Rain Barrels

Rain barrels are a simple and effective way to use rain runoff from your roof to irrigate your gardens and flower beds. The advantages are three-fold. You lessen the amount of runoff which decreases pollution and erosion, you conserve water by decreasing your water usage for outdoor purposes, and you reuse the barrel thereby negating it being disposed of or going through the recycling process. There are many styles of rain barrels available, but the concept is the same, divert the water running down your gutter downspout into a barrel for later use. Your rain barrel should have an overflow pipe which can be directed to where the downspout previously drained, or into another rain barrel. Some rain barrels have an old-fashioned pitcher pump mounted to the top to draw off water while others simply have a hose bib attached to the bottom of the barrel to draw off water. If using the type with the hose bib, I recommend setting the rain barrel op on concrete blocks. This will make it easier to get to the hose bib and also provide a little elevation for pressure if running a hose directly from the barrel to your garden. You can buy 55 gallon plastic barrels from a food service vendor for $5-$10, or you can order an oak barrel with an iron base for $275 online. The food service barrels are usually bright blue, but can be painted to match your house. I installed a rain barrel on my house recently and it took less than 15 minutes. It quickly filled during the following rain storm, so I need to get a few more. Surely, it is time to "roll out the barrel." It is, and don't call me Shirley.

Weather Responsive Heating Controls

There has been a lot of recent interest in weather responsive controls for residential heating systems. This is nothing new. I have been installing them since the early 1990's. Basically, it is a control that connects to your heating plant and provides additional control of your system temperature. A weather responsive control has at least two sensors, one to measure outdoor temperature and one to measure your system temperature. More complex controls can have additional sensors for heating zones, individual rooms and domestic hot water.

Your heating system was installed based on what is known as design temperature, or the coldest expected temperature for your area. Heating systems could be considered oversized, since the temperature may only fall that low for a few days of the year, but when it does, your house will stay warm. Also, your heating plant operates like a teenager with a Mustang, either petal to the metal, or slam on the brakes. When there is a call for heat, your heating plant fires and runs up to it's highest setting. When your thermostat is satisfied, it shuts off. This is perfect, if it is the dead of winter and you are at the design temperature, but how often is that? If it isn't that cold out, it makes sense that you don't need as much heat from your system, right?

A weather responsive control does just that. It modulates your system temperature based on the outdoor temperature. When it isn't that cold out it doesn't let your system get too hot. It only lets your system reach a temperature sufficient to heat your home at the current outdoor temperature. A weather responsive control will work with any type of heating system, but it will work best with radiant floors, cast iron radiators, or radiant baseboard.

It looks like Junior just traded in the sports car for a hybrid!

Reducing the Pollution From Your Lawn

We know that the nitrates and phosphates found in fertilizers cause tremendous pollution. We know that heavy rains wash these substances into streams, lakes, rivers and bays. We know the devastating environmental damage they cause. We also know we are not doing enough to prevent it. Here are four tips to help you reduce your contribution to this problem.

1. Avoid using commercial phosphate/nitrate laden fertilizers on your lawn. Duh. Use organic fertilizers, manure or compost. If you lessen the pollutants in your lawn and garden, there will be less to wash off, and the problem is lessened.

2. Practice erosion control by covering bare soil with mulch or by planting grass or cover crops. Less exposed soil equates to less erosion, and subsequent pollution, by the actions of wind and rain runoff.

3. Use rain barrels on your gutter downspouts to contain water that would normally be allowed to run off and use it for outdoor watering. You will ease the burden on the streams and also conserve water in the process.

4. Install a rain garden. This rainwater containment area holds a vast amount of storm runoff and any pollutants it would be carrying. The natural actions of plants and soil work to offset the pollution. In some areas, it is required by code to install rain gardens to contain the runoff from large commercial parking lots. Installing one for your home would be an inexpensive and beautiful way to go the extra mile in your conservation efforts.

