Real advice for heating your home and saving money

Last night,  at City Hall, about a dozen people came out to a energy conservation and renewable energy workshop facilitated by the Pennsylvania Resources Council, where it was advertised as an event that would help homeowners and businesses learn what changes we can make to save on our energy bills.

Of the four industries I've worked in my professional career (computers, telecom, publishing and energy), energy is my passion, which led me to attend the presentation. I stayed for a about 45 minutes last night to see what they were offering.

The presenter was excellent and the information was very comprehensive. It was like a mini-course on how energy conservation saves the environment, including tips on insulation, energy efficient lighting, appliances,  home heating and cooling equipment, and alternative energy vehicles. She shared energy saving tips for appliances and home electronics, and showed us how to read the energy labels. 

She explaining all the state and federal tax credits, rebates, and incentives, for home owners and businesses who adopt energy efficiency.

I took advantage of the PECo Smart Appliance Recycling program, and the PECo Smart Home Rebates when I purchased a new refrigerator earlier this year. Not only did I receive a combined $160 rebate, I am saving a considerable amount on my electric bill by getting rid of that old, inefficient refrigerator.

As great as the information was that was shared last night, it would be nice to do several more presentations that focus on the energy issues most common in Chester homes.  


We're not likely to purchase heat pumps, pellet stoves, solar water heaters, tankless water heaters, or spend a lot of time deciding which alternative energy vehicle we'll be purchasing in the next few months, as were described last night.

It would be great to have a series of seminars that help homeowners deal with the real issues we have in our city with a large stock of 50 year old homes.

Here are the best tips from last night combined with my recommendations for saving money on your utility bill, while maintaining a comfortable environment in your home.

Get your furnace or boiler inspected and serviced before it gets cold. The older the equipment, the more critical this becomes. Preventive maintenance issues like changing filters, cleaning burners, checking for obstructed flues and chimneys, goes a long way in getting the most heat out of your equipment. If you don't already have a reliable heating/ventilation/plumber contractor you can trust, find one. They are invaluable.

Only heat the space you occupy. If you have a house full of people who are home all the time, this doesn't apply. But, if you live alone or there are only a few of you, why heat the whole house when you are all upstairs in the bed? Why heat the back of the house when you spend most of your day in the front of the house? By using space heating, opening and closing ventilation ducts, closing doors to unoccupied spaces, and partitioning off rooms, you can create zones within a house that you can heat as needed. 

Programmable thermostat. These are difficult for older folks to operate but if you can maneuver the electronics, these devices can be set to heat your home according to your lifestyle patterns. For example, if everyone leaves the house by 9am, the furnace will cut back to 50 degrees at 9:15am. If the first person comes home at 4pm, the heat will come on at 3pm so the house is warm by the time they arrive. 

Seal leaky windows and doors. Yes, a house can be sealed too tightly which isn't very healthy, but that isn't likely to happen with an old home. Using plastic on windows, and seals around doors, you can greatly reduce cold drafts that make a heater work hard to keep you warm.

New refrigerator and window air conditioner. Old refrigerators eat up a lot of electric. All new refrigerators are energy efficient. If you can find one that you can afford, it will pay for itself in a couple years. If you can get away with a smaller refrigerator than you currently own, that will help, too. Same with window air conditioners. These two items are the most affordable appliances that you can replace to realize substantial savings right away.

New furnace, boiler, central air conditioner. If it ain't broke, don't replace it. Although the new models are smaller and much more efficient, they are much more costly.  I would argue that the payback isn't significant enough to replace them just to save energy cost. Just make sure your existing equipment is serviced regularly so you can get the most out of what you got. If you can afford the replacement costs, don't hesitate to replace the furnace, boiler and central air.

Energy efficient lighting. If everyone changed to the new bulbs, the overall impact on energy usage in the country is significant, but it won't make a big difference in your home. However, if there are lights that you keep on all the time, use the energy efficient light bulb there.

Traditional fireplaces. I haven't seen many in Chester homes. Fireplaces are pretty to look at but suck all the heat out the house. If you have a home with a wood burning fireplace which you don't use, make sure the damper is sealed shut.

Space heaters. I love my vent free, natural gas space heaters. I have one in the living room that heats the living room, dining room and the entire upstairs. I have another in the kitchen that heats the two rooms in the back of the house. Rarely are they both on at the same time since I don't spend a lot of time in the kitchen. I turn the space heaters off when I leave and have the furnace set low so the house isn't freezing when I return. It only takes minutes to heat the house up when I return. A $200 space heater uses 10 to 20% of the energy of a furnace, (which is sending nearly 50% of your money up the chimney), and the space heaters provided plenty of steady heat (not going on and off like a hot air furnace). Come on over. I'll show you how I'm doing it. Knock first.

Electric space heaters use a lot of electric which ain't cheap. 

Infrared heaters heat objects, but don't provide much comfort if you're moving around.

Ceramic heaters cost less to operate than an electric space heater. But when you combine the energy the fan uses, they can be loud and are not as cost effective as they claim.

Electric fireplaces. Same concept as the ceramic heater. 

Gas fireplaces. Same concept as a gas space heater. They come vented and non-vented. Non vented is the most efficient, turning 99 cents out of every dollar you spent in natural gas into heat (as compared to your furnace/boiler shooting 30 to 60 cents of every dollar of your fuel up the chimney). Make sure you have a carbon monoxide detector installed if you go vent free, and do not install vent free gas heaters or fireplaces in your bedroom, despite what the manufacturer may say. 

Replace windows. I wish I could afford to change out all my windows. The new windows  keep out the cold, heat, and noise better than ever. There are some attractive rebates available, too.

Going Green is a concept that will save the environment in many ways. But realistically, you don't have to sacrifice comfort to play your part. 

Stay warm this winter and make a few common sense and affordable tweaks in your home, a little at a time. 

We have no control over what energy will cost. All we can do is try to stay safe and comfortable using all the tricks available that will save us as much money as possible.