Historical February 1994 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
Considering the extreme cold weather St. Louis has been experiencing in the past few weeks, improving the heating system of a house is a topic of great importance for homeowners. No matter the age or type of heating system, there are a few basic steps that can be taken to ensure that a comfortable temperature can be maintained while minimizing cost.
In this article I will attempt to point out some of these steps. One low cost energy saver is attic insulation.
The payback for insulating your attic can be as low as one year, depending on other factors. An. R-value of 38 is sufficient for Missouri winters. Doors and windows are a big source of heat loss. Taking the time to weather strip doors and windows can drastically reduce heat loss.
I use polyethylene tubing and felt strips to seal old doors and windows.
These products are available at the local hardware store at a very low cost.
A programmable thermostat can pay for itself in less than one heating season if you have a fixed schedule during the week. Programming the thermostat to maintain a lower ternperature while you are at work can save a lot of unnecessary heating costs.
The same holds true during the night when you are under a comforter.
There are certain steps that you can take to increase the effectiveness of your heating system as well.
In the case of steam furnaces with radiators, draining and refilling the system once every two weeks will improve the efficiency by eliminating the residual deposits of rust and other minerals from the boiler.
The steam control valves (the knob like attachments on one side of the radiators) impact how much heat passes through the radiator.
If one room is getting warmer than you need it to be, putting a new valve with a tighter rating will decrease the amount of heat allowed into that radiator.
The reverse holds true for a room that is not getting sufficient heat.
In essence, the heating has to be balanced to produce the optimum temperature in each room.
In the case of hot water systems, as with steam, draining and refilling the system improves efficiency.
The water pump needs maintenance once a year before the heating season. Balance the system by closing the radiator a little at a time in rooms that are too warm.
In the case of forced air systems, the biggest heat loss is in the ductwork.
This can be reduced by sealing around the register/boot.
If there are not cold air returns in every room, try and keep the doors to the rooms without returns open.
Finally, the basement needs to be weather proofed as much as possible.
A cold basement will cause the floor on the first floor to be cold, leading to the furnace having to work much harder to maintain a comfortable temperature. Furthermore, a leaky basement will lead to drafts up the plumbing and chase walls, setting up a kind of highway of cold air throughout the house. Everything I have pointed out in this article can be accomplished in a short period of time, and the savings in terms of money and convenience are tremendous.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, February 1994.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times1994_02.pdf, printed page(s) 4; PDF page(s) 4.