Geothermal Systems

A geothermal system is basically a heat pump, a type of heating/AC unit common in southern states and hotels. The system transfers heat from where you don't want it to where you do. In the summer, it is an air conditioner. It takes the heat from your house and transfers it outside. In the winter, it is a heater. It takes heat from outdoors and transfers it into your house. Yes, you read that right. Even in the dead of winter, there is plenty of heat to transfer into your house. This is accomplished by increasing and decreasing the pressure of a refrigerant gas in the system by means of a compressor.

The Ideal Gas Law states that if you increase the pressure of a gas, it's temperature will also increase. Consequentially, if you decrease the pressure of a gas, it's temperature will also decrease. Also, if you put a gas under enough pressure, it will turn into a liquid and when you release the pressure, the liquid will turn back into a gas. In the summer, the compressor increases the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant, turns it into a liquid, and sends it to a coil in your duct work. There, the pressure is decreased and the liquid returns to a gas, and the temperature decreases. The coil gets cold and a fan blows the cool air into your house while the refrigerant , which has absorbed heat from your house, returns to the compressor where it dissipates the heat from your house to the air outside via another coil. In the winter, the compressor turns the gas into a liquid, but now it sends it to the outside coil where it turns back into a gas and the temperature decreases. The refrigerant, which is now hot from absorbing heat from outdoors (yes, it really did!,) moves to the coil in your duct work and makes it hot. Your fan blows the warm air into your house.

A geothermal system removes the outside heat transfer coil and replaces it with a coil that is buried deep underground. The ground temperature below 4-5 feet remains relatively constant year round at around 55 degrees. This provides much more efficient heat transfer compared to an above ground coil exposed to constantly changing temperatures. There are some geothermal systems in which the outdoor coils are buried at shallower depths, but use a larger coil to compensate for the warmer ground temperatures. There are other systems that submerge the coil in a pond or an aquifer. Though more difficult to install, they are more efficient as water is such a good conductor of heat. A geothermal system can cut your heating bill 50%-60%, possibly more.

Geothermal misconceptions:

1. You must have duct work in your house for AC. Geothermal AC will not work with any other type of heating system. If you run cold water through baseboard heaters, radiators or radiant heat pipes, you will have condensation on your floors. This would cause wet, slippery floors and water damage to rooms. If you don't have duct work, you can use geothermal for heating only.

2. The heat that goes into your house comes from the compressor, not from the Earth's core. You would have to go down a great depth to reach that heat and if you did, it would be to hot to transfer heat to when you are using AC in the summer. I would also suspect that if you went too deep magma would actually melt the piping!

3. A geothermal system will drastically reduce your fuel cost for the winter, but prepare yourself for a whopper of an electric bill. The spike in your electric bill in the summer when you run your AC will pale in comparison to your winter electric bill. The compressor uses a lot of power and you will be running it all winter long. Do your homework as some compressors are more efficient than others.

Hot Water Recirculation

When you run hot water from your faucet, how long does it take for the water to get, well, hot? If you said anything other than instantly, you could be wasting thousands of gallons of water each year. If you have a well, you are paying for electricity to pump it, paying to heat it, and possibly paying for salt to soften it. If you have municipal water, you are paying for the water, paying to heat it, and paying the sewer bill based on your water usage. Depending on how long you have to wait for hot water to reach the faucet, you are wasting 14,000 to 38,000 gallons of water each year, which means you have to heat the same amount of water to replace it. Water, energy and your hard-earned money down the drain, wasted.

A hot water recirculation system works off of an aquastat and/or a timer to keep hot water available at the faucet so none is wasted waiting for it to get hot. The timer is important to avoid recirculating at hours when people are sleeping or at work. There are two types of hot water recirculation systems, active and passive. An active system is generally installed during construction of a home. An aquastat activates the recirculation pump which returns the cooled-off water at the faucet back to the water heater through a separate recirculation pipe to be reheated thereby maintaining hot water at the faucet. This type of system is expensive to install and probably isn't feasible as a retrofit option.

