Home Inspection
Licensed and Serving All of Connecticut
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Energy Conservation
EFFICIENCY OF HEATING APPLIANCES
ANNUAL FUEL UTILIZATION EFFICIENCY
HIGHER EFFICIENCY WATER HEATERS
SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEMS - PHOTOVOLTAIC
Comparison of the Cost of Energy
|
TYPE OF FUEL |
HEATING VALUE *** |
COST PER 140,000 BTU (1 Gallon of Heating Oil) * |
COST BASIS** |
|
NATURAL GAS |
103,000 BTU/100 CU.FT |
$3.40 |
$2.50/100 Cubic Feet. Does not include $13.00/Mo. Service Charge |
|
PROPANE GAS |
91,000 BTU/GAL |
$6.75 |
$4.39/Gal. (Very Low Volume Usage) |
|
PROPANE GAS |
91,000 BTU/GAL |
$4.54 |
$2.95/Gal. (Medium Volume Usage) |
|
PROPANE GAS |
91,000 BTU/GAL |
$3.63 |
$2.36/Gal. (High Volume Usage) |
|
HEATING OIL |
140,000 BTU/GAL |
$2.35 |
$1.90/Gal. (Discount Supplier) |
|
HEATING OIL |
140,000 BTU/GAL |
$2.65 |
$2.35/Gal. (Full Service Supplier) |
|
ELECTRICITY |
3412 BTU/KWH |
$7.22 |
$0.176/KWH. |
|
WOOD PELLETS |
17,000,000 BTU/TON |
$1.82 |
$200-225/Ton Purchased Off Season (Not Delivered) |
|
WOOD PELLETS |
17,000,000 BTU/TON |
$2.76 |
$295-350/Ton Purchased During Season (Not Delivered) |
|
FIREWOOD |
22,000,000 BTU/CORD |
$1.43 |
Split/Delivered $175-250/Cord |
|
FIREWOOD |
22,000,000 BTU/CORD |
$0.63 |
Truckload/Log Length. 6-7 Cords/Load $600-$650/Load |
* Costs are equated to 1 gallon of heating oil for comparison purposes.
** Market Energy Prices as of 01/2009 in Central Connecticut.
*** Heating Values of Fuels Taken From:
http://www.eia.doe.gov/neic/infosheets/apples.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_pellet#Energy_output
http://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/heating_value_wood/
Efficiency of Heating Appliances
|
OLDER OIL BOILERS & FURNACES |
60-80% |
|
MODERN OIL BOILERS |
84-86% |
|
MODERN OIL FURNACES |
80-84% |
|
OLDER GAS BOILERS & FURNACES |
60-78% |
|
MODERN GAS BOILERS |
82-87% |
|
MODERN GAS FURNACES |
82-86% |
|
HIGH EFFICIENCY GAS BOILERS |
92% |
|
HIGH EFFICIENCY GAS FURNACES |
95% |
|
PELLET STOVES |
80-85% |
|
GAS FIREPLACE LOGS (UNVENTED) |
80% |
|
GAS FIREPLACE LOGS (VENTED) |
75% |
|
GAS FIREPLACES (UNVENTED) |
80% |
|
GAS FIREPLACES (VENTED) |
75% |
|
ELECTRIC HEAT |
98% |
|
WOOD STOVES (AIRTIGHT) |
60-65% |
|
WOOD STOVES (OPEN) |
25-35% |
AFUE (Annual Flue Utilization Efficiency - Indicated as a Percentage)
Your furnace or boiler’s AFUE tells you how much energy is being converted to usable heat in the building. For example, an AFUE of 90% means that 90% of the fuel is being used to warm your home, while the other 10% escapes as exhaust with the combustion gases out the chimney. Boilers, furnaces & water heaters have AFUE ratings. Pellet & wood stoves, gas fireplace inserts & logs, gas stoves are rated at an operating efficiency. When they are not in use, heat can escape out the vent reducing this efficiency rating.
INSULATING AN EXISTING CONNECTICUT HOME
REDUCING HEAT LOSSES IN AN EXISTING BUILDING
CONNECTICUT ENERGY STAR WEBSITE
NORTH AMERICAN INSULATION MANUFACTURER'S ASSOCIATION
OWENS CORNING BLOWN-IN ATTICAT EXPANDING INSULATION
CONNECTICUT INSULATION TAX CREDIT
CONNECTICUT SOLAR POWERED ATTIC VENTILATION FANS
Higher Efficiency Water Heaters
CONNECTICUT GAS WATER HEATER REPLACEMENT REBATE
These links contain information that may affect you decision in chosing compact florescent light bulbs for use in your building:
http://www.mikeholt.com/newsletters.php?action=display&letterID=398
http://www.mikeholt.com/newsletters.php?action=display&letterID=464
http://www.mikeholt.com/newsletters.php?action=display&letterID=651
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-LOtKIIKcg
http://epa.gov/mercury/spills/index.htm#fluorescent
Pellet stoves are an affordable way to heat smaller homes or portions of a home. These stoves are self contained heating units that require electric power to operate. They can be installed in an existing fireplace or in a room vented into a chimney or directly through the side of a building. They require their own chimney flue if they are installed in a chimney. Local building codes should be followed when installing one of these stoves. Stoves can be operated by a room thermostat or a thermostat directly on the stove. Pellets are loaded into a hopper and are fed automatically into the combustion chamber. Stoves have automatic electric ignition. Pellets are purchased in bags. Stoves are available in different heating capacities & hopper sizes. If pellets are purchased off season, heating with this fuel can be very affordable. Depending upon seasonal demand, pellets may be harder to find during the heating season. There are many styles & features available in pellet stoves.
