You don’t need a chimney with ventless gas fireplaces & electric fireplaces :
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On a cold day, a fire is the perfect focal point for quiet conversation, reading a good book or a little romance. In fact, when it comes right down to it, nothing quite matches the warmth and ambiance of flickering flames in a [...]
A plastic tweaked to mimic cellular membranes can separate carbon dioxide from natural gas and could help reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, scientists say.
The technology, detailed in the Oct issue of the journal Science, might also be modified to isolate natural gas from decomposing garbage or filter impurities from water, the researchers say. [...]
How does the cost of pellets compare to wood?:
On face value, pellets are more expensive at $130 to $200 per ton compared to firewood at from $100 to $175 per cord.
But comparing a ton to a cord is a bit like comparing a pound to an inch. One ton of pellets consists of 50 [...]
Pellet stoves utilize electronically controlled combustion, blowers, and highly effective heat exchangers to provide reliable, efficient, heating.
You pour the pellets into a holding bin or hopper, which is located either at the top or bottom.
Hoppers typically hold from 35 to 130 pounds of pellets; the larger the hopper, the longer a given stove will [...]
With skyrocketing oil prices, the cost of heating homes is jumping off the charts. The Department of Energy expects heating bills to be 27 percent higher this winter for people who heat with oil and 41 percent higher for those who heat with natural gas. In cold-winter climates, this number will be closer to 30 [...]
WASHINGTON: Economic growth has made carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increase much faster than expected, as trees and oceans struggle to absorb the greenhouse gas, scientists said in a study published on Monday.
“Atmospheric carbon dioxide growth has increased 35 percent faster than expected since 2000,” said a statement from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), [...]
If the motor runs but the blower doesn’t move air, the belt that connects the two probably has broken. Replacing it is an easy fix.
First, turn off all power to the unit and turn off the gas at the gas valve that serves the furnace.
Remove the door on the front of the furnace cabinet to [...]
Most heating systems operate reliably for a long time if they are well-maintained. Before you call a furnace technician for a repair or roll up your sleeves to do the work yourself, call your utility or check their Web site–in many areas, the utility company will send a technician to your home to check minor [...]
CHICAGO: Scientists have figured out a way to trick plants into doing the dirty work of environmental cleanup, US and British researchers reported on Monday.
Researchers at the University of Washington have genetically altered poplar trees to pull toxins out of contaminated ground water, offering a cost-effective way of cleaning up environmental pollutants. A group [...]
Here are methods for troubleshooting common heat pump problems:
No heat
Most heating system failures are caused by thermostat malfunctions, a tripped circuit breaker or blown fuse, or–in the case of combustion furnaces–a pilot light that has gone out. If the heat doesn’t come on even when you adjust the thermostat to a setting above room temperature:
1) [...]
Did you know you can extract heat from chilly outside air and use it to heat your house? This feat is performed by the magic of a heat pump–an appliance that uses refrigeration technology rather than fuel combustion to provide warmth and cooling.
Heat pumps are not new– they’ve been in use for more than thirty [...]
A heat pump uses air conditioning principles to extract heat from one place and deliver it to another, with one big difference: the system is reversible.
In addition to expelling heat from indoors, the system can be reversed to warm rooms in the winter.
Split air-source systems have a compressor, coil, fan and reversing valve unit [...]
Radiant heat from the sun or from a radiant heater travels in a straight line to warm cooler objects-roofs, walls, people-rather than the air. Those objects absorb the heat and may re-radiate it to other cooler surfaces. Though air temperature may be chilly, you can still feel warm with radiant heating.
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Source:http://www.hometips.com/hyhw/comfort/38comf.html
Within five years, solar power will be cheap enough to compete with carbon-generated electricity, even in Britain, Scandinavia or upper Siberia. In a decade, the cost may have fallen so dramatically that solar cells could undercut oil, gas, coal and nuclear power by up to half. Technology is leaping ahead of a stale political debate [...]
WASHINGTON: Two research engineers are claiming to have developed prototypes of energy-efficient roofs and attics.
These `Green’ roofs could keep you warm in winter and cool in summer.
“From seasonal simulations that I’ve been able to do, it could mean up to an eight percent reduction on a cooling bill,” said research engineer William Miller. [...]
