May 2004

House-Building Home Page

HOUSE-BUILDING.COM NEWSLETTER #223
New House Building: Money Saving, Convenience and Healthy House Tips

James Todd
April, 2004

Beginning with this edition, newsletters will now be archived
online at: http://www.house-building.com/newsletters/newsletters.html


CONTENTS:

1. Heating your home – Electric, Oil or Gas
2. Constant Air Circulation
3. Location of Electrical Outlets
4. Thought for the Day
5. Subscription Information

Please forward this newsletter to anyone whom you think may be interested!

1. Heating your home – Electric, Oil, Propane or Natural Gas

2. Constant Air Circulation

One of the factors that new homebuilders and buyers should consider during the design phase of their home is whether they need a constant circulation of air throughout their homes. We obtain fresh air from a number of sources as outlined in a previous newsletter, however stale and stagnant air can still occur, especially during the prime heating and cooling months of the year.

Homeowners who are susceptible to allergies, especially mould (caused by lack of air circulation, moisture and a nutrient base) may want to consider running their furnace fan on a 24-hour basis. New homes also exhaust various gases from rugs, walls, paint and furniture. These gases combine to form a pollution levels in your home sometimes more than 100 times that of the outside air.

Forced air systems will circulate air throughout the home, while at the same time drawing air in from the outside to replace air that has been exhausted through windows, chimneys, and exhaust vents. Homes that do not forced air heating systems, but rely upon baseboard heaters, whether electric convection or baseboard hot water do not circulate air throughout the entire house and do not draw fresh air into the home.

Air temperature in a home will vary constantly, particularly on very cold days. Drafts from windows, skylights or unheated rooms will also occur as the cold air sinks to find the lowest level. The location of your thermostat will determine how often your furnace will cycle on and off. Extreme factors such as being close to a window or draft area or even a hot air vent will affect this. As your house cools from the last on-cycle of your furnace there may be a period of time when the temperature in your home feels uncomfortable and cold.

Air temperature levels in your home can be improved and more uniformly maintained by having your furnace fan run constantly. This forces air throughout your home on a constant basis and avoids those cold air pockets. Air in rooms warmed by the sun is moved to colder areas of the house, saving energy. Constant fresh air circulation replacing the pollutants in your home is another advantage.

While the positive benefits of continuous air circulation include better air quality and a more comfortable constant air temperature, the constant flow of air requires the furnace fan to use more electrical energy. Consumers should consider the various types of electrical motors that are available in forced air furnaces and make this selection at the time of installation. Furnaces with lower electrical ratings use electronically commutated motors (ECMs). ECMs, sometimes referred to as brush less DC motors, are known for being somewhat more efficient than a standard blower motor.

To summarize, constant airflow will increase the amount of fresh air in the home, it will reduce drafts, move sun-warmed air into other parts of the home and provide a greater level of comfort to the consumer. Electrical usage operating costs will increase; however, the increased cost can be controlled by selecting an ECM or brush less DC motor.

Useful Links

Energy management by BC Hydro
http://www.bchydro.com/rx_files/pshome/pshome1597.pdf

The electric side of gas furnaces:
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m0KXA/6_20/110734085/p1/article.jhtml


3. Location of Electrical Outlets

Note that your local building codes will almost certainly dictate basic rules about quantity and placement of outlets. Electricity can be lethal! Let a reputable electrical contractor install your outlets. Always insist on copper wiring and NEVER, NEVER accept aluminium wiring.

Even though an electrical contractor is wiring your home, you will benefit a great deal from giving some thought to the electrical outlets in your house, basement, garage, and outdoors and letting your contractor know your needs ahead of time.

Take a look around other people's homes and make some notes where you see concentrations of appliances. In living rooms and family rooms, you will probably need many of your outlets in corners. Around televisions you will have a large concentration of devices and connections to telephone, DVD player, satellite, cable converter, speakers, and similar devices. In bedrooms, you will need more outlets midwall or on both sides of were you intend to place your bed, to power radios, telephones and lamps. Your home office can be especially demanding. Your computer , monitor, printer, lamps, router, modem, shredder, computer speakers, phone, radio, scanner, fax machine, all require electricity. In kitchens, you will need a large cluster of outlets, many of them on individual circuits (not shared). All fridges, freezers, microwave ovens, and washers typically require their own circuit at the breaker panel. Proper planning and communication with your contractor can avoid overloading and dangerous situations after your home has been completed.

Tips for Electrical Outlets

An additional electrical outlet identified before the main house wiring goes in, costs about 1/2 of an outlet that goes in after the house is completed, do not skimp.

You might consider installing a 220 volt dryer outlet in your garage. This is useful for testing stoves and dryers. It can also be used for powering welders, other heavy tools, or reverse feeding generators should the need arise. Dryer plug, cable and socket sets come as a kit and are quite inexpensive at the big chain home product suppliers. Be sure to use a cover over these outlets when they are not in use, tiny fingers can get in there. When not in use, keep them switched off at the breaker panel.

If permitted by code, each outdoor outlet should be an individual GFI (ground fault interrupt) type and each on its own breaker. The GFI helps to protect you from damaged tools and cables; the individual circuit means that you won't be running inside to reset the breaker every time you start two high load devices outside.

All outlets in bathrooms should be individual GFI type. Insist that your electrical contractor does not wire the bathroom lights from the wall GFI, or your bathroom lights will go out if your curling iron shorts. Place bathroom outlets so that cords will not be running through sinks, but out of reach of showers and bathtubs. Not always easy to do.

Useful Links for Electrical Outlets

Home Wiring – The American Edition 2002 Edition
http://www.homewiringandmore.com/homewiringusa/2002/

Bob Villa
http://www.bobvila.com/

Canadian Standards Association ( CSA)
http://www.csa.ca/standards/electrical/?language=English


4. Thought For The Day - Human Dignity

Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance. Samuel Johnson


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