A passive system uses the cold water piping as the recirculation pipe back to the water heater. One method uses a pump which mounts to your water heater and operates via a timer to recirculate the hot water at low volume through a thermostatic diverter valve mounted under the farthest sink. Though this method certainly saves water, it uses more energy because as the water cools off in the pipes it must again be reheated. Another method is to mount the recirculation pump under the farthest sink and have it operate via a thermostatic sensor. When it senses the water cooling off in the pipes, it turns on the pump and sends the cool water back to the water heater to be reheated. This saves more energy as it doesn't recirculate constantly like the water heater mounted pump, but still loses heat through the piping. Another method is to have a recirculation pump mounted under remote sinks which operates via a push button on the counter. When you want to use hot water, you activate the pump with the button. The water that would normally be allowed to run down the drain is returned back to the water heater. A sensor shuts off the pump when hot water arrives at the faucet. This is the most efficient method of hot water recirculation. You get bonus points for using a DC pump powered by a PV panel.

The cost of a passive recirculation system as about $300. The installation is not too difficult, but if you need a plumber to do it add another $200-$300. Depending on your water and energy costs and whether you install the system yourself or hire a plumber, your payback time should be one to three years. Sounds like another no brainer to me.

Deep Green

I call this post "Deep Green" because we need to look deeper at living a greener life. It is easy to think green and come up with recycling plans, ways to buy products with lower fuel miles, and how to lower our carbon footprint. It is easy to act green and buy energy efficient appliances, install solar panels, and bring our own bags to the grocery store. Do your long-term investments reflect your green values? When was the last time you went online and looked at the portfolio for your mutual funds? Are you unknowingly or inadvertently supporting oil companies, pharmaceutical companies and or mega chain stores? This is the time to act. There are at least five first-rate green mutual funds available. Do a quick search and you will find them. Green funds are down as much as everything else, if not considerably more. Research the green funds, find one which has holdings that appeal to your beliefs and make a substantial long term investment. Green funds are volatile so they are not suited for the short time. The market will rebound and I believe green funds will do well, especially considering the President's energy policies. Your "deep green" commitments will reward you financially as well as rewarding the planet.

Help Desk

If you have any questions about plumbing, heating or alternative energy, please post a comment. If I don't have an immediate answer, I will ask my colleagues in the field and will post an answer for you shortly.

Net Metering

Many people generate their own power for a variety of reasons, living "off the grid," saving money, cutting down on greenhouse emissions, or just sticking it to the power company. For those who have not cut the umbilical cord of their energy provider with a battery storage system, you need to understand net metering. If you use electricity, your electric meter spins and records your usage for billing purposes. If you generate more energy from your photo voltaic panels, wind generator, methane generator, water wheel or any other source that you use, the excess power causes your electric meter to spin in reverse, sending the excess into the transmission lines. The power you supply into the system is like a savings account for electricity. When you use power, it is deducted from your "savings." At the end of the year, you want to have a "net" usage of zero or lower. In other words, you want to have generated at least as much power as you have used. If you have generated more power than you have used, you may be entitled to payment from your energy provider, as they are selling the electricity you supplied to other customers. You need to check your power company's policy on this. Usually you can find it on their website in the "riders" section. Some power companies simply pay you at the end of the year while some won't pay you unless you buy a license from them, which would usually cost more than the power you supply. Some require a separate meter that measures the amount or power you produce. You should also check your state's regulations on net metering. Regardless of whether you get payed for your excess power generation or not, you should strive for a net of zero. You might not be part of the solution, but you will no longer be part of the problem.

Lowering Your Heating Bill

Converting your heating system to use radiant heat and an alternative energy source is by far the best way to lower, or even eliminate, your heating cost. For those that are unable to undertake the expensive conversion at this time, I offer six inexpensive tips that can save you a lot of money.

1. Lower your thermostat. For every degree you lower your thermostat, you will save 3% of your heating cost. Lowering your thermostat even further at night will save even more as night time is generally when your house has the greatest heat loss.

2. Humidify your air. Using a simple humidifier can help you save as well. One way your body loses heat is through the evaporation of water from your skin to the air. The drier the air, the more evaporation takes place. A humidifier cuts down on the evaporation and causes you to feel warmer. When you feel warmer, you naturally lower your thermostat.