CONNECTICUT PELLET - AFFORDABLE PELLETS
EPA INFORMATION ON WOOD & PELLET STOVES
HEATING WITH FIREWOOD IN CONNECTICUT
CONSUMER REPORTS GUIDE TO PELLET STOVES
Air to Air Heat Pumps - Heat & Cool Your Home
Heat Pumps operate on a refrigeration cycle like an air conditioner. They operate entirely on electric power. The difference is the cycle is reversed in winter weather taking heat from outside air & heating air inside the building. The heat pump unit located outside the building looks like a central air conditioning unit. The unit inside the building looks like a heating furnace. If you do not want to air condition a building in summer, heat pumps are not a practical choice. At temperatures between 700F to 380F heat pumps are an efficient way to heat a building. Below approx. 380F, heat pumps become ineffective since it takes more energy to remove heat from colder air. If you consider the number of days in a winter season below 400F, these can be an economical way to heat & cool a building. Heat pumps use back-up heating systems that provide heat in cold weather. There are usually electric coils in the furnace but can be a gas/propane or oil furnaces. Some installations (usually condominiums) have the heat pump & back-up heat operating simultaneously at temperatures below 380F. Outdoor temperature sensors can be installed to stop operation of the heat pump when the back-up system is on. This reduces energy consumption. Backup heat also comes on if the heat pump fails.
Heating & Cooling Efficiency of Air to Air Heat Pumps
Heat pumps are rated in their heating cycle by their Heating Seasonal Performance Factor (HSPF) not an efficiency percentage. This is the ratio of the seasonal heating output in BTU divided by the seasonal power consumption in Watts. This rates both the efficiency of the compressor and electric-resistance elements. These coils are used to defrost condensing coils preventing them from freezing in cold weather. The most efficient heat pumps have an HSPF between 8 and 10. For units with comparable HSPF ratings, compare their steady-state rating at -8.3 degrees C, the low temperature setting. The unit with the higher rating will be more efficient. In warmer climates, SEER (see below) is more important than HSPF; in colder climates, look for the highest HSPF.
You may also see heat pumps rated by their coefficient of performance (COP) in the heating mode rather than by the HSPF. The COP is the ratio of useful heat provided to the building compared to the amount of energy required to operate the heat pump. When heating a building on a mild day, a heat pump has a COP of 3 – 4. One watt of electrical energy causes the heat pump to move the equivolant of 3 or 4 watts of heat energy into the building. As a comparison, electric resistance heat has a COP of 1.0 at all times. On a very cold day, it takes more energy to move the same amount of heat indoors than on a mild day. On these days the COP of a heat pump is near 1.0. It is more cost effective to heat using electric-resistance heaters or gas or oil backup furnaces on cold days. This avoids unnecessary wear on the heat pump.
In the cooling mode a heat pump's performance is its “energy efficiency ratio “ (EER) or “seasonal energy efficiency ratio” (SEER) (BTU/(h·W)). A larger ratio indicates better performance. The higher the HSPF & SEER; the higher the cost of purchasing a system. Most efficient heat pumps have HSPFs of 7 or greater and SEERs of between 14 and 18.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY HEAT PUMP WEBSITE
ENERGYSTAR WEBSITE FOR AIR SOURCE HEAT PUMPS
Geothermal or ground source heat pumps (GSHP) are electrically powered systems that operate similarly to air to air heat pumps. Instead of using air, they use heat from water in the ground. The temperature below the earth's surface remains relatively constant throughout the year, providing a relatively constant source of energy. Heat is taken from the ground in winter months & dissipated back into the ground in summer weather. They have the advantage over air to air heat pumps in taking energy from water that contains more energy than air even at temperatures of 45-500F. Instead of having a unit on the exterior of the building, a geothermal heat pump is located entirely inside the building. The entire unit has the appearance of a typical hot air furnace. Piping arrangements to collect heat from the ground can be coils buried in trenches or wells drilled into the ground similar to drinking water wells. A pump is installed on the water piping system that circulates water from the ground through the heat pump. The heat pump extracts heat from or heats the water depending if it is heating or cooling the building. These heat pumps can also provide some domestic hot water. Geothermal heat pumps do not have the problem of providing little heat on very cold days that “air to air” heat pumps have. They do have backup heating systems in case outside temperatures become too low for the heat pump to heat the building.
DOE WEBSITE FOR GEOTHERMAL HEAT PUMPS INSTALLATION OF COLLECTION COILS IN THE GROUND CONNECTICUT REBATE PROGRAM FOR GEOTHERMAL HEAT PUMPS Heating and Cooling Efficiency of Geothermal Heat Pumps Geothermal heat pumps are rated by their coefficient of performance (COP) in the heating mode rather than an efficiency percentage. The COP is the ratio of useful heat provided to the building compared to the amount of energy required to operate the heat pump. Their cooling efficiency is indicated by the Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER), which is the ratio of the heat removed (Btu per hour) to the electricity required (in watts) to run the unit. The higher these numbers, the more efficient the heat pump is. Look for the Energy Star® label, which indicates a heating COP of 2.8 or greater and an EER of 13 or greater. PHOTOVOLTAIC & SOLAR HOT WATER PANEL SYSTEMS DOE WEBSITE FOR SOLAR WATER HEATING CONNECTICUT SOLAR VOLTIAC REBATE PROGRAM
Richard Westervelt - Owner
Contact Us:
25 Adams Street
Winsted, CT 06098Toll Free: 866-877-7348
Phone: 860-379-3805
Email:
Richard Westervelt
