Heating and Cooling Tips

1. Set your thermostat as low as is comfortable in the winter and as high as is comfortable in the summer.
2. When adjusting the thermostat by hand, remember that the house will not warm up or cool down any faster if you crank up the thermostat past the desired temperature. It's easy to forget to turn it back down, wasting energy dollars.
3. Be a fan of fans - operating an air conditioner can cost up to 25 times as much as an oscillating, box, or window fan. The fan will not change the air temperature, but you will feel cooler because of the air movement. Make sure you turn the fan off when you're not in the room.
4. Do not install the room thermostat of your central heating on a cold outer wall, next to a window, in a draughty place, or next to a heat source.
5. Close an unoccupied room that is isolated from the rest of the house and turn down the thermostat or turn off the heating for that room or zone. However, do not turn the heating off if it adversely affects the rest of your system.
6. Clean or replace filters on furnaces once a month. Your forced-air furnace may use an electrostatic filter, which is a metal-mesh filter in a metal frame. If so, you need to clean this monthly during the heating season, following the manufacturer's instructions. If your filter is in a cardboard frame, it needs to be replaced monthly during the heating season. If your system doubles as a central air conditioning system, also clean or replace the filter monthly while the cooling system is in use.
7. Clean warm air registers, baseboard heaters, and radiators as needed. Make sure they're not blocked by furniture, carpeting or drapes.
8. Bleed trapped air from hot water radiators once or twice a season. If in doubt about how to perform this task, call a professional.
9. Place heat resistant radiator reflectors between exterior walls and the radiators.
10. Use kitchen, bath, and other ventilating fans wisely. In just 1 hour, these fans can pull out a houseful of warmed or cooled air. Turn fans off as soon as they have done the job.
11. 
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    Heat Recovery VentilatorsInstall a Heat Recovery Ventilator.
    
    Rebates are available through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.
    
    A heat recovery ventilator does four things: brings fresh air into your home, warms the air, circulates it, and gets rid of stale air.
    
    Many homes don't get enough fresh air, especially in the winter.
    
    An HRV only works in homes with few air leaks.
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    Wood Pellet stoves and BoilersInstall a Certified Pellet Stove.
    
    Rebates are available through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.
    
    Space heating is the biggest energy use in your home.
    
    Wood pellets burn efficiently and cleanly. Pellet are small bits of compacted wood. Electricity is used to feed the fire automatically.
    
    Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) measures heating appliances efficiency. Higher AFUE is more efficient.
13. 
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    Certified Wood StovesInstall a Certified Wood Stove.
    
    Rebates are available through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.
    
    Space heating is the biggest energy use in your home.
    
    EPA certified wood stove burn cleanly and efficiently.
    
    Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) measures heating appliances efficiency. Higher AFUE is more efficient.
14. 
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    Star Oil Furnaces and BoilersInstall an Energy Star Oil Furnace or Boiler.
    
    Rebates are available through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.  Space heating is the biggest energy use in your home.
    
    Energy Star = energy efficient products.
    
    Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) measures heating appliances efficiency. Higher AFUE is more efficient.
15. 
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    Star gas furnaces and boilersInstall an Energy Star Gas Furnace or Boiler.
    
    Rebates are available through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.
    
    Space heating is the biggest energy use in your home.
    
    Energy Star = energy efficient products.
    
    Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) measures heating appliances efficiency. Higher AFUE is more efficient.

Passive Solar Heat

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Passive Solar Heat

Build homes and other buildings with south facing windows.

Sunlight comes through the windows and heats the building.

Use a local, renewable energy - sunlight.

Heating bills can be reduced by 20%.

Solar Air Heating

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Solar Air Heating

Put up a Solar-Wall on the south side of a building.

Use a local, renewable energy - sunlight.

These systems are easy to operate and maintain.

The Recreation Building in Fort Smith has a solar air heating system.

Water Heating Tips

1. Repair leaky faucets. A leaky faucet wastes gallons of water in a short period.
2. Insulate your electric hot water storage tank and pipes, but be careful not to cover the thermostat. Wrap your hot water tank in an insulating blanket if it feels warm to the touch.
3. Install aerating low-flow faucets and showerheads.
4. Lower the thermostat on your water heater. Water heaters sometimes come from the factory with high temperature settings, but a setting of 46 degrees celsius (115 degrees fahrenheit) provides comfortable hot water for most uses.
5. Buy a new energy efficient water heater. Efficient hot water systems are eligible for a rebate through the Energy Efficiency Incentive Program.  
6. Although most water heaters last 10 to 15 years, it's best to start shopping for a new one if yours is more than 7 years old. Doing some research before your water heater fails will enable you to select one that most appropriately meets your needs.
7. If you are going on vacation turn down your water heater's thermostat to the lowest possible setting.
8. Drain a quart of water from your water tank every 3 months to remove sediment that impedes heat transfer and lowers the efficiency of your heater. The type of water tank you have determines the steps to take, so follow the manufacturer's advice.
9. Take more showers than baths. Bathing uses the most hot water in the average household. You use 15-25 gallons of hot water for a bath, but less than 10 gallons during a 5-minute shower.
10. Install a drain water waste heat recovery system.

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On-Demand Hot Water Systems

Solar Water Heating

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Solar Water Heating

Put up south facing solar collectors where they will get lots of sunlight.

The sun heats the waters as it flows through the collectors. The heated waters goes to your hot water tank.

Funding is available through the Alternative Energy Technologies Program .

The image to the left is an example of the panels used in a solar hot water heater. For a simple diagram of how the cells and your water heater interact, click on the poster to the right.

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