3. Don't heat the outdoors. Simple, right? Maybe not as simple as you would think. Infiltration, or heat loss from air leaks, accounts for the majority of your heating costs. Search high and low for cracks, holes and gaps. If you feel a draft or can see light coming in, seal it with caulk, weather stripping or insulation. Place insulating "draft socks" at the base of your doors (a rolled up towel works fine.) If you have a garage or enclosed porch, use that as your main entrance in the winter. The enclosure creates a buffer between your heated living area and the cold outside and cuts down on the heat loss compared to a door directly linking your heated space and outside. If this buffer zone is not available, use the smaller of your two doors. Using your 32" side door instead of your 36" front door will save 15% of the heat lost by opening the door. When bringing in your groceries, bring them all in at once. It is better to open the door once for a little longer than several shorter times.

4. Insulate. Adding insulation to your attic (minimum of R30) is simple and will pay for itself quickly in energy savings. The same is true for your pipes. All hot water and heating pipes should be insulated.

5. Have your heating system checked by a professional. A properly adjusted heating plant can operate 10%-20% more efficiently than a poorly maintained unit. A properly adjusted heating plant also minimizes the risk of deadly carbon monoxide seeping into your home.

6. Lower your water temperature. Many codes set a limit of 130 degrees for domestic hot water and some set the limit at 120 degrees. You want to set your water temperature as hot as you can stand it at your kitchen sink without adding cold water (usually 110-115 degrees.) Any hotter and you are wasting energy. It takes 30% more energy to heat water to 130 degrees than to 110 degrees.

I hope these tips are helpful to you. Not only will you save money, you will also reduce your carbon footprint.

Water Conservation

According to the EPA, the average family of four in the U.S. uses about 400 gallons of water per day. Flushing your toilets uses 27%, your washing machine uses 22%, showering uses 17%, your faucets use 15%, leaks account for 14% and 5% is for other purposes. I'll give you some tips to save water in each of these areas.

Toilets: An older toilet can use 3.5-5 gallons per flush (GPF) compared to modern toilets which flush 1.6 GPF. If you have an older toilet and can not bear the cost of replacing it, you can cut down its usage by lowering the water level in the tank by adjusting the float. If tinkering is not your thing, you can simply displace some of the water in the tank by filling a glass jar with water (a 1/2 gallon milk bottle works well) and submerging it in the corner of the tank. If you want to conserve even more water, you might want to try a 1.4 or 1.28 GPF toilet. The 1.4 GP toilets are usually pressure-assisted, meaning they store water under pressure for flushing. Though very effective toilets, they are loud and might not be ideal for your home. The 1.28 GPF toilets are what are called "flapperless." They rely on a bucket that holds the water. When you flush the toilet, the bucket tips and a tidal wave of water flushes the toilet. I would shop for a toilet that is rated high in flushing performance because if you have to flush it twice, you aren't saving any water. Switching to a water conservation toilet can save 14,000 gallons per year over an older toilet and 8,000 over a 1.6GPF toilet. Also, installing a fill valve that limits the water entering the bowl during the refilling cycle can save thousands of gallons per year.

Washing Machines: I don't have much to say here that you probably already know. Buy an appliance with the Energy Star rating, make sure the machine is filled completely, use the proper wash size for the amount of clothes, and don't wash things that don't need to be washed.

Shower: A typical shower head uses 2.5 gallons per minute (GPM.) By switching to a 2GPM shower head, you can save 4,300 gallons per year. By switching to a 1.75GPM shower head, you can save 7,600 gallons each year. I caution that the flow from a 1.75GPM shower head seems "weaker" at first, but you get used to it. I have a 1.75GPM shower head in my bathroom.

Faucets: Most faucets have a standard 2.2GPM aerator screwed on the spout, though many have been removed or tampered with over the years. Changing your aerators is a simple, effective and inexpensive way to conserve water. You can purchase aerators with flow rates of 2.0, 1.75, 1.5, 1.0 and 0.5GPM, all offering savings over the standard 2.2GPM. I recommend using 0.5GPM aerators on your bathroom faucets for maximum savings and a 1.5GPM aerator on your kitchen sink faucet to save water when washing and rinsing while not sacrificing expediency in filling large pots for cooking. Following these recommendations can save you over 14,000 gallons per year. Also, put bottles of water in the refrigerator instead of running the water until it gets cold. When drawing hot water, consider installing a recirculation pump under your sink if it takes a long time for the water to get hot.

