one
millimetre of one type of insulation can have
a higher thermal resistance value than two
millimetres of another material.
10. False. No single conservation measure
will always be most appropriate in every
case. Before taking any measures, deter-
mine the extent of air leakage from your
home, existing levels of insulation, and the
condition of the heating system.
11. False. Heat moves in any direction, as
long as it's moving from a warm spot to a
colder one. Attic insulation will help but it
will not, by itself, make your home energy
efficient.
12. False. Earth crawl spaces should always
be covered with a moisture barrier. Other-
wise, moisture from the earth will make its
way into the living space of the home where
it can lead to condensation problems.
13. True. The good news is that you can,
reduce this heat loss by increasing the
layers of glazing in a window, and by
thoroughly caulking and weatherstripping
the joints in and around the window.
14. False. Many materials are designed for
special applications, so choose the ap-
propriate material for the job. Don't base
your decision on price alone: inexpensive
materials may not be very durable or
effective.
15. True. The sill plate should be one of your
top air -sealing priorities.
16. False. Weatherstripping is designed to
be installed at any moveable joint. Applied
properly, it should make these units airtight
while allowing them to open and close
freely.
17. True. And the reverse is also true: for
each degree you set your thermostat below
20°C on a 24-hour basis, fuel consumption
will drop by about five per cent.
Rating your furnace efficiency
No matter how you look at it, heating the
typical Canadian home through the winter is
an expensive proposition. While
homeowners have no control over the cosNf
the fuel, they can ensure that it is put to good
use by maintaining an efficient heating
system.
Furnace efficiency is measured in two
ways: seasonal efficiency and steady-state
efficiency.
Seasonal efficiency measures the perfor-
mance of a furnace over the entire heating
season, taking into account equipment start-
ups and shutdowns, when furnaces are
generally least efficient. Seasonal efficien-
cies can only be calculated under extremely
controlled conditions, and are not available
for most furnaces in Canada.
That means most homeowners must rely
on steady-state efficiency ratings to deter-
mine just how well their furnace is doing its
job. This rating measures only the percen-
tage of available heat delivered by the fur-
nace during its peak operating stages (after
it has warmed up and before it begins to cool
down). Steady-state efficiency ratings are
almost always lugner man seasonal ratings
for the same furnace. In other words, the ac-
tual performance over the entireheating.
season will never be as good as indicated by
a steady-state efficiency test.
Most furnace technicians are equipped
and trained to conduct steady-state efficien-
cy tests. Efficiency ratings for oil furnaces
can fluctuate widely from year to year, so
it's a good idea to test your furnace's effi-
ciency once a year during your routine
maintenance check. If you own a natural
gas furnace, you may decide to have it
tested less often since efficiencies will not
vary significantly from year to year (you
should still have the furnace serviced before
each heating season to ensure that it is
operating safely and efficiently).
After your furnace has been operating for
about 10 or 15 minutes, your technician will
perform two tests to determine its steady-
state efficiency. The first test measures car-
bon dioxide concentrations in the flue gases,
while the second measures the temperature
of gases in the flue.
The results of these tests will enable the
technician to rate the efficiency of your fur -
Cold weather car care checklist
When the going gets cold this winter,
make sure your car keeps going. Get it
ready now for better driving efficiency and
improved economy. Start with this easy -to -
follow checklist.
• Coolant: Be certain it is strong enough
for cold temperatures. Drain and flush cool-
ing system if coolant appears rusty.
Periodically add water to maintain proper
=oolant and water mix.
• Engine oil: Truly the lifeblood of your
car. Check for proper oil level by reading oil
dip stick found near oil fill cap. Keeping oil
level full helps your car run more efficient-
ly. This can now be easily and cleanly done
by using Kendall Superb 100 10W-30 or
10W-40 Gasoline Saving Motor Oil in handy
FUN -L -FR, resealable one -quart plastic
containers.
A consistently 'full' oil level adds to
overall engine performance. For diesel car
owners, Kendall Super DSL, the motor oil
engineered for automobile diesel engines,
offers complete diesel engine protection.
• Oil change: It should be near oil change
time especially at summer's end. Changing
oil regularly at ever 3,500 miles helps
engines run better because 90 percent of
driving is stop -and -go variety; creating
higher running temperatures and increased
wear on the engine as well as the oil.
• Carburetor and choke: Clean the car-
buretor and reset the choke to avoid over -
fueling and a loss of fuel economy. A
malfunctioning choke will cause difficult
start-up in cold weather.
• Battery: Maintain proper water levels.
Use a wire brush to free terminals of any
acidic buildup. Carefully tighten cables to
terminals.
• Transmission and axle fluids: Hardly
ever checked. Both are crucial to vehicle
life. Check levels and change at manufac-
turer recommended intervals.
• Grease: Clean wheel bearings of grease
and repack with fresh, high quality wheel
bearing grease to defend against water and
road salt.
• Warm up from a cold start: Avoid ex-
tended idling at warm up especially in cold
weather. Allow 15 seconds then proceed at
moderate speed. This will hasten warm up,
permitting oil to better circulate through
engine. Don't gun or race engine!
COLD WEATHER COMING!
Let us do it now...before the winter cold
sets In. We install, repair and service most
types of home heating systems.
• WEATHERSTRIPPING
*FURNACE FILTERS
•ELECTRIC HEATERS
•GLOVES & TOUQUES
*WINDOW REPAIRS
•CAULKING
•PATIO WINDOW INSULATION
*STOVE & FURNACE PIPES
'SNOW SHOVELS
•WINDOW INSULATION KITS
SILLS HOME HARDWARE
PLUMBING, HEATING
and ELECTRICAL SUPPLIES
MAIN SYf. SEAFORTH
527.1620
Home
Hardware
nace compared with other similar units.
(The table at the end of this article will
enable you to relate the carbon dioxide con-
centration and the flue gas temperature to
the steady-state efficiency of your furnace).
Discuss the findings and ask the technician
for advice on remedying any problems. If
the efficiency rating is low, the technician
should make the necessary adjustments and
follow this up with another efficiency test.
Older oil furnaces should have a steady-
state efficiency of 70 to 80 per cent. Newer
conventional units have ratings of about 85
per cent. Condensing oil furnaces can offer
steady-state efficiencies of up to 95 per cent.
Natural gas furnaces must attain a
steady-state efficiency rating of 75 per cent
to be certified by the Canadian Gas Associa-
tion. Many models surpass this rating and
some achieve 98 per cent steady-state
efficiency.
LEAKY GAS TANK?
REPLACE IT!, ,
RENU AND3s1EW\
TANKS, '
at
SEAFORTH AUTOMOTIVE
GAS TANK
RENU
SERVICE
,
1iJ,
J�
Ni-
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We're more than
just Auto Parts!
527-0880
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BY
BRUCE WILBEE & FAMILY
SEAFORTI,.
AUTOMOTIVE
58
Main St. Seaforth