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Design Your Saving Energy Plan
At least once in a while and most likely when the utility bills are delivered people seriously consider finding a good energy plan that might be helpful in assisting them with implementing some techniques that will result efficient in what concerns...
Does Rain Making Really Work?
Whenever there's a drought, someone will come up with the idea of finding a rain maker, or holding a day of prayer for rain. Now far be it for me to make light of people who are in truly desperate straits and who are prepared to try anything to...
Efficiency Equals Reduction
Efficiency Equals Reduction (400 words) Imagine that if at the grocery store the person bagging your purchases left empty, unused spaces in each bag causing you to carry 10 instead of 5 bags out to your car then into your home. You would be...
Energy Conservation - How Small Changes can dramatically reduce your Energy Bill
There are many good reasons to conserve energy. If we use less
gas, oil and electricity we will save money, and the pollution
associated with extracting and using fossil fuels will decrease.
Reducing greenhouse gas production may help to reverse...
Guide to Choosing A Sleeping Bag
Guide to Choosing a Sleeping Bag
There are many types of sleeping bags available. Things you will
need to consider when deciding on what sleeping bag to buy:
1. What is the temperature and climate where you camp going to
be like?
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Easy Ways to Save Energy
With this fall's spike in oil and natural gas prices and the
further impact Hurricane Katrina will have on this winter's
heating oil supplies, it's become more important than ever to
make sure our homes are as energy-efficient as possible.
Luckily, there are a number of easy, inexpensive ways to button
up your home for winter. Numerous cost-efficient products on the
market for your windows and doors will go a long way toward
preserving the heat you generate with your heating system.
Make sure your windows and doors are tight. Self-stick foam
weather-stripping at the tops and bottom of windows, as well as
across the separation between the top and bottom halves of the
window, will block out drafts. Additionally, clear plastic,
secured to the window frame with double-sided sticky tape, will
also block out drafts and create an air barrier between the
window and you.
Additional weather-stripping around all four edges of doors will
also help to block out the cold. Also, don't forget your water
heater! You can buy inexpensive padding to wrap around the unit
itself, and sturdy foam insulation for all the pipes.
The way you furnish your home can add to your level of comfort
this winter. Thick, insulated drapes will cut back on drafts
from windows; wall to wall carpeting will cut back on drafts
from cold air coming in from gaps between walls and floors; both
wall to wall carpeting and thick area rugs will retain heat and
add to your comfort.
Believe it or not, you can lose heat through the switch plates
and wall plugs in your outer walls. Another inexpensive product
will solve that problem; for three or four dollars you can buy
insulated pads to install behind the plates. Simply remove the
switch plate, pop in the appropriate padding, and screw the
switch plate back on. A single package contains insulated pads
suitable for single and double on-off switch plates
U.S. Is A Spicier Nation (Literally) Since 1970s
Americans' spice consumption has grown almost three times as fast as the population in recent decades. Much of that growth is due to the country's changing demographics. Now, flavors that were once exotic and rare are found on the shelves in many groceries.
and two-plug
outlets.
Experiment with the way you dress and see if you can turn the
thermostat down and still be comfortable. Wear warm fleece; keep
your feet warm with thick socks and shoes or fuzzy slippers;
even consider wearing a hat indoors. You should be able to turn
the thermostat down to at least 68 degrees and still be
comfortable. If you have an altern
ate source of heat - a wood, corn or pellet buring stove -
consider using it as a primary source of heat.
If you have thermostats in each room, you may want to consider
shutting off the heat in unused rooms, or at least lowering the
thermostat in those rooms to 55 degrees. If this is an option,
be sure to put weather-stripping around the doors to the
unheated rooms.
If you're really strapped for funds, don't hesitate to call your
local human services agencies to find out if you can qualify for
home heating assistance. As a taxpayer, you've undoubtedly been
supporting all kinds of social programs for years, or even
decades; don't let embarrassment prevent you from getting help
when you need it. Adequate heating isn't a luxury, it's a
necessity.
If you take careful stock of the heating problems in your home
and take a few simple measures to solve those problems, you
should be able to minimize the impact rising fuel prices will
have on your winter heating budget. Keep warm!
About the author:
Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwestern
New Hampshire and frequently contributes to Tips and
Topics. She has published numerous articles in local and
regional publications on a wide range of topics, including
business, education, the arts, and local events. Her feature
articles include an interview with independent documentary
filmmaker Ken Burns and a featur
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