It makes sense if you have different peak and off peak prices for electricity like they do in some places. Then it will probably be acceptable to heat the water during off peak times and let it cool when it's on peak.
Pantyhose collects the lint, and the moisture is useful during the heating season.
Excessive moisture in the winter? The dampers I've seen have lint screens.
Hi CJT,
Awesome comments! How would I go about checking my duct work in the attic? I can definitely get up there and eyeball it, but is that the best way to check it? I've seen on TV where folks use those cameras that detect heat or cool, but that's abit more then I can afford.
Also I'll definitely look into getting a programmable thermostat. I do prefer it cooler in the evenings and warmer in the mornings, so might be something to look into.
As for the computer, I used to be the kinda comptuer guy who left his computer on ALL the time, but I'm getting away from that. My wife's computer does stay on, but the power save is on so it shuts off after like 15 minutes. My PowerMac gets turned off when not in use, and both of use use LCD monitors.
Thanks again for the great comments, and please let me know how you checked your duct work in the attic... I'd love any tips, and now that it's cooler now's the time to get up there :)
Sam
Whoa there on the dryer. Here are a couple of things to be aware of:
- air to replace what is being blown out the back of the dryer. By closing the utility room door, your dryer will work harder, use more electricity and wear out sooner.
Hi --
Thanks for the input and the link, but though the website you linked to has some great info, why do they want $24.95 to get their PDF? Also is there such a thing as a "Certified Dryer Exhaust Technician"? Sounds like a scam to me...
I agree with you that possibly leaving the laundry room door closed might not be such a good idea, but in no place I've lived have I ever had a full load of clothes dry in 30-45 minutes. Maybe a pair of jeans and a few shirts or some towels, but never an entire load. My dryer is about 5 years old and takes about 60 minutes for a full load (4-5 pairs of jeans, 4-5 shirts, and maybe some shorts mixed in).
I'll check my dryer vent this weekend, but with the amount of lent it throws out into my back yard plus the steamy air that comes out on cold days I doubt it's clogged to much if any.
Thanks for the info --
Sam
How about measuring the voltage both before and after turning off the breaker (to verify that the meter is working)?
that you pay for
How about an electric igniter? My furnace uses one of those. It's easy to tell when you know what high-voltage wiring looks like (like the spark plug wires in a car).
>
Mine was so bad that at first I could see the duct tape flapping in the breeze from the air escaping the ducts when the furnace fan was on. Once I had the worst spots fixed it became more challenging, but I could still often feel the cool breeze of my air conditioning dollars escaping as I ran my hand along the ductwork. I used the UL listed aluminum tape for the repairs, and it is MUCH better than regular duct tape (which is pretty worthless for sealing ducts) -- well worth the $15 +/- per roll. You might want to investigate whether your local codes require anything specific (e.g. mastic) in specific applications.
Seems like a good idea to me, but ...
I suspect that the anecdote might have arisen because somebody didn't have one of the probes where he thought he did -- even your proposed solution wouldn't necessarily remedy that (depending, of course, on how/whether the probes were attached in a way that could be guaranteed to stay the same before/after switching the breaker).
Sure, but it's reflected in the rate, along with lots of other factors.
haha -- sounds like you're resurrecting an old argument ...
it
I think it would be very interesting to know all the things folks like Honeywell considered when they designed the algorithms for their programmable thermostats. I suspect there's a lot more technology in there than the instruction manual reveals.
Whether electric igniters have their own issues is beyond my expertise.
I never expected a simple procedure to ELIMINATE the need to be careful.
I have a Roper dryer that's almost 14 years old. It always takes longer than 45 minutes to dry a load.
Anything you can do with a fan can be done with soffit and gable vents, with no electrical energy. With A ft^2 of vent area at top and bottom and an H' height diff and dT (F) temp diff, cfm = 16.6Asqrt(HdT).
For example, an attic with 2 2'x2' gable vents and equal soffit vent area and H = 8' and dT = 10 F would have 16.6x2x2x2sqrt(8x10) = 1188 cfm of airflow. I'd close the gable vents in wintertime with plywood doors hinged at the top. Nick
I think that's an overstatement.
Please point us to a derivation of your equation so we can consider its assumptions.
I know that my attic has vents similar to your example, and that its temperature was well in excess of 120 degrees before adding a fan. With an outdoor temperature of 90 degrees, I should have had a near hurricane going on up there according to your calculation, but didn't.
Closing vents in winter can easily lead to mold moisture problems, that is why they are built open. I tried closing mine in winter and mold grew on the roof deck.
Pop, He was a new tech, just out of tech school. We had just hired him. He had his own tools and we were replacing an air handler. I had him bring his own tools in, instead of using mine. He had a UEI combination digital volt meter and digital clamp amp meter. We checked the voltage with TEST LEADS connected properly to his meter. It showed zero volts. That is how I got my eyes lit up.
My Fluke clamp on also has voltage and ohms testing capability. Some clamp on meters only test AC amps, some have other capabilities as well. I cary 4 meters on my truck, one True RMS, three other digital meters, clamp and test lead and combination types.
No fish tale, he had used it before, but it was only 6 months old.
Now he has a Fieldpiece meter, not as good as a Fluke, but better than a UEI.
Stretch
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