House And Home Tips And Tricks

It’s much easier to save money on your gas and electricity bills in summer, isn’t it? You don’t need to keep your heating on, the long days provide more natural light, and cold food is so much more appealing in hot weather.

But what can you do to save money in winter, apart from wearing jumpers or cardies all the time? Surely there must be a better - and less bulky - solution?

One solution that will benefit you all year round is cavity wall insulation. You can expect to pay around £500, based on a three-bedroom semi-detached house, for the initial installation, but as it can save you roughly £90 per year in heating costs, it pays for itself reasonably quickly. Read the rest of this entry »

Over half of a household’s energy bill is being spent on heating and cooling systems; therefore, finding the right heater is extremely important in order to minimize energy costs and keep you and your family comfortable. In order to find a heater that is both affordable and efficient, when purchasing a heater, follow a few of these suggestions:

For Small Areas & Personal Spaces

Although heating your entire home with electricity may not be practical or economical, for spot heating small areas such as a small room or desk area, oil-filled radiator heaters are both safe and affordable choices. The oil within the heater never needs to be changed, making maintenance a breeze. Also, look for models with overheat protection.
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Ground source heat pumps (GSHPs), often called geothermal heat pumps, tap into the heat naturally generated many meters below the surface of the earth. Just a little ways down, the earth’s temperature is warm and relatively stable, so these systems can bring controllable and effective heating, cooling, and hot water to residential and commercial buildings. Best of all, they allow people to do all this without having to use expensive and carbon-producing fossil fuels such as oil and gas.

There are two types of ground source heat pump systems: those with closed loops and those with open loops. In closed loop systems, liquid (usually with some sort of antifreezing/antiboiling agent mixed in) circulates through pipes buried beneath the earth’s surface. During the winter, when the goal is warming a house, the fluid absorbs heat from the earth and carries back to the building. This very hot liquid can be effectively used to heat a home, and also quite obviously becomes a free-flowing source of useable hot water. During the summer, the system is designed to actually draw heat out of the building, and either use it to heat water for household use or deliver it back into the ground. Open looped systems are similar, except that the water supply within the pipes is continually refreshed. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you recently purchased a new thermostat and are interested in keeping it in top condition? Perhaps you need that extra boost for your thermostat control, such as added humidity control, but are not interested in purchasing a whole new thermostat. There are several additional pieces that you may need or simply want for your home comfort control that can benefit your thermostat system. Read on to learn more about pieces you can easily find for yours!

Subbases: Thermostat subbases are usually included with your original thermostat, and if you took apart your thermostat, you would see the subbase already there. However, certain models require a subbase, and sometimes older models require that the subbase be purchased separately. With a conductive grid, the subbase connects heating and cooling mechanisms from your home systems to your thermostat face. Read the rest of this entry »

Now that winter is fast approaching, staying warm inside our homes become more important. One of the most common ways of keeping warm is by using gas space heaters. It not only takes the chill out of the air, but space heaters cost a little less than running the furnace all the time. But with that said, a gas space heater can also be dangerous if not used properly. Here are some tips to keep you both warm and safe.

1. One of the biggest concerns with using gas as a heating source is being sure you have good ventilation. Gas gives off dangerous fumes that you don’t’ want to breathe in. Read the rest of this entry »