Home improvement: Cooling & heating

October 7, 2011

Button up your house for winter

As leaves flutter to the ground and the temperature begins to plummet, heating bills move in the opposite direction. Heat and oil prices continue to rise, which can cut a large chunk out of a home heating budget this winter.

7:38 AM PDT, October 7, 2011

Making net-zero homes a reality

With a steamy summer behind us and colder temperatures on the horizon, prospective homebuyers are paying closer attention to energy efficiency, especially when it comes to the bottom line on home purchases.

1:09 PM PDT, June 17, 2011

Do air ducts need cleaning?

With so many things a homeowner can lose sleep over – leaky pipes, voracious carpenter ants, a crumbling foundation – it's nice to be able to cross something off the Money Pit list.

January 2, 2009

Take control of heating costs

Don't you love the advertisements where homeowners talk about saving $40,000 on furnishings they bought from some club-member warehouse? That's saving 40 grand. So let's see: if a good discount is about 20 percent, that means they were going to pay $200,000 for furniture but practically stole it for $160,000.

May 9, 2008

ENERGY CHECK

Are you ready for 'solar-ready' property?

Q: I saw a newspaper article recently about a new home that had the plumbing and wiring in place for solar systems if the buyers wanted to install them in the future. They called this a "solar-ready" home.

April 17, 2008

ENERGY CHECK

Getting your ducts in a row can improve air

Q: We had a handyman doing some work around our house last week, and he told us that he thought many of our problems with uncomfortable rooms and high energy bills were the result of duct leaks. He then said the biggest thing to worry about was potential backdrafting problems when we use our fireplace or gas stove, and we should get the ducts fixed right away. Was he trying to scare us or is there something here to worry about?

March 9, 2008

ENVIRONMENT

Paying of the green

People have been talking about "greening" their homes for years. Now, it seems, they're getting closer to putting their money where their mouths are.

February 21, 2008

The heat is on to buy furnace

It's always a tough situation when a major appliance, such as your furnace, decides it's had enough of working for a living and chooses to quit producing any more heat. You have the heating contractor out to examine the situation, and you end up with options to repair the old furnace, replace it with a new one of the same type or replace it with an upgraded model that is more energy efficient.

February 17, 2008

YOUR A/V GUY

Power player: Device sniffs out electricity hogs

OK, power trippers. Here's another weapon in the fight against high electricity bills: a power meter called Watts Up? that asks a question but knows the answer to what's abusing power around the house.

February 14, 2008

Put the freeze on high heating bills

Homeowners have long been aware that adding insulation makes sense. Actually, it makes "dollars and cents" -- in the form of energy savings.

February 10, 2008

Down to earth

Steve and Jackie Smith were early adopters of geothermal energy in the 6,000-square-foot home they built in Prairie Grove in 2002. Their three geothermal units provide almost all the heating and cooling, as well as hot water, they need in their McHenry County house.

February 7, 2008

The next big thing: green mansions

The house Joe Monfredo built in Davidsonville, Md., has seven bedrooms, 6 1/2 baths and four fireplaces. The home is almost five times the size of the average new American house.

February 1, 2008

'Green' light bulbs may have their dark side

As Americans set up their new computers, TVs and other electronic goodies from the holidays, the increasingly eco-minded consumer is wondering: What should I do with the old ones?

January 24, 2008

Cold facts on frozen pipes

Fixing a pipe leak isn't difficult if you're home when the pipe bursts, and have solder, flux and a propane torch in the toolbox. That's for copper pipe; it's even easier with plastic. But things can turn ugly at 3 a.m. when you stumble down the basement stairs searching for that gushing sound and step into ankle-deep water.

January 24, 2008

ENERGY CHECK

All fired up about more efficient home furnaces

Q: I read a newspaper story about new energy standards for home furnaces and wonder how this affects me. Does this mean that I need to replace my current furnace now?

January 18, 2008

Gas or wood, flame makes people glow

Pile up the kindling, turn on the gas or flip the switch. It's the time of year when even the most occasional of users decides it might be nice to see some flame.

