Tag: heating

Water Stoves

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So you like the idea of heating with wood because you have endless supply of it or you just don’t want to pay the power company or the gas company any more than you have to. You know that your home heating system can be the number one consumer of electricity during the winter months and that you are tired of seeing your electric meter spin so fast you think it is coming of its bearings. You want to lower your power bill and have the most energy efficient home but still be comfortable. If this is you continue reading. A water stove can do all of these things for you, and if you are not afraid to do a little work you can lower your power bill and slow down that pesky electric meter.

Water stoves are a wonderful alternative to heating with a fireplace or using a wood stove. They can provide heat more evenly than any space heater or baseboard heater and they can do it all while burning practically anything. Are they the perfect heating source? Maybe, maybe not depending on your perspective. What can they do for you?

Water stoves can be installed alongside existing central heating and air systems. They use a heating coil that can be placed in the air handler and you and your guests are none the wiser. The heat coming from the water stove is dispersed just like your central heating and air is. It is controlled by a thermostat just like your normal heat is.





Another thing that water stoves can do is supply all of your hot water. They can totally replace your conventional hot water system or be used in conjunction with it with your conventional system being used as a backup. Many users have reported that they have seemingly endless hot water. This means that gone are the days when company comes over and you let them all take showers first because you know that there will be no hot water left and you end up taking a cold shower. No more! And let’s remember that the water is being heated by wood. Remember also that your water heater is typically number two on the electricity consumption list behind your heat.

A water stove is installed away from your house so that you do not have to smell the smoke created by it. Here lies the biggest con. The biggest con is that the water stove is away from the house. This means that if it is raining or if it is snowing you will need to go out in the weather to load wood into the water stove to keep it running. However, there are models that can use oil and gas as a backup and if you get one of these models you will not need to go out in the weather.

Also to be noted is the fact that you can use solar water heater panels to heat the water. This means that as long as you have good direct sun that you will not even need to build a fire! Many users of water stoves say that this is the way to go if you get a water stove. Many people do not even build fires everyday in the summertime because the heat from the solar water heater panels do all of the work for them! So, is a water stove right for you? Let me tell you the story of a friend of mine.

A friend of mine grew up heating with a wood stove. He grew up in a very small house and always knew that he wanted a bigger one. He also know what it was like to wake up cold because the fire in the wood stove had burned out overnight. But, he still wanted to heat with wood because he lives on a property with an abundance of free wood. Cutting, splitting and stacking wood has been a part of his life since he was a small boy. So, he builds his house on the same property as his family. His house was close to 5,000 square feet! That’s right 5,000! So, after the first couple of months of the winter I asked him how his water stove was working out and what he was using it for. He said that it was working great and that he was heating his entire house and heating his water with it. So the next question was, how much is your power bill? He told me that it was about $40. I could not believe it even though I know how all of the systems work and what causes your power bill to be high or low. But to me, that is the proof that I needed to know that one day I will install a water stove.

If you are thinking about getting a water stove, rest assured that they can lower your power bill. Make sure that you have it installed by a licensed professional.









Heating with a Fireplace

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There is nothing quite like sitting next to a warm crackling fire in the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate and reading a book or watching a relaxing television show while the cold wind outside beats against the side of the house. But, is a wood-burning fireplace a feasible and cost effective way to heat your home during those long winter months? The short answer is no! To find out why, keep reading.

As mentioned before, sitting beside a wood-burning fireplace can be one of the most enjoyable experiences in the winter. And if this is all it is too be used for then you can expect that your power bill will not suffer much because of it. If you light a fire a couple of times a week or only on the weekend to enjoy the smells and the sounds of the wood-burning fire you will not have to worry about your power bill very much.

If you are planning on heating an entire home with one centrally located fireplace, or one that is in only one room such as the living room, then I hope you are prepared to turn off you electric or gas furnace completely and prepare to sleep in the cold. Think about your typical wood-burning fireplace for a moment. There is the fireplace itself which also includes this huge hole to the outside called the chimney. What is the purpose of the chimney? The purpose of the chimney is to evacuate all of the smoke from the fire so that your house does not fill up with the smoke. Another purpose of the chimney is airflow. Let’s remember from elementary school that a fire needs three things to burn and continue burning. A fire needs, fuel, in this case wood, heat, started usually with matches or a lighter and sustained by the burning wood, and oxygen or air.728x90

We know where the wood comes from, we put it in the fireplace to burn. We know where the heat comes from, we used matches or a lighter initially for the heat source and once it caught we used the wood to sustain it. But, where does the air come from? The air comes from all of the air in your home and when there is not enough, it is pulled in through all of the cracks around the windows and doors. We are talking about the cold blistering air that is outside your house being pulled into your house. But no worries right? We are heating that air with our fireplace and it puts off enough heat to counter-act that cold air. Wrong! It is a good train of thought but the problem is that most of the heat that is generated by the wood-burning fireplace is expelled up the chimney. Remember that heat rises. As the heat rises in the chimney and cold air is pulled in through the cracks, all of the other rooms in the house are not as warm as the room where the fireplace is.

