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| Author |
Message |
| 25 new of 86 responses total. |
ball
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response 53 of 86:
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Nov 25 06:44 UTC 2007 |
I had wondered whether there was a header tank, to feed the
house with water. Today I found a "pressure" tank in the pit
at the well head. It will be interesting to see whether this
freezes during the winter.
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ball
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response 54 of 86:
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Aug 24 14:00 UTC 2008 |
New furnace, air conditioner, ductwork and installation comes to
something in the region of US$ 9,000. The ductwork is necessary because
the new furnace will have to go in the attic where there is currently no
ductwork. The monster in the crawlspace will be disconnected, pushed
off to the side and left to die. The old registers sealed to reduce the
ingress of air from the crawlspace.
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keesan
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response 55 of 86:
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Aug 24 15:03 UTC 2008 |
Why not use the crawlspace again, where it is warmer in winter? (Also insulate
the walls of it).
What is the nighttime summer low temperature where you live?
Here it rarely stays above 70. We added lots of insulation, and we ventilate
at night, close up in the morning, and it stays cool. Much cheaper than air
conditioning and more comfortable. A ceiling fan in one room for when it hits
80 (after a 75 degree night). Close the kitchen door if you are cooking
during the day, and open the windows there.
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ball
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response 56 of 86:
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Aug 24 17:54 UTC 2008 |
Limited access to the crawlspace precludes installation of new equipment
(or extraction of the existing stuff). I don't know what summer low
temperature would be. For much of the year we are able to open windows
for a through breeze. The kitchen has no doors and no window that
opens.
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keesan
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response 57 of 86:
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Aug 24 20:17 UTC 2008 |
You can look up weather records online, and you can probably install a kitchen
window cheaper than you can install and use air conditioning. I put a
hotplate outside and cook there when it is hotter out than in. Do you have
a porch or other covered outdoor area?
If you put a furnace in the attic, can you build a small insulated space
around it?
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ball
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response 58 of 86:
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Aug 25 05:03 UTC 2008 |
The only small section of exterior wall that the kitchen has, already
has a window in it. Sadly the Mulberry tree eliminates most of the
light that could come in through that. In a few years, when we get the
roof re-done, I should probably install a skylight. The kitchen may be
the darkest room in the house. I'm pretty sure the kitchen window
doesn't open. When I asked the HVAC people about insulation for the
furnace they said there was adequate insulation built into its cabinet.
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keesan
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response 59 of 86:
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Aug 25 05:32 UTC 2008 |
You can replace that window with one that does open (awning window or casement
window for maximum ventilation). I can't imagine any amount of insulation
built into a furnace is adequate, considering how hot it gets and how cold
the attic gets. Does it have foot thick walls?
If you insulated well, electric heat could be cheaper than a furnace.
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rcurl
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response 60 of 86:
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Aug 25 17:27 UTC 2008 |
If you insulated well, the furnace will be much cheaper than electric.
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keesan
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response 61 of 86:
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Aug 25 18:40 UTC 2008 |
We insulated well and it will cost about $100/year for electric heat. It
costs $8/month to read the gas meter, and I think the price of gas is going
up faster than that of electricity. A house heated only by electricity, with
a separate meter, gets a low time of day rate (lower at all times, down to
about 2.5 cents/kwh during off-peak hours). There is no heat loss to basement
or attic - it all does into living spaces. There is no pollution generated
in or near the house.
The temperature goes up at least 5 degrees if we turn on the fluorescent
lights (about 400 watts total).
An electrically heated house lets you heat different spaces to different
temperatures, and does not need to have air blowing around cooling you off
and stirring up dust. (Nor does hot-water heat in radiators or the floor).
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slynne
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response 62 of 86:
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Aug 25 23:31 UTC 2008 |
FWIW, I have found that the cheapest way to heat my house is to use a
furnace to heat it to around 55 degrees and to use electric space
heaters in the area where I spend the most time.
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keesan
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response 63 of 86:
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Aug 26 00:53 UTC 2008 |
We heat the rooms where we spend time, when we are in them and awake, to about
55 degrees, and the rest above freezing. But my $100 calculation was for
keeping the whole place 60 degrees. Slynne, do you have any insulation?
Insulated walls make you feel warmer at the same temperature, and reduce
drafts. Jim has basement wall insulation but it is not yet on the walls.
He bought it before I met him.
A ceiling fan helps a lot when it gets over 80 inside.
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slynne
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response 64 of 86:
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Aug 26 01:16 UTC 2008 |
I have some insulation but I am sure I could insulate the house better.
Except I know that I'll never get around to it. But maybe someday, I'll
hire someone to do it. I have very drafty windows though. I am going to
take extra time to winterize them this year though with that rope caulk
stuff and the plastic film that goes over them. I did just the plastic
film last year and the year before and it certainly did make a
difference.