January 17, 2008

Take control of home heating

Thermostats used to be primitive on-off switches that required a lot of tweaking -- up a hair to ward off a chill, then down a hair to cool off.

December 27, 2007

Put a lid on spiraling heating bills

Robert Whale knew his 1920s Sears Roebuck bungalow wasn't exactly airtight, but he didn't know just how drafty it was until an energy auditor flipped on the switch to a large fan he had placed in the doorway.

December 13, 2007

Keeping the house warm without breaking the bank

Homeowners can expect greater heating costs this winter, as the combination of a colder weather forecast intersects with higher energy prices.

November 16, 2007

'GREEN' COMFORT

Depths below home can keep it toasty, cool

Anyone who has retreated to a cold basement on a hot day knows the concept is as old, quite literally, as the hills. Beneath the Earth's surface, the temperature is constant. By tapping that, homeowners with geothermal systems can cool their homes, or provide heat.

November 15, 2007

ENERGY CHECK

The heat is on to buy high-efficiency furnace

Q. We had trouble affording our heating bills last winter, so I guess we need to start looking for a good energy-efficient furnace for this winter. Any suggestions for the best way to find a good one?

November 8, 2007

Put a lid on heating costs with insulation

Upgrading the level of your attic's insulation makes a wonderful difference in comfort and energy efficiency, and in most homes it's also fairly easy to do. Here are some step-by-step suggestions for retrofitting attic insulation:

October 25, 2007

Lower bills with 5 energy savers

This time of year, homeowners' thoughts often turn to ways of keeping their heating bills in check as the weather cools.

October 19, 2007

ASK AN EXPERT

Radiant heat is well worth considering

Gary Hayden is the vice chairman of a committee that oversees radiant heating development with the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers. He has about 16 years of experience with radiant heating design, installation and consultation and is the owner of Premier Comfort Systems in Norfolk, Va.

September 23, 2007

THE NATION

Going 'green' can mean getting green

Environmentally conscious homeowners can trick out their homes with a bevy of "green" products, including carpets, windows -- even dog beds. Now, they can pay for those homes with green mortgages.

September 13, 2007

ENERGY CHECK

Keep your cool when attic full of hot air

Q. I don't know if you've ever gotten questions about this, but I went up to our attic a couple of weeks ago to get some suitcases for our vacation and it was so hot that I couldn't even get into the storage area. Is there something wrong with our house and if so, what can we do about it?

March 13, 2008

HOME REMEDIES

Getting zapped by static no fun

Q: We have a two-story home, almost a year old. When we moved in, we had a humidifier installed in one of the two furnaces for the lower level. Because of the cold winter so far, we have been experiencing static shocks on the upstairs level. About three to four weeks ago, we had a second humidifier installed in the other furnace. (I have changed the filter in the first unit and can see that there is a water flow in both units). I have been adjusting the humidity level per the manufacturer's direction but continue to get shocks. At one point, I turned the humidity all the way up to see if that would help, but of course I only got water condensation on the windows. I am back to adjusting per directions, but nothing seems to help. Any suggestions or solutions?

February 21, 2008

Give your attic a breath of air

Winter weather can find every weak link in a house to create drafts and raise utility bills. So how dumb is it to purposely let cold air into an attic or crawl space? Not dumb at all -- in fact, it's essential, and a component of each of the four building code systems in the country.

January 17, 2008

Take control of home heating

Thermostats used to be primitive on-off switches that required a lot of tweaking -- up a hair to ward off a chill, then down a hair to cool off.

July 26, 2007

ENERGY CHECK

Keep cool, keep costs down with these tips

Q. We have some air-conditioning window units that we use when it gets too hot in summer, but we sure hate to turn them on. Between their impact on our energy bill and the cooped-up feeling we get when the house is closed up, we have started to hate hot weather. Any alternatives that really work?

June 21, 2007

ENERGY CHECK

Seeing the light with solar power

Q. The more energy costs go up, the more determined I get to someday be energy-independent. Are the costs of solar electricity ever going to be cost-effective for the average homeowner?