Clinton News-Record, 1985-4-17, Page 44Age to MwAro*a ov�wsoar�a w avn.sr ..n aro mwa� •• a.vw avw•rvn�.. s..a:+.<... e•vr...se..�...w•.e•. r.. w•wr
Good ener
Sometimes the people with the best
intentions make the worst mistakes. Energy
efficiency around the home is one area where
good 'intention can go a long way to reducing
energy halls. Sometimes, though, those good
intentions are based on myths and miscon-
ceptions about energy conservation. These
straightforward answers below will set the
record straight oti some home energy
efficiency myths.
- Turning a fluorescent light on and off wastes
mere energy than leaving it on all day.
A widely held belief about fluorescent
lights surrounds the energy used in turning
the lights on and off; that fluorescent lights
must be turned off for at least half an hour
before the energy saved equals the energy
used to energize it in the first place. People
argue that you should not turn off the lights
when leaving a room for short periods.
In fact it takes less than a second for a
turned off fluorescent light to save the
amount of energy required to turn it on again.
As a general rule, if fluorescent lights are not
going to be needed for five minutes or more,
switch them off.
- Turning the hot water off at night is a
y intenti
valuable energy saving habit.
It is more practical to maintain the hot
water tank at a set temperature than to reheat
it every day. There are simpler more efficient
ways to save energy and dollars. One simple
alternative is to lower the temperature
setting on the heater. This alone can result in
energy savings of five to 20 percent,
depending on the temperature drop. A fixed
setting of 43C should result in notable
savings. Some people keep the setting as low
as 38C, but that's a matter of personal
comfort. Remember, though, that a dish-
washer requires a higher water temperature
setting to be effective.
Insulating the heater and the piping is
another realistic way to save energy and
money, especially if the water tank is located
in an unheated space such as a cold
basement.
There are two types of heater insulation.
One is a simple to install tank blanket; the
other is strip insulation. Either are appro-
priate for gas and oilfired heaters but
controls, junction boxes, air inlets and the top
and bottom of the tank should be left free of
insulation. Covering a gas or oil -fired
enc
IS IN
BLOOM
at
HILDE.BRAND
FLOWERS
-
Main Street
Seaforth
527-0555
See us
at the
Home & Garden
Show
" April 25, 26, 27
heater's control box is dangerous and a fire
hazard.
Insulating an electric heater without first
having it inspected by a utility representative
is not recommended. If you are renting an
electric heater, the utility may install a
blanket for you.
You can buy hot water tank insulation in
most hardware or building supply stores and
prices vary from approximately $25 to $50,
while R -values vary from RSI 1.05 (R-6 ) to RSI
1.76 (R-10). The higher the R -value, the lower
the heat loss. Energy savings with an
insulation blanket or strip insulation can
range from five to 15 percent for a gas or
oil -fired water heater and a little less for an
electric water heater. The payback period for
the insulation depends on the percentage of
heat savings and the price of the insulation.
- Insulated shutters and blinds are too
expensive to make the energy savings
worthwhile. .
Custom made insulating shutters and
blinds can be expensive, but there are many
cheaper, do-it-yourself varieties. Some shut-
ter kits, for instance, cost less than $20. An
even cheaper solution to the expensive
shutter is a removable foam board pop -in, cut
to the size of the window and weatherstripped
along the edge for a tight fit.
Insulated curtains need be no more than
in-place heavy curtains sealed tightly to the
wall and window sill with special tape. Or sew
in energy savings the next time you make
curtains by adding a layer of insulating
material between the fabric and the backing.
Ins,ulation values can range from a high of RSI '
1.25 (R-7) for a well -made shutter to RSI .19
(R-1) for insulating drapes.
- To be cost effective and keep out cold winter
drafts, insulating shutters and blinds should
be closed day and night.
Interior window insulation helps stop warm
household air from seeping into the night
air, but it should always be opened or
removed during the day, for two important
reasons. In the first place, uncovered
ns lost
windows on all but northern exposures take
advantage of passive solar gain during
daylight hours, allowing the sun's heat to
warm the house. Second, when the blinds or
shutters are left dosed day and night, there is
a danger of heat build-up between the glass
and the window covering. The windows may
overheat, sometimes stressing the glass to
the breaking point.
- Keeping a furnace fan running continuously
during winter months creates cold drafts and
wastes more electricity than it saves in home e
heating fuel.
The answer to this statement is not quite as
cut and dried as the others. Expert opinions
vary, but for the most part keeping the fans
running on low makes sense. Here's why.
Furnace fans continually recirculate room
air through the ducting and the furnace,
spreading heat evenly throughout the house.
& ergy savings result because the continu-
ous air circulation not only extracts more of
the heat produced by the furnace, it also
makes efficient use of trapped household
heat from such localized sources as lighting,
cooking, laundry, showering and solar heat.
Instead of being left to overheat certain
rooms, warm air is evenly distributed
throughout the house, raising the general
temperature. The end result is that the
furnace turns on less often and the
homeowner saves fuel.
The added electricity cost to run the fan
continuously is about $3.30 per month, or less
than $25 for the heating season, a cost that
will likely be recovered in fuel savings:
People sometimes complain of cool drafts
from the fans but that is simply because room
temperature air in motion feels cooler; in fact
it isn't. But let your comfort be your guide.
There are many misunderstandings that
cloud the road to energy efficiency. The next
time you hear a fool proof way,to save energy,
back it up with an expert opinion from the
Ontario Ministry of Energy. Better to be
energy sure than energy poor.
Book for home owners
If youare reall3 serious about buying an.
energy-efficient house, Canada Mortgage
and Housing Corporation has a new book that
tells you what to look for and offers some
guidelines about what you can afford .to pay.
"Choosing an Energy -Efficient House: A
buyer's guide" is for people who are
interested in something more than the
CMHC minimum energy -conservation
measures required for housing assisted
.under the National Housing Act.
An energy-efficient house referred to in the
title means, in this case, one that: is well
Come and visit us at the
Seaforth Home & Garden Show
Thursday, Friday & Saturday - April 25, 26 & 27
at the Seaforth & District Community Centres
Fashion Shows Thursday & Friday Night
Golf Videos
8:00
p.m.
II
•
insulated and airtight; has more windows on
the south than on any -other side; has.
controlled ventilation and an efficient heating
system; probably uses between 40 and 80 per '
cent less energy for space heating than a —
conventional house; is not too big for the
family that occupies it.
Not one. or two, but all, of these
requirements should be met since they •
interact with one another to save energy.
The book, prepared for CMHC by the
Consultants Allen-Drerup-White Ltd., pre-'
scribes the kind and amount of insulation,
including air -vapor barriers, that should be
installedinceilings, attics, walls, basement
and foundations, according to the .climate in ".
your particular part of the country. Generally
RSI values - the resistance to heat loss will
be higher than in conventional, houses.
No house can be really energy-efficient
unless it is airtight to keep the warm air ih and
the cold out. That means a carefully installed
continuous air -vapor barrier on the warm side
of the insulation.
Since you have now sealed off all the nooks
and crannies that allowed air to leave and
enter the house, you must now be concerned
about ventilation. The best solution .may be a 1
central ventilation system andan air-to-air
heat exchanger, which uses the warm air
being pushed out to heat the cold air coming
in.
There is a lot of free energy to be had from
the sun and, to make the most use of it, most
off your windows should face more or less
south. To make sure they don't lose more
heat than they gain they should be at least
(Continued on Page 13 )