Great way to cut home air heating costs
Purdue university experts demonstrate us one great route to lower 50% of winter home heating costs
Researchers at Purdue University will work on a new research project that promises the possibility to reduce heating bill by 50 % for folks who reside in very cold climates. The analysis, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, builds on previous work that began about 5yrs ago at Purdue’s Ray W. Herrick Laboratories.
Heat pumps provide heating in winter and cooling in summer but are not efficient in extreme cold climates. The research involves changes to the way heat pumps operate to make them more cost-effective in extreme cold temperatures.
The new technology works by modifying the conventional vapor-compression cycle behind standard air con and refrigeration.
The conventional vapor-compression cycle has four stages:
1° Refrigerant is compressed as a vapor
2° Condenses into a liquid
3° Expands to a mixture of liquid and vapor
4° Then evaporates
The project will investigate two cooling approaches during the compression process.
In one approach, relatively considerable amounts of oil are injected into the compressor to absorb heat generated through the compression stage.
In the second approach, a mixture of liquid and vapor refrigerant from the expansion stage is injected at various points during compression to supply cooling.
The newest heat pumps can be half as expensive to perform as heating technologies now utilised in cold regions where gas is unavailable and residents count on electric heaters and liquid propane.
In the meanwhile here some suggestions to improve you home air quality and save energy:
- Be sure your thermostat is located in a place that is not too cold or hot.
- Install an automatic timer to keep the thermostat at 68 degrees during the day and 55 degrees during the night time.
- Use storm or thermal windows in colder areas. The layer of air between the windows acts as insulation helping maintain the heat inside the spot where you are interested.
- If you haven’t already, insulate your attic and all outside walls.
- Insulate floors over unheated spaces like your basement, any crawl spaces as well as your garage.
- Close off the attic, garage, basement, spare bedrooms and storage areas. Heat only those rooms that you use.
- Seal gaps around any pipes, wires, vents or other openings that could transfer your heat to areas that aren’t heated.
- Dust is an excellent insulator and tends to build up on radiators and baseboard heat vents.
Most people don’t know that common indoor air quality practices lower home air heating costs too:
- Rain and moist may bring moisture indoors, creating dampness, mold spores — big problems for healthy indoor air. Look at your roof, foundation and basement or crawlspace once a year to catch leaks or moisture problems and route water away from your home’s foundation.
- Help keep asthma triggers away from your house by fixing leaks and drips when they start. Standing water and moist encourage the development of dust mites, mold and mildew — some of the most common triggers that can worsen asthma. Make use of a dehumidifier or air conditioner when needed, and clean both regularly.
- High amounts of moisture in your home increase dampness and the growth of mold, which not only damage your home but threaten health. Install and run exhaust fans in bathrooms to remove unhealthy moisture and odors from your home.
- Ventilate your kitchen stove directly outside or open a kitchen window when you cook. Keeping exhaust — including cooking odors and particles — outside of your home prevents dangerous fumes and particles from harming you or your family.
Author :
Rosalind Dall writes for theductless split system air conditioner blog, her personal hobby blog centered on ideas to help people consume less energy and purify indoor air.