Dear Tom,
I am building in a field and the wind blows all the time. Is there any gain with 1/2" foam on the outside with the seams taped? If I do this I am going to use high density insulation in the walls with the paper on it then sheetrock. Any concerns? I know there is not much R value in 1/2" foam but I would think it will keep the cold wind out. Thanks for your help...
Ron
Ron,
If you are building a new structure, you need more than 1/2".
It should be a minimum of 1.5" and I would go with 2". The higher R value will keep you above the dew point in the walls.
Use the tape and the high density fiberglass. You will not need a vapor barrier on the inside with that thickness of foam on the exterior.
It is more money but oil is even more!
You will be glad you did this.
Tom
Friday, May 16, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Adding fiberglass in attic to save on heating bill
Dear Tom,
Read your article in Saturday's BDN. Our two story home is roughly 20 years old. It has six or seven inches of fiberglass in the attic. This past winter our heating bill was about $3,000.00, up from about $1300.00!! What to do? I have been thinking about having an additional 10 or 12 inches of fiberglass blown in on top of the existing fiberglass for a total about 19 inches. Do you think we need more? We would appreciate your interest and recommendations.
Many thanks,
Bob
Hey Bob,
Yes, for starters, add the 10-12 inches. More would hit diminishing returns, even with these oil prices.
Make sure the hatch area is insulated and sealed thoroughly. Check all the penetrations into the attic--the plumbing vents, chimney, etc. and seal them all before adding the extra insulation.
Tom
Read your article in Saturday's BDN. Our two story home is roughly 20 years old. It has six or seven inches of fiberglass in the attic. This past winter our heating bill was about $3,000.00, up from about $1300.00!! What to do? I have been thinking about having an additional 10 or 12 inches of fiberglass blown in on top of the existing fiberglass for a total about 19 inches. Do you think we need more? We would appreciate your interest and recommendations.
Many thanks,
Bob
Hey Bob,
Yes, for starters, add the 10-12 inches. More would hit diminishing returns, even with these oil prices.
Make sure the hatch area is insulated and sealed thoroughly. Check all the penetrations into the attic--the plumbing vents, chimney, etc. and seal them all before adding the extra insulation.
Tom
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Considering a new furnace
Dear Tom,
The heat exchanger of my current furnace has a crack and metal flakes in the firebox, this has been verified by a smoke bomb test.
I built my home in 1986 with 6 inch fiberglass bat insulation and 1 inch of foam, purchased from you, over the walls before sheetrock, 12 inches of fiberglass in the ceiling with an 1 inch of foam.
The home is positioned to get the most light from the winter sun at its lowest point. There are no windows on the north only the garage. I am heating about 1800 square ft.
I put in an 84% efficient oil force hot air furnace with a reduced nozzle In the furnace it is rated at 90,000 btu's, I have used an average of 375 gallons of oil a year. I currently have a Sear survivor electrical hot water tank, this an all plastic construction and will never rot out.
I am considering a;
1. Hallowell Heat Pump @ 12,500.00 with a dehumidifier/hot water heater. I am aware of the problems between NyleTherm and Hallowell.
2. A 90 % efficient oil force hot air furnace manufactured by Thermo pride , with a 2 stage burner and blower. Cost unknown at this time.
3. A 96 % efficient LP condensing gas furnace with a variable speed blower and burner. Cost unknown at this time. Installing a LP gas fireplace later this year and may consider an on demand water heater if this is the choice.
I will have to install an air conditioning system in the house for a medical condition and because of casement windows I have discounted a room air conditioner.
Any advice you can give to help me make this decision I would appreciate.
Bruce Ireland
Hi Bruce,
I would consider the Heat Pump system since you need air conditioning.
One thing I would want to be sure of is a warranty on the system. I would keep the electric hot water heater for backup since the heat pump water heater has the possibility to chill the basement
to an uncomfortable level in the winter.
I would also consider a wood or pellet stove for backup.
Tom
The heat exchanger of my current furnace has a crack and metal flakes in the firebox, this has been verified by a smoke bomb test.
I built my home in 1986 with 6 inch fiberglass bat insulation and 1 inch of foam, purchased from you, over the walls before sheetrock, 12 inches of fiberglass in the ceiling with an 1 inch of foam.
The home is positioned to get the most light from the winter sun at its lowest point. There are no windows on the north only the garage. I am heating about 1800 square ft.
I put in an 84% efficient oil force hot air furnace with a reduced nozzle In the furnace it is rated at 90,000 btu's, I have used an average of 375 gallons of oil a year. I currently have a Sear survivor electrical hot water tank, this an all plastic construction and will never rot out.
I am considering a;
1. Hallowell Heat Pump @ 12,500.00 with a dehumidifier/hot water heater. I am aware of the problems between NyleTherm and Hallowell.
2. A 90 % efficient oil force hot air furnace manufactured by Thermo pride , with a 2 stage burner and blower. Cost unknown at this time.
3. A 96 % efficient LP condensing gas furnace with a variable speed blower and burner. Cost unknown at this time. Installing a LP gas fireplace later this year and may consider an on demand water heater if this is the choice.
I will have to install an air conditioning system in the house for a medical condition and because of casement windows I have discounted a room air conditioner.
Any advice you can give to help me make this decision I would appreciate.