Leaks: A leak of one drip every second adds up to 3,000 gallons per year. You might not even know you have a leak. To test a toilet, add a few drops of food coloring to the tank before you go to bed. If the water in the bowl is colored in the morning, the toilet is running. Also, dry out the basins and spouts of your sinks and tubs and put a tissue under the spouts at night. The tissue will show if there were and drips overnight. Check your water meter. If it is spinning when you are not using water, you have a leak. If you don't have a water meter you can use a trick an old plumber showed me when I was an apprentice. Place the point of a pencil against your main water pipe and the eraser against your ear (not in your ear) and listen for a leak.

Other: Pretty vague...Lets call it outdoor usage. For watering your garden and lawn, I advise planting "rain gardens" and using rain water recovery barrels on your gutter downspouts to utilize water that is usually allowed to run off. If you have to water, do so in morning and evening when evaporation is less of a concern. If your sprinklers come on via a timer, shut the system off when rain is in the forecast. Don't leave the hose running when washing your car. Instead use a conservation-type sprayer head. Use a pool cover when you are not using your pool. The evaporation from a pool is tremendous, not to mention the loss of heat and chlorine.

If the average family follows these tips, they will save over 30,000 gallons per year. I am serious about water conservation. I hope you are too.

Basics of Radiant Heat

Heat 101-"Heat travels from hot to cold...always."

Question: What is the coldest isle in the supermarket? If you said the frozen food isle, you'd be wrong. All the isles are the same temperature, you just feel cold because the heat from your body radiates directly to the cold freezers. This is like being outside in the sun. You feel warm because the sun is heating you through radiation. When a cloud passes in front of the sun, you suddenly feel cooler. The temperature hasn't changed, you just feel cooler because instead of absorbing heat from the sun, you are transmitting heat to the objects around you. Now apply this concept to your home. With radiant floor heating, you heat the objects in a room through radiation instead of heating the air in the room through the convection of conventional heating systems. Why is this important? Simple, air is an insulator. It takes a lot of energy to heat air.

Since you use the entire area of your floor to heat the room, lower water temperatures are needed to get the same heat output as a radiator. In a conventional heating system, you have a heating curve. Hot air rises, so you will have a high ceiling temperature and a low floor temperature. Radiant heating systems have a reverse heating curve, meaning a high floor temperature and low ceiling temperature. The heat stays low, where you want it. The majority of your heat loss is infiltration, heated air leaking out through doors and windows. Since you are heating the objects in the room with radiant heat instead of the air, you drastically reduce your infiltration loss. Also, with a radiant floor, you are basically in direct contact with your radiator. Because of this, people tend to keep their thermostat three degrees lower than they normally would. Lowering your thermostat one degree will save 3% of your energy consumption.

Combining the lower water temperature, reverse heating curve, saving on infiltration losses, and lower thermostat settings, a radiant heating system can save 30%-50% of your heating costs. A radiant heating system seems like a no brainer to me, but I make a living installing them, so I'm biased.

Outdoor Wood Furnaces

Outdoor wood furnaces are self contained exterior residential heating plants that look like a small shed which transfer heat from a wood fire to water which is then pumped into the heating system inside the house. The advantages are that you use wood, a renewable resource, instead of fossil fuels to heat your home; the mess, bugs, soot and fire hazard are kept away from your home; and a well-designed unit will be very efficient and not wasteful of your wood. The disadvantages are that they are labor intensive in cutting, splitting and stacking the wood, and the smoke can be a nuisance in suburban settings. All OWF's are not the same. There are several manufactures who have engineered a fine product factoring in an efficient combustion chamber, large water tank, insulation and the ability to meet EPA regulations and there are many, many inferior products, including "home made" units, which are terribly inefficient, smokey and even dangerous. When selecting an OWF, be diligent in your research, adhere to the Best Burn Practices for the chimney height, follow all local codes and DON'T BURN TRASH in it. The old saying, "You get what you pay for." is so very true for OWF's.