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ball
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response 65 of 86:
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Aug 26 02:27 UTC 2008 |
Reading these suggestions I started to think about getting an electric
heating quote, but then I realised that the a/c requires forced air so
the bulk of the project would still be required. The a/c is not
optional because we wouldn't be able to sell the house without working
a/c and a furnace.
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keesan
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response 66 of 86:
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Aug 26 03:22 UTC 2008 |
Have you thought of selling it and moving to some place better designed?
Jim's brother in CA was refused a loan on his house unless he added a swimming
pool because you can't sell houses without swimming pools.
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rcurl
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response 67 of 86:
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Aug 26 03:50 UTC 2008 |
Most homes in CA do not have swimming pools. But I suppose in some
exclusive housing developments that might occur, though I wonder if it is
legal to refuse a loan on such a basis.
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ball
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response 68 of 86:
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Aug 26 21:04 UTC 2008 |
Re #66: There is no way we could afford to sell the house now. It will
probably take us ten years to break even, let alone see any profit.
Ideally I'd bulldoze it and start from scratch, but short of a lottery
win that's not going to happen either.
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ball
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response 69 of 86:
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Mar 9 04:18 UTC 2009 |
I can't help wondering how much a prefabricated "green"
home would cost. I'm sure it's more than I'll be able to
come up with, but it might be less expensive than trying to
fix this old place up.
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ball
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response 70 of 86:
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Nov 5 23:15 UTC 2011 |
Four years later...
Structural
It took a few attempts and probably a couple of thousand
dollars, but we had splints put on the main beam that
supports the house. We no longer have a huge gap between
the floor and the bottom of the skirting board. The floor
seems to move slightly when we walk across it though.
The concrete slab at the back of the house was replaced.
I like the idea of a sun porch / conservatory there but
the position of a door and window would complicate that
and I can't afford to build one anyway.
The house has been disconnected from the well and
connected to city water. This involved having the drive-
way replaced. The masonary around the well pit has failed
so I'll have to get some quotes from builders to have
that filled. My pet theory is that we could drop a round
concrete pipe vertically into the pit and then surround
the outside with gravel and perhaps keep a sump pump at
the bottom of the pit.
We've done nothing with the roof. The shingles are
starting to peel at the edges a bit but we'll eek as much
life from the existing roof as we can.
Electrical
I've not done anything to upgrade the wiring in the
house. I know it needs doing because the outlets fail a
ground test and the wiring in the attic has fabric
insulation so may date back to when the house was built.
I use GFCIs on a few things. Most of the lights are 10 or
15W CFL except for a couple of ceiling fans and the
bathroom mirror.
Plumbing
The hot water heater is on its last legs: it makes loud
popping and crackling noises and fumes leak into the
garage where it lives. This is creeping up the priority
list. Ideally I'd replace it with one that I could add
solar hot water panels to at some point in the future but
I'll have to see how much that adds to the cost.
Decorating
We bought a rug for the front room and had fitted carpet
installed in the family room. We've painted the bathroom
and my daughter's room. The living room needs painting.
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keesan
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response 71 of 86:
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Nov 6 13:20 UTC 2011 |
What year was the house built? Have you considered an instantaneous water
heater? Where would you put the solar panels? If you replace your roof,
consider a metal roof with seams that you can attach to.
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ball
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response 72 of 86:
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Nov 7 01:58 UTC 2011 |
The house was built in 1951 I think. I've considered a
tankless model. Some people claim they're more efficient but
if they rule out solar hot water that wouldn't be much of an
advantage. The solar panels would sit on the roof of the
attached garage, close to the water heater.
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keesan
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response 73 of 86:
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Nov 7 02:23 UTC 2011 |
I think you can preheat the water with the solar water heater and then use
the instantaneous heater to heat it hotter. Which probably requires a tank.
If you use a lot of hot water it might pay for itself.
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ball
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response 74 of 86:
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Jul 12 15:39 UTC 2015 |
I have some wiring to do: The indoor light fixture just
inside the front door hasn't worked for years. Now the two
lights just outside the front door also don't work. In the
attic I've seen wiring with fabric insulation, so I suspect
that dates back to when the house was built in 1951. I could
run a new wire to near the front door but it may make more
sense to run a wire down the middle of the attic with a few
junction boxes so that I can tap into it as I upgrade the
lighting in each room.
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ball
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response 75 of 86:
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Dec 1 05:35 UTC 2019 |
Has it really been four years since those lights failed?
I should get an electrician in to give me a quote on a new
lighting circuit.
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papa
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response 76 of 86:
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Dec 1 22:31 UTC 2019 |
o/` Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin' into the future ... o/`
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ball
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response 77 of 86:
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Oct 24 16:30 UTC 2020 |
Thinking about replacing the kitchen window and perhaps
a couple of screen doors. How picky should I be about my
choice of wood for the framing (given that it will be
painted)?
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