How to Set Home Energy Savings Priorities InspectAPedia® -
How to Set Overall Energy Savings Priorities to Save Heating, Cooling, and Other Home Energy Costs
How to cut home heating bills - tips & book on how to reduce heating cost
Questions & answers about the priority of steps to save on home heating costs
Heating cost reduction priorities: here we explain the basic priorities of steps to take in reducing building heating or cooling costs. The sequence of energy-saving and money-saving steps outlined just below will be appropriate for most buildings.
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How to Set Overall Priorities of Building Improvements in Insulation, Storm Windows, Heating Systems, when Saving on Heating Costs
Readers may also want to place this idea of tuning up your heating system
to save heating cost in the larger energy savings context
Stop drafts and air leaks in the building first: find and fix leaky windows, doors. The leaks in an older home may be small, individually, but added up they are often equal to leaving a window or door wide open. There is not much benefit in adding insulation to a building if a window or door is being left open. Or the equivalent in leaks. Stop drafts first. See ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT LEAK SEALING GUIDE. Also see AIR BYPASS LEAKS and see HEAT LOSS INDICATORS. For older buildings where you have already added insulation but heating bills are still too high, see ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT CASE STUDY.
Insulate attics - the general movement of warm air and heat in a building is "up" and "out" as warm air rises through a home. If a building is not insulated or not well insulated, the attic floor is the place to start with improving building heat retention. Be sure to also review our notes on proper attic ventilation so that you don't also create a moisture problem. See INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT and see ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT OPTIONS.
Add storm windows: if your building's windows are old, leaky, un insulated, adding storm windows can have a faster payback than removing and replacing the entire window unit with a modern insulated glass unit.
Insulate walls - the second direction of heat loss, once we've fixed drafts and insulated an attic, are the building walls. See INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT. Be sure to check basements and crawl spaces for drafts at the top of the foundation walls.
Tune up the heating & cooling system performance - heating system economies as a portion of overall building heating cost probably falls in between attics and walls and for sure is
before insulating a basement wall except for stopping rim joist drafts.
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Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
Our recommended books about building & mechanical systems design, inspection, problem diagnosis, and repair, and about indoor environment and IAQ testing, diagnosis, and cleanup are at the InspectAPedia Bookstore. Also see our Book Reviews - InspectAPedia.
The Home Reference Book - the Encyclopedia of Homes, Carson Dunlop & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 2010, $69.00 U.S., is available from Carson Dunlop. The Home Reference Book is a bound volume of more than 450 illustrated pages that assist home inspectors and home owners in the inspection and detection of problems on buildings. The text is intended as a reference guide to help building owners operate and maintain their home effectively. InspectAPedia.com ® author/editor Daniel Friedman is a contributing author. Field inspection worksheets are included at the back of the volume.
Domestic and Commercial Oil Burners, Charles H. Burkhardt, McGraw Hill Book Company, New York 3rd Ed 1969.
National Fuel Gas Code (Z223.1) $16.00 and National Fuel Gas Code Handbook (Z223.2) $47.00 American Gas Association (A.G.A.), 1515 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22209 also available from National Fire Protection Association, Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02269. Fundamentals of Gas Appliance Venting and Ventilation, 1985, American Gas Association Laboratories, Engineering Services Department. American Gas Association, 1515 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22209. Catalog #XHO585. Reprinted 1989.
The Steam Book, 1984, Training and Education Department, Fluid Handling Division, ITT [probably out of print, possibly available from several home inspection supply companies] Fuel Oil and Oil Heat Magazine, October 1990, offers an update,
Principles of Steam Heating, $13.25 includes postage. Fuel oil & Oil Heat Magazine, 389 Passaic Ave., Fairfield, NJ 07004.
The Lost Art of Steam Heating, Dan Holohan, 516-579-3046 FAX
Principles of Steam Heating, Dan Holohan, technical editor of Fuel Oil and Oil Heat magazine, 389 Passaic Ave., Fairfield, NJ 07004 ($12.+1.25 postage/handling).
"Residential Hydronic (circulating hot water) Heating Systems", Instructional Technologies Institute, Inc., 145 "D" Grassy Plain St., Bethel, CT 06801 800/227-1663 [home inspection training material] 1987
"Warm Air Heating Systems". Instructional Technologies Institute, Inc., 145 "D" Grassy Plain St., Bethel, CT 06801 800/227-1663 [home inspection training material] 1987
Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning Volume I, Heating Fundamentals,
Boilers, Boiler Conversions, James E. Brumbaugh, ISBN 0-672-23389-4 (v. 1) Volume II, Oil, Gas, and Coal Burners, Controls, Ducts, Piping, Valves, James E. Brumbaugh, ISBN 0-672-23390-7 (v. 2) Volume III, Radiant Heating, Water Heaters, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, Heat Pumps, Air Cleaners, James E. Brumbaugh, ISBN 0-672-23383-5 (v. 3) or ISBN 0-672-23380-0 (set) Special Sales Director, Macmillan Publishing Co., 866 Third Ave., New York, NY 10022. Macmillan Publishing Co., NY
Installation Guide for Residential Hydronic Heating Systems
Installation Guide #200, The Hydronics Institute, 35 Russo Place, Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922
The ABC's of Retention Head Oil Burners, National Association of Oil Heat Service Managers, TM 115, National Old Timers' Association of the Energy Industry, PO Box 168, Mineola, NY 11501. (Excellent tips on spotting problems on oil-fired heating equipment. Booklet.)
Links to our list of additional information on heating system inspection, repair, maintenance
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