Craig O's Blog

Save Energy - Save Money

Check out this little program on how you can save energy next month by spending almost no money.

http://twurl.nl/b0ltao

Let me know what you think!

New Website

Check out the new website, www.glassreplacements.com

Get all of your glass needs serviced in one place.

Home Security #9

We have already discussed your front door, but since it is the most broken into entry of the home I want to discuss another security feature that may save you a lot of headache and loss.

That is namely a security door. This is another door that goes over the top of your existing door. The only kind I recommend is Titan Security Doors. These doors are made with a revolutionary new alloy. It’s called T6 Commercial grade Aluminum Magnesium Alloy. It’s stronger than steel but has a much more polished and elegant look than that of drab steel. Its also 30% lighter than steel which means less stress on hinges and screws which means the door will last much longer for you.

The best part is Titan's guarantee. Not only do they guarantee against the integrity, the finish and the parts and pieces but they guarantee its security. They guarantee your house won't get broken into via their security door. You can find more information here www.titansecurity.com

I like these doors because you can actually leave your door open to allow the breeze to refresh your home, but don't have to worry about some stranger walking in. Well there you have it, one more to go.

 

Going Green Part 5

Greening Up Your Driving

We spend more and more time behind the wheels of our cars so small changes in our driving habits can have dramatic effects on the environment. According to a UN Human Development Report in 2007, automobiles account for approximately 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in developed countries. Here are a few tips to help you go green while driving.

We won't spend any time talking about buying a hybrid car because of course, that will help, but we may not be in the market for another car for quite some time and we want to talk about things you can do right away.

1. Group trips together - Unless you need something right away, try to wait until you have a few errands to run before you start up the car and make that trip into town. Alternatively, keep a list of things that you need/errands that need run, so when you do have that emergency, you can stop and grab a few other things during the same trip before they become an emergency.

2. Check Your Tires - Most people tell you to check the air in your tires and leave it at that, however, that is only half the story. You need to check your tires for improper wear, because if they are wearing incorrectly then you aren't getting the best gas mileage you could get if your car was aligned correctly. Having correct shocks and springs can make a difference as well. PS - Check your air filter also.

3. Drive for Mileage - Driving the speed limit actually saves you money! My truck gets 2 miles per gallon worse mileage every 10 miles over the speed limit. That can add up really fast. Excessive braking and accelerating also leads to poor gas mileage. Coast as much as you can, and accelerate smoothly instead of jamming on the gas pedal when the light turns green. Save the racing for video games.

For more information check out the following links

www.fueleconomy.gov, www.greenercars.org, or www.epa.gov/greenvehicles

 

 

 

Going Gree - Part 4

Making your home air tight - There are 6 things you can do to make your home more air tight. Weather it is summer or winter you need to control the amount of air that flows into or out of your home every day. These simple measures can pay for themselves within a few months of making the changes and can usually be done by anyone with a few simple tools.

1. Door Sweeps - Get down on all fours and look under all of the hinged doors in your home. Can you see daylight? Can you feel a breeze working its way either in or out? This should be step one. Install new door sweeps under your doors. The sweeps that the door came with, (if they are still there) were probably the cheapest, bare minimum sweep that mass-produced doors are made with. Get a new high end door sweep with multiple channels for blocking out the weather.

2. Weather strip - Examine all the jambs and headers to all doors and windows. If you can see light or feel a draft, install new weather striping at all locations. Actually, even if you can't easily determine if air is getting through or not, it’s still better to be safe than sorry. As a general rule its better to use weather strip where you don’t need it than to not have it where you do need it. Be liberal with weather stripping, it's cheap.

3. Insulation - Add insulation in the attic above your interior ceiling. Most people don't stop to realize that the attic isn't climate controlled. You can keep your home well insulated by separating your homes interior from the attic. Double check attic access areas as well.

4. Caulk all exterior gaps - Walk the exterior of your home. Anywhere you see a place that air can penetrate into your walls, seal it with some exterior high grade caulking. Especially look for areas where there are fixtures such as lights and hose bibs. Even though the air doesn’t penetrate into the house, it will get inside your walls and raise your heating and cooling costs.

5. Pull the drapes closed at night. When its dark outside, there is no reason to leave the drapes open. Pull them closed tight in both summer and winter to stop some of the heat transferring in and out of the windows.

Of course your best bet is to replace your windows and doors completely with new energy efficient windows and doors, but these are minor changes you can make yourself to help keep your home green.

 

Going Green - Part 3

 

If your fridge/freezer looks like this you probably aren't living as green as you should be. An empty freezer is much harder to keep cold than one that is packed full. Keep left over milk bottles and fill them with water, then use them to fill up the empty spots in your freezer. Same holds true for your refrigerator side as well.

