Weatherixing your home as seen on AOL Original

Weatherizing Your Home

The Department of Energy estimates that 20% to 40% of an average American family's energy bill is actually wasted through uncontrolled leakage, insufficient insulation, and failing ductwork. Proper weatherization could save that average family about $218 a year. But how much do you need to spend to get those savings? Our latest Savings Experiment video has the full story.

The effectiveness of a piece of insulation is measured by its R-Value, which designates its resistance to heat flow. The higher the R-value, the greater the insulating ability, so generally speaking, if you double the R-value of your insulation, you cut your conduction heat loss in half.

The most cost-effective, energy-saving measure you can take is to insulate your attic, because it's where much of a home's energy is lost. Most older houses were built with little or no insulation. In more moderate climates, the minimum recommended R-value is R-30 for an attic, R-11 for walls, R-19 for raised floors, and R-4.2 for ductwork.

Installing insulation with a higher-than-recommended R-value can reap benefits, but only if your insulation is installed correctly. If there are leaks, compressed areas or weak spots where air can flow, all that work and money can be for nothing.

Thanks to our increased awareness of environmental responsibility, many communities and utility companies now offer free energy audits of your home, so ask if you're eligible. Otherwise, check around doors, windows, floors, and switch plates on exterior walls, where air flow is likely to occur. The easiest way to find seepage is to close off a room, light a stick of incense, and watch which way the air flows. Rattling windows and sooty or dusty spots on sills are also signs that air is flowing.

The most expensive way to fix the problem is, obviously, to replace doors and windows. But if you can't afford that, clear plastic sheeting (available at most hardware stores from $17) can be used to seal your windows. Some people have sprayed their window frames with water to get bubble wrap to stick and then affixed it with tape to achieve the same effect. That can be free if you re-use bubble wrap. A third option, storm windows, can cost as little as $7 apiece and can be re-used.

There are other cheap fixes that keep you from having to hire professionals or rebuild your house. Weatherstripping and craft items are common fixes to air flow under doors, rubber gaskets can seal switch plates against the elements, caulk ($5-$8) can fill gaps, heavy cloth drapes can contain window drafts, and simply closing the flue of the fireplace can stop one of the biggest culprits of invading cold air.

All told, you'll have spent $50 to $350 for materials, which means that if you're like the typical family, you'll have made your money back this year or by next winter.

Spring Rains

Zoomer told me the other day to remind our friends to check their gutters, and down spouts.
Spring is here and the spring rains will be soon coming down. The prime cause for wet basements is the inability to move water away from the house foundation. Three things have to be addressed. First, is the ground graded to move the water away from the house and free from any thing that would trap and hold water such as built up flower beds. Second, are the gutters in good shape and properly angled to carry the water from the roof down to the downspouts. Third, do the downspouts have extenders to ensure the water caught in the gutters is moved far enough away from the house. If you do these three things most likely you will have a dry basement unless some kind of a major problem exists. Too many times we see downspouts that bring the rain water down right next to the foundation, this builds up pressure against the foundation wall and eventually the water works its way into the basement. A simple three foot extender at the end of the down spout could make a big difference.  More serious drainage problems will require a foundation drainage system such as an exterior buried pipe around the perimeter or an interior french drain, but first you should try these inexpensive fixes before spending a lot of money to install one of these systems.

Hope you stay high and dry, check back in for more advise form Inspector Bob and his helper Zoomer on how to maintain your house.

Winter Days

Hello Friends :

As the winter is now upon us, we are thinking about the heating systems in our homes. They should have been checked out prior to the start of the season by a qualified HVAC company. This helps catch many issues before that 20 degree night and the heater fails to come on. One thing you might want to keep in mind is the life expectancy for your heating unit. The following is a listing of types of heating systems and components with the average useful life expectancies.

Heating Systems/components: Years of Life
Electric Furnaces 15 - 20
Gas Furnaces 20 - 25
Oil Furnaces 20 - 30
Oil Tanks (interior) 25 - 50
Expansion Tanks 30 - 50
Heat Pump Compressors 8 - 10
Circulating pumps 10 - 20
Zone Valves 5 - 10















This is my helper Mr. Ted (Zoomer), Notice he is hot on the trail of finding defects.






Don't forget to check back for more useful home information and to follow up on the adventures of Inspector Bob and his helper Zoomer.

Check Your Water Heater

Inspector Bob and his helper Mr. Ted says;

By the time you know you have a problem with your water heater, it is usually too late and water is probably already on the floor. You might want to check the date your water heater was manufactured and plan ahead for it's replacement BEFORE it is too late.

General rule of thumb for water heater life expectancy:

Electric 10 - 15 years
Gas 8 - 12 years
Oil 10 - 20 years

Now how do you know how old your heater is???
Here is a list a various manufacturer serial numbers and how you can determine the date of manufacture.

American Water Heater Group:
The year = the 1st and 2nd digits of the serial number the month = the 3rd and 4th digits
Example 9311 = November 1993

A.O. Smith:
The year = the 3rd and 4th digits
Example MA98 = 1998

Bradford White:
Is a bit more complicated here
Year = 1st letter (sequence started in 1984 with "A")
Example G1234 = 1990
The letters I,O,Q,R,U,V are not used, and the series starts again after Z

Rudd/Rheem:
The year = the 3rd and 4th digits
Example 0892 = 1992

State Industries:
The year = the 2nd and 3rd digits
Example L92 = 1992

Sears/Kenmore:
The year = the 2nd and 3rd digits
Example G95 = 1995
Note: this code started in 1990, and the Sears units are now made by State Industries.

Now, check you water heater and plan ahead before it's too late, also take advantage of any energy rebates available for different units being offered.