Bruce Ireland
Hi Bruce,
I would consider the Heat Pump system since you need air conditioning.
One thing I would want to be sure of is a warranty on the system. I would keep the electric hot water heater for backup since the heat pump water heater has the possibility to chill the basement
to an uncomfortable level in the winter.
I would also consider a wood or pellet stove for backup.
Tom
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Retrofitting a furnace for more fuel efficiency
Tom,
Could you discuss the various ways an oil fired hot water boiler type furnace/system could be retrofitted to make it more fuel efficient? Such as replace the burner, add an automatic stack damper, add an outdoor reset control (I'm very interested in knowing makes and models that would work well in a single family house), changing the oil spray nozzle, keeping the heat exchange area clean, etc. Also insulating all the heating pipes from the furnace to the baseboards , keeping the plates in the baseboards vacuumed, having an oil tank that has the outflow pipe to the burner coming off the true bottom of the tank to prevent sludge build up, may be having a surge protector in the line to the furnace to protect its electronic controls from harm.
Also making sure all air in the pipes is either bleed out automatically or manually each year. May be discuss checking expansion tanks, backflow preventers, and safety valves too. Plus programmable thermostats with wireless override controllers. I have an Energy Kinetics EK-1 that does real well heating my house, my hot water, and pool, but I want to get as much heat as possible out of each $4.00 gallon burned. Love your TV and radio shows. Glad you and Dick will have the new column in the Bangor Daily!!
Bill Cunningham, Pittsfield, ME
Hi Bill,
In 25 words or less? You just covered 2 years worth of questions here!
The number one retrofit you can do to your specific system, is to install an outdoor reset thermostat. It will modulate the heating system temperature based on outdoor temps and should save you at least 15-30%
on heating.
There are several manufacturers of these devices, Tekmar and Honeywell are two that come to mind. If you are a little handy, you can do most of the installation yourself, leaving the tie-in to the boiler to your service
person.
Your boiler has a newer burner, so there is no benefit to an upgrade there. A damper is built into many newer burners, so I would forego the idea of a stack damper, since it adds more complexity.
Annual cleanings must be done. It is foolish to not clean the boiler or furnace at least once a year! Your oil burner tech can address any flame/nozzle changes with you.
Baseboards MUST be cleaned at least once a year. The covers pop off and they need a good vacuuming. They must also be able to move air in the bottom and out the top. Don't block them!
I would suggest oil tank additives to help keep sludge from causing problems.
Once a system is sealed, air should not have to be vented on a regular basis, unless there is a leak somewhere. In fact, I like to shut off the automatic feed on boiler systems, so I can determine if any leaks
are occurring.
Lastly, setback thermostats make a lot of sense, especially if you are away from home all day. The longer and deeper the setback, the better the energy savings! You can do this manually since I find many
folks struggle with hi tech devices that are difficult to program.
Tom
Could you discuss the various ways an oil fired hot water boiler type furnace/system could be retrofitted to make it more fuel efficient? Such as replace the burner, add an automatic stack damper, add an outdoor reset control (I'm very interested in knowing makes and models that would work well in a single family house), changing the oil spray nozzle, keeping the heat exchange area clean, etc. Also insulating all the heating pipes from the furnace to the baseboards , keeping the plates in the baseboards vacuumed, having an oil tank that has the outflow pipe to the burner coming off the true bottom of the tank to prevent sludge build up, may be having a surge protector in the line to the furnace to protect its electronic controls from harm.
Also making sure all air in the pipes is either bleed out automatically or manually each year. May be discuss checking expansion tanks, backflow preventers, and safety valves too. Plus programmable thermostats with wireless override controllers. I have an Energy Kinetics EK-1 that does real well heating my house, my hot water, and pool, but I want to get as much heat as possible out of each $4.00 gallon burned. Love your TV and radio shows. Glad you and Dick will have the new column in the Bangor Daily!!
Bill Cunningham, Pittsfield, ME
Hi Bill,
In 25 words or less? You just covered 2 years worth of questions here!
The number one retrofit you can do to your specific system, is to install an outdoor reset thermostat. It will modulate the heating system temperature based on outdoor temps and should save you at least 15-30%
on heating.
There are several manufacturers of these devices, Tekmar and Honeywell are two that come to mind. If you are a little handy, you can do most of the installation yourself, leaving the tie-in to the boiler to your service
person.
Your boiler has a newer burner, so there is no benefit to an upgrade there. A damper is built into many newer burners, so I would forego the idea of a stack damper, since it adds more complexity.
Annual cleanings must be done. It is foolish to not clean the boiler or furnace at least once a year! Your oil burner tech can address any flame/nozzle changes with you.
Baseboards MUST be cleaned at least once a year. The covers pop off and they need a good vacuuming. They must also be able to move air in the bottom and out the top. Don't block them!
I would suggest oil tank additives to help keep sludge from causing problems.
Once a system is sealed, air should not have to be vented on a regular basis, unless there is a leak somewhere. In fact, I like to shut off the automatic feed on boiler systems, so I can determine if any leaks
are occurring.
Lastly, setback thermostats make a lot of sense, especially if you are away from home all day. The longer and deeper the setback, the better the energy savings! You can do this manually since I find many
folks struggle with hi tech devices that are difficult to program.
Tom
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