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Found 108 results for the keyword(s) ‘oil heating’

  • Article

    CAN EXISTING WINDOWS BE USED FOR PASSIVE SOLAR HEATING?

    Yes, if they face in the right direction and are properly exposed to the winter sun and shaded from the summer sun. See the section on solar energy in the overview "Insulation & House As A System" that can be found in the Nuts & Bolts section of the web site.
  • Article

    INSULATING WALLS

    A respectable rewinterizing job need not include the addition of insulation into the walls. They are the most difficult (and expensive) parts of the house to re-insulate, and usually have the poorest financial payback of all re-winterizing tasks because:-- Walls are finished on both sides, and i...
  • Article

    CAN I USE MY CRAWL SPACE AS A HOT-AIR PLENUM?

    I always loved this idea -- heat the floor and distribute warm air throughout the ground floor at the same time. It is a practice that is legal under certain limited conditions, but the problem is that it dries out the wood in the floor space so much that, when a high-temperature furnace is ...
  • Article

    WHY ARE THE TEMPERATURES OF THE BASEMENT SO DIFFERENT FROM THE REST OF THE HOUSE?

    There are four special temperature considerations in the basement.The air temperature in the basement is not always the same as that in the rest of the house. In a house with exterior basement insulation, the massive foundation wall is warm and slows down temperature changes (hotter or colder...
  • Article

    I need a new boiler for space heating. What should I buy?

    Elise from Montreal wrote: We bought a small warehouse that we converted into living space. Three years ago we changed all the piping for the hot water radiators. Now it is time to get rid of the very old and costly oil boiler. We are thinking of switching to an Electric boiler. Is this ...
  • Article

    Heating Ducts in the Attic & Ice on the roof!

    Ray from Woodstock, Ontario writes:For 20 years we had no ice problems on the roof. Heating was radiant heating in the ceiling. Then we installed a forced air furnace. The contractor ran all the ducts through the attic and we have had terrible ice dams ever since. The contractor refused to...
  • Article

    Air duct booster fans

    Here is a little fan called the "Air Booster" by Field Controls that is already installed inside a duct. You just cut into a ventilation or heating duct and replace a little section with this little fan and you can get a boost to the air flow. In-line fans can do the same thing with more power,...
  • Article

    Floor heating grill booster fan

    Here is a little fan that just sits on top of the heating grill. It senses hot air and turns on to add some boost to the air flow in an area that doesn't get enough heat. It is called the Register Booster by Field Controls.
  • Article

    Compare: Ground Source Heat Pump vs. Propane Furnace

    An e-mail from Roger in Cambelleville Ontario:We have just started to build our home (3300 sq. ft.) and I recently found out that natural gas is not available. So the great debate begins on what fuel source to use. I have narrowed down my selection to radiant heat using a propane to heat the ...
  • Article

    Chimneys that Work! -- an overview

    Chimneys : The Six CommandmentsChimney does not belong to the house, but to its appliance.More carefully sized to the heating appliance.Be insulated.Be tightly constructed.Be located within the heating envelope of the house.Terminate at or near the highest point of the building.The best resource...