Ouch! A $326 home heating bill!

[Hungary Jack]

It is amazing what energy costs today. I have a gas furnace that heats about 2,500 sq ft. Thermostat is set for 65 when we are away, and 70-72 when we are home (weeknights, weekends).

I have actually seen worse--$484 last February when it got really cold up here.

This summer I plan to hire a contractor to pump a water-based insulating (Icynene) foam into the stud cavities of this old house. That should make a huge difference.

[sighyoung]

It is amazing what energy costs today. I have a gas furnace that heats about 2,500 sq ft. Thermostat is set for 65 when we are away, and 70-72 when we are home (weeknights, weekends).

I have actually seen worse--$484 last February when it got really cold up here.

This summer I plan to hire a contractor to pump a water-based insulating (Icynene) foam into the stud cavities of this old house. That should make a huge difference.

Smart move. How old is your furnace, by the way?

[Hungary Jack]

It is amazing what energy costs today. I have a gas furnace that heats about 2,500 sq ft. Thermostat is set for 65 when we are away, and 70-72 when we are home (weeknights, weekends).

I have actually seen worse--$484 last February when it got really cold up here.

This summer I plan to hire a contractor to pump a water-based insulating (Icynene) foam into the stud cavities of this old house. That should make a huge difference.

Smart move. How old is your furnace, by the way?

[Hungary Jack]

It is amazing what energy costs today. I have a gas furnace that heats about 2,500 sq ft. Thermostat is set for 65 when we are away, and 70-72 when we are home (weeknights, weekends).

I have actually seen worse--$484 last February when it got really cold up here.

This summer I plan to hire a contractor to pump a water-based insulating (Icynene) foam into the stud cavities of this old house. That should make a huge difference.

Smart move. How old is your furnace, by the way?

5 years old. Nothing special. Trane 80 efficiency. I'd do a 90 efficiency if I could do it again.

Are you familiar with Icynene?

[sighyoung]

It is amazing what energy costs today. I have a gas furnace that heats about 2,500 sq ft. Thermostat is set for 65 when we are away, and 70-72 when we are home (weeknights, weekends).

I have actually seen worse--$484 last February when it got really cold up here.

This summer I plan to hire a contractor to pump a water-based insulating (Icynene) foam into the stud cavities of this old house. That should make a huge difference.

Smart move. How old is your furnace, by the way?

5 years old. Nothing special. Trane 80 efficiency. I'd do a 90 efficiency if I could do it again.

Are you familiar with Icynene?

Not familiar--I just think it makes sense to look at all your options for insulating the house.

I wish your furnace were older, because (as you guessed) I would suggest getting a high efficiency unit, or a heat pump/furnace combo, which (based on your heating bills) would pay for itself in a couple of years.

Both my furnace and air conditioner were over fifteen years old (I think closer to twenty) when I replaced them with a heat pump and small high-efficiency gas furnace that comes on only if the heat pump can't bring up the temperature quickly. $4500 hurt last winter, but this December I had a total electric/gas bill of $185. (Mind you, this is for 1900 sq. ft.) Still, I was floored.

[mikechamp]

I'm familiar with Icynene. It's a pretty good insulating material. You can go for the soy-based and be green at the same time.

But to be honest, if you live in a single family dwelling that's not in a multi-unit building (i.e., not a condo), I'd add the insulation to your attic. It's much easier, less expensive and makes a bigger difference than you think. You lose a lot of your heat out of the roof if you have poor attic/roof insulation.

Adding between the studs could get messy... and costly. I've never priced it out, so I don't know for sure. But I did add cellulose insulation to my attic and it probably cost me $300 in materials, 4 hours and a small pile of sweaty clothes.

How old are the windows in your place?

Finally, solar orientation (which you have no control over now) plays a factor as well. Which direction does your wall with the most windows/doors face?

[Hudler]

Call the city or town where you live to see if they'll do an energy audit for you. Some cities do it for free and you'll find out where your house is losing the heat to. The technician will use various tools (smoke pen,infrared camera,etc.) to determine exactly where it's going.

[sighyoung]

Call the city or town where you live to see if they'll do an energy audit for you. Some cities do it for free and you'll find out where your house is losing the heat to. The technician will use various tools (smoke pen,infrared camera,etc.) to determine exactly where it's going.

Also, your local utility may have such a program, too.

[Hungary Jack]

I have considered the ceiling, but it would a (female dog) for me to add another layer of fiber. We have a flat roof, and there is only 8-16 inches of "crawl" space between the roof joists and the ceiling joists (I have cut peep holes in the master and 2nd bedroom closets). Maybe the Icynene could be worked up there too.

I had an estimate for the urethane-based Icyene about 6 years ago. $2,000 for the job, which is great. With a brick house and no insulation, the inner walls get very cold. I am sure the Icynene would make a big difference.

I replaced the windows about 5 years. Pella double-paned argon-filled. It has helped a great deal.

My wife and I have discussed creating a roofgarden--perhaps some type of trays for ivy or native grasses. This would keep it much cooler in the summer, and provide some insulation in the winter. We haven't had an engineer come look at the place yet.

[Popeye_Card]

65 away, 70-72 home?

I'd suggest setting your thermostat lower. I keep my house at 52 when I'm away, 63 in the evenings, and 60 when I sleep. The way I figure it, 60-65 is comfortable sweatshirt weather, and it's far better for me to wear a sweatshirt around the house than to pay an extra $200 or so over the course of the winter. At night, only my bedroom really needs to be warm, and if it isn't warm enough beneath my sheets, I have an electric radiator in there that I can use to heat just that room, rather than the whole house for 6-8 hours when it's coldest outside.

Also, if there's rooms that you don't use very often, consider closing the vents and shutting the door. I do this with my dining room and my extra bedroom. No need to heat that extra 500 or so sq. ft. of space when I'm never in there. If I have company, I open it up.

What I go back to is how people used to live before there was central heat and air. They used to just heat or cool whatever room they were in at the time, and were content to wear warmer clothes indoors. Seems more efficient to me, though less convenient of course. I'll accept a decent amount of inconvenience for hundreds of dollars each winter.