Heating and Air-conditioning

[birtney]

Heating and air conditioning

By sealing up gaps around your home, using earth friendly insulation and blackout curtains, you can dramatically decrease the amount of electricity you use in heating and cooling your home. The use of ceiling fans and roof turbines can also provide benefits in both winter and summer.

Whether you're heating or cooling your home, keep the doors shut to rooms that don't require it.

During winter, try wearing a little more clothing as it may allow you to drop the thermostat a little. Similarly, wearing less clothing over summer will allow you to perhaps raise the thermostat so your air conditioner doesn't have to work so hard. A degree or two either way can make a huge difference over a season.

Also ensure your heater and air conditioning system is regularly serviced as required - this will help keep it performing at its maximum efficiency.


Building price negotiators

[Alastair]

Re: Heating and Air-conditioning

So how about taking all this to the next level... get more specific about various things rather than broad sweeps of info.

Alastair

[Maryt]

Re: Heating and Air-conditioning

One regret about my home is that it is all electric which means in a powercut, I have no heating cooling or cooking. The last time that happened was in winter with a terrible storm. My electricity went out for 29 hours. I tried to cook on the BBQ wok burner but all I could do was heat some soup during a gap in the wind and rain when it was all over I realised that I should have brought in my solar lights from the garden. I also found a bunson burner in my shed and have a new little gas bottle for that, at least I can make a cup of tea to warm me up.

My aircondition is going to be working overtime for the next few days as we are having temps around 39C to 42 over the weekend and beyond.

[Alastair]

Re: Heating and Air-conditioning

I've got gas central air but it does depend on an electric spark so like you I'm stuffed if the power goes out. I did talk to a chap that installs transformers I think they're called and they cost around $5,000 but in a power cut they will run your whole home. So far I've only had one power cut and that was fixed within 5 hours. The culprit was a local squirrel.

Alastair