Let me rephrase that last statement. The room where the wood-burning fireplace is will be warm and all of the other rooms in the house will be cooler because cold air is being pulled into them. Now, earlier I said that if you are planning on trying to heat your house with just a wood-burning fireplace I hope that you turn off your electric or gas furnace. That is because it does not matter where the thermostat is the house will not be heated evenly. If the thermostat is near the fireplace it will think it is warmer than it is and it will cause the heat not to run. This will make the other rooms in the house cooler. If the thermostat is not near the fireplace and is in a cool place it will cause the heat to come on and run longer because of all the cold air that is being pulled into the house.

Another thing to consider when heating with a wood-burning fireplace is your wood supply. Do you or will you have access to free or cheap firewood? If so, it may be worth your while but it is a lot of work and you will most likely get cold at night and want an extra blanket or two.

If you decide that you just like your wood-burning fireplace and the cost and the comfort do not matter there are a few things that you can do to help keep some of that heat in. One being that you should try to seal as many air gaps as possible. Also, in the room where the fireplace is you can crack a window just barely that way the air is drawn from there and not other parts of the house. You should also see if it is possible to use glass doors with your fireplace. You will want to consult a professional when dealing with these glass doors because they use a special glass that is made to withstand the high temperatures of a wood-burning fireplace. Insulation is also key in keeping in the heat that is generated by the fireplace. Make sure that your attic is well insulated so you can keep that heat in the house.

Heating a house with a wood-burning fireplace is not the best way to heat your home. It may end up cheaper if you have access to free or very cheap wood but you will sacrifice some of your comfort and need extra blankets at night. Seal those air gaps and most of all if you are trying to heat with a wood-burning fireplace BE CAREFUL! Be careful because houses do burn down and people are killed every year using their wood-burning fireplaces.









Space Heaters

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Electric space heaters are a very popular option when it comes to heating a small room, an edition or a bathroom. People even try to use electric space heaters to heat their homes in extreme circumstances such as when the central HVAC goes out, the furnace goes out or even when they do not want to pay to get the gas turned back on because the deposit is so high. People also may employ electric space heaters when they are renting because they cannot afford to have the gas turned on in their name because the deposit is so high. The question is, are electric space heaters a good source of heat? To answer that question we need to weigh the pros vs. cons of electric space heaters. Then we need to look at any precautions to take when using electric space heaters.

Electric Space Heater Pros

One of the biggest pros to using electric space heaters for heat is the cheap initial cost. Electric space heaters can be had for as cheap as $15 in some instances. Use the link below if you are interested in purchasing an electric space heater. The cheap initial cost make them ideal when an emergency happens, such as the furnace going out.

Another pro of electric space heaters is the fact that they are portable. This means that you can not only take it from room to room with you but you can also take it to your cabin in the mountains over the weekend as well. Being portable also means that there is no expensive duct work to install. You just put the electric space heater on the floor in the room that you want to heat, plug it in and away you go.

They put out good heat. That is right, electric space heaters do an excellent job of putting out heat. Many come with a fan built in to help circulate the air in the room as well.

Electric Space Heater Cons

In my opinion, one of the biggest cons to using an electric space heater to heat your home is the cost. Electric space heaters can use anywhere between 1200 watts and 2000 watts depending on the model. This means that if they run for 1 hour they could use anywhere between 1.2 kwh and 2 kwh respectively. This translates into about $0.12 per hour to about $0.20 per hour. One space heater can easily cost $30 per month to run. So, if you have a three bedroom house with one in each bedroom and one in the kitchen, living room and bathroom they could easily cost $180 per month to run.

Another con with electric space heater usage is the safety. Now many of them now come with sensors on the bottom that automatically shut them off if they are tipped over, some of the older models do not. This creates a fire hazard. Also, they need to be kept away from paper, clothes, towels, pretty much anything that can catch on fire because electric space heaters can and do cause fires every year.








Another thing to consider when using electric space heaters is where you plug them in. Since they do have the potential to draw so much power you will want to make sure that they are plugged into an outlet that is not overload already full. You want to make sure that you plug them into outlets that are still tight and do not have any play. It is not unusual to feel the cord on an electric space heater and it be warm to the touch. To minimize fire risk make sure it is plugged into a good outlet.