White LEDs may not be too far away, as an Indian scientist has shown. T.V. Jayan reports.
LEDs are brighter, longer-lasting and more energy efficient than conventional light
The utterly inefficient light bulb that ruled interior lighting for more than a century may soon be extinguished if a Calcutta researcher has his way. Dipankar Das Sarma, a [...]
Electric-resistance radiant floor heating works like a toaster. When electric current travels through electric wiring, it generates heat. With this type of heating system, special floor-heating cables or woven mats, foils, or panels with built-in wires are installed on, in, or under the subfloor. Then they’re hooked up to an electrical circuit and a control [...]
Hydronic radiators deliver heat through convection and radiation. Water is heated in a boiler and distributed by pipes to convectors. Air circulates from floor through heated fins of convectors. Warmed air rises by convection. At same time, convectors radiate heat directly into the room.
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Source:http://www.hometips.com/hyhw/comfort/45hydronic.html
SYDNEY: The global economic boom has accelerated greenhouse gas emissions to a dangerous threshold not expected for a decade and could potentially cause irreversible climate change, said one of Australia’s leading scientists.
Tim Flannery, a world recognised climate change scientist and Australian of the Year in 2007, said a UN international climate change report due in [...]
One word describes radiant floor heating: friendly. When you step out of the shower or climb out of bed, radiant floor heating offers your bare feet a toasty welcome. It warms you silently, invisibly, and relatively economically.
Unlike forced-air heating, radiant floor heating doesn’t stir up dust or allergens and it cuts down on heat loss [...]
TRIENT VALLEY(Switzerland): The Trient glacier looming ahead of me on a trek through the Alps this summer looked very different to the frosty heights that once provided ice for pastis drinkers in France.
Now the bare, eroded rock is testament to the ice’s retreat under the warming effects of climate change. In the 19th [...]
BioOil is an alternative fuel made using Dynamotive’s pyrolysis process of biomass. It is a dark brown, free flowing liquid fuel with a smoky odour reminiscent of the plant from which it was derived. BioOil is formed in a process called pyrolysis wherein plant material (biomass), such as sawdust or bagasse from sugar [...]
During the hot summer months, attic temperatures can reach up to 160 degrees, and even though passive cooling systems, such as ridge vents, can certainly disperse the heat, more efficient ventilation can be attained through the use of attic fans. Though these fans can certainly cool down your attic, they have a much broader function: [...]
HONG KONG: The Earth is too small to accommodate all the biofuel projects envisioned for the globe, and this raises doubts whether green fuels will ever play a big role in weaning the world off crude oil.
The idea of producing an endless supply of inexpensive fuel from what sprouts from the soil seemed almost [...]
LONDON: A series of giant pipes in the oceans to mix surface and deeper water could be an emergency fix for the Earth’s damaged climate system, the scientist behind the Gaia theory said on Wednesday.
James Lovelock, whose Gaia hypothesis that Earth is a living entity has fuelled controversy for three decades, thinks the stakes [...]
A Total Spectrum Solar Concentrator is a device used to optimise the efficiency of solar power. The suns rays are first concentrated using parabolic mirrors or a fresnel lens, and then spread out into a light spectrum via a prism. Each different part of the spectrum is aimed at a solar cell manufactured to operate [...]
A forced-air heating system draws room air through ductwork and a filter into a furnace, where the air is heated. The warmed air is then blown back to rooms through ductwork. With older “gravity” furnaces, the heated air is delivered by natural convection, not by a blower.
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Most furnaces are gas-fired, but other fuels include oil, [...]
Sky-high energy bills, diminishing resources and a healthy concern for our environment have brought a great deal of attention to the topic of home energy efficiency in recent years. Homeowners everywhere are struggling to spend less, use less and pollute less without giving up the warmth and comfort we’ve grown to cherish.
Almost 35 million homes [...]
It is so easy in the modern world to take air conditioning for granted. With the advances in technology is now virtually unheard of for air conditioning not to be used in any public building. Anywhere where potential customers are being courted for their business, it would be very unwise to leave them in a [...]
Solar thermal energy is a technology for harnessing solar power for practical applications from solar heating to electrical power generation. Solar thermal collectors, such as solar hot water panels, are commonly used to generate solar hot water for domestic and light industrial applications. Solar thermal energy is used in architecture and building design to control [...]