Electric Space Heater Precautions

As stated above you want to make sure that nothing is placed on, in front of, or around an electric space heater that can ignite. Examples are paper, clothes, towels, blankets. Make sure that they are plugged into good firm outlets. Make sure that if you are buying a new electric space heater that it has an automatic shut-off feature in case it is tipped over. Also, children should not be left alone with electric space heaters. You should also make sure that you turn off you electric space heater when you are not home.

Final Thoughts

Electric space heaters can work well as long as you take heed to the precautions mentioned above and are aware that they can be expensive to operate. They are not a long-term solution to heating however and should be used on a short-term or emergency basis. If you are looking for a long-term solution, you could consider a Baseboard Heater. They should not be left on when you are not home. Children should also not be left alone with electric space heaters. If you are in the market for a space heater use the link below.




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Baseboard Heaters

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Electric baseboard heaters can provide an excellent way to keep you warm during those freezing cold months when you are longing for spring. They also offer many advantages to homeowners as well as investment property owners. However, be advised that along with the advantages that electric baseboard heaters provide there are also some disadvantages that you should be aware of as well. First, we’ll try to answer what are electric baseboard heaters and how do they work? Then we’ll see if we can answer the question, how much electricity does a baseboard heater use.

Electric baseboard heaters are one type of electric resistance heater that is installed on the wall along the floor. They have metal fins inside that heat the air as the air moves past the metal fins. As the cool air falls and goes through the metal fins, the cool air is heated and rises and this is how the room is heated. Electric baseboard heaters are normally installed beneath window both to take advantage of any falling cool air from the window and because windows are located on outside walls where heat may be lost due to low or no insulation.

Electric baseboard heaters can be cheap to install because they do not require any ducts to be used like in a central HVAC system. This keeps costs to a minimum when building an edition that would be difficult to heat or when remodeling an investment property. Electric baseboard heaters can also be a good option if you live in a climate that does not see very many cold days. They can be a good option versus installing a heat pump.

Electric baseboard heaters allow you to heat different areas of your home or office independently of one another. This can be advantageous for those who live in families or work in offices where one person is cold all of the time and the other person is always freezing. This can also be advantageous if you live in a large home and only want or need to heat your bedroom at night and do not want to pay to heat the entire home. For example, you could set your main thermostat on 65 degrees and in your bedroom have a baseboard heater set to 70 degrees. This way you can be warm in your bedroom at night.








For all of the advantages that electric baseboard heaters provide there are also disadvantages as well. The main disadvantage being electricity usage. Many people ask how much electricity electric baseboard heaters use. Do baseboard heaters use a lot of electricity? Typically electric baseboard heaters consume about 250 watts per foot. This means that if you have a 6 foot electric baseboard heater installed in your bedroom that it would consume about 1500 watts (250 watts per foot x 6 feet). Many people will tell you that baseboard heaters are efficient. And in regard to the amount of electricity that is turned into heat they would be correct. Because they are resistance type heaters they convert nearly 100% of the electricity into heat. However, do not be fooled. Heat pumps are more effective at keeping your power bill low than electric baseboard heaters are.

How much electricity does a baseboard heater use? Let’s do an example of how much a small home with only electric baseboard heaters could cost. For the example let’s say that the house if 1,000 square feet with 3 rooms and one bathroom. Each room has one 6 foot baseboard heater, the bathroom has a 2 foot heater and the living has two 6 foot heaters. So we have 5, 6 foot heaters and one 2 foot heater for a total of 32 feet of baseboard heaters. Remember from before that the average watts per foot is 250 watts. So 32 x 250 = 8,000 watts. So for every hour that the baseboard heater is on you will use 8,000 watts of power. Now let’s say that they run for 8 hours per day for 30 days. 8 hours x 8,000 watts x 30 days = 1,920,000 watthours. If we divide that by 1,000 we get the kilowatt hours which is what you are billed on and that equals 1,920 kilowatt hours. Now if we multiply that times say $0.10 we get $192.00 just to run your baseboard heaters to heat your home.

So, the biggest disadvantage is the usage of the electric baseboard heaters. Do they put off good heat? Yes. Are the cheap and easy to install? Yes. Are they expensive to run? Yes. There is one alternative and it is the electric hydronic baseboard heater. They use a liquid inside that is heated and radiates the heat in the room longer than the metal fins do. This means that they may run less often than regular electric baseboard heaters. But be aware that they also use the same wattage when they are running.




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