I like to keep extra bags of ice from my ice maker in my empty spaces. That way, next time I have to fill up an ice chest, I don't have to stop and buy ice, I can fill it up right there at home from my reserves. You should also be using the lowest temperature setting you feel comfortable with on both freezer and refrigerator. A good rule is to take it down 2 notches from where you are now, if you usually keep it at 8, try 6. It shouldn't have a noticeable impact anywhere except on energy savings.

Also as you buy new appliances, opt for the ones that are most energy efficient. If your appliances are more than 10 years old, purchasing a new energy efficient model may be the way to go. Replacing a 20 year old fridge with a new energy efficient model will reduce your carbon emissions by one metric ton per year!

Going Green - Part 2

Programmable Thermostat

If you live in a dwelling that does not have a programmable thermostat, this should be your first home improvement, without a doubt. About 2/3's of the energy you consume is from heating and cooling your home, depending on what climate you live in. Using a programmable thermostat can drastically reduce your energy consumption, sometimes by up to 20%. 

Since they only cost around 100$ they usually pay for themselves within a couple months, especially during the winter, where you can program your home to use much less energy. Have you ever turned your thermostat up because you were having company or needed to warm the house up real quick, then forgot about it and left the house? Well a programmable thermostat can end all of that. Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night too hot in the winter or too cold in the summer, but were too tired to get up and change the temperature? You can solve those problems as well.

And, believe me, if you think you can remember to turn your thermostat down/up everyday before you leave for work, the only way to guarantee you do is by using a programmable thermostat. It is also a benefit, because older thermostats don’t work as well anymore. They keep the heat going on long after the correct temperature is reached and vice versa in the summer.

Do yourself and the environment a favor and get a new programmable thermostat, immediately! Oh and by the way, Happy Earth Day!

How Much Will You Save?

Ever wondered how much money you will save if you replace your windows? Check out this website when you get a chance. It will show you how much you can expect to save by replacing your windows.

http://www.cardinalcorp.com/application/energycalc.htm

Give it a try, you might be surprised

Going Green - Part One

As promised, here is part one to a small series on Going Green.

Light bulbs - At this stage, if you aren't using CFL (compact fluorescent bulb) light bulbs, you really need to get on the ball. At the very least you should be replacing any conventional light bulbs as they go out with CFL bulbs. However, you "should" go through your house and replace any conventional bulbs with new CFL's.

I find it hard to believe that people actually still buy conventional light bulbs when right on the box of CFL's it shows you, "This light bulb will save you $64 over the life of the bulb." How do people pass on this offer? Anyway, at the very least you need to be purchasing these types of bulbs. There is a new type of bulb out now using LED technology. If you want to go the extra mile, you can but these bulbs but currently they are a bit expensive but the price should come down as their popularity increases.

Did you know that most American families can save 5-10% on their energy bill by turning off unnecessary lights? If your average energy bill is $250 per month, that means you will save between $150 and $300 dollars per year. Not bad at all.

Some people have brought up the misconception that it takes more energy to start a light bulb up than it does to keep it on, so use the following guideline for turning off unused lights. For conventional bulbs, turn the lights out if you're leaving the room for more than a couple seconds. If you are using CFL bulbs, turn the lights out if you are leaving the room for a couple minutes or more. 

According to the US Dept of Energy, if every American household replaced just one conventional light bulb with a CFL, the country would conserve enough energy to light 3 million homes a year. This is such an easy step, let's all take the initiative and replace our light bulbs with CFL's. 

Home Security Tip #8

If you aren't feeling safer yet, tune in for these last three Home Security tips.

#8 - While You're Away - I can't tell you how many times I hear the phrase, "While we were on vacation our house got robbed." Believe me there is nothing worse than coming home from being out of town to find your home broken into and all of your valuables gone and your personal belongings ransacked.

A friend of mine who's home just got broken into while they were out of town came home to find everything gone, including jewelry, valuables and worst of all, their social security cards. You need to take a few extra steps before you leave out of town to make sure your home is safe while you're gone.

Have a trusted neighbor or family member remove newspapers, flyers, extra mail and debris that has blown into your yard. Have them also park their car in front of your home while you're gone. You should also have timers on your interior lights that turns a few lights on and off in a logical sequence, to make it appear that someone is home. A TV or radio that turns off and on is a good idea as well.

Most importantly, do not advertise that you are leaving! Yes, burglars stake out a house/neighborhood before they attempt to break in. If you are in the front yard tying a suitcase to the top of your station wagon when a burglar drives by, guess where he's going to be tomorrow? That's right inside your house loading up on your things.

Pull your car into the garage and load it up there when going on a trip. Remember, even if you have an alarm system, if they can get in and out quickly, its worth it to them to take 5 or 6 minutes and grab everything they can carry then get out of there, because they know it takes 20 to 30 minutes for anyone to respond to an alarm.

Also you should invest in a home safe. Small things that are worth a lot of money are what burglars are looking for. They aren't there for the big screen TV that will take 20 minutes to unplug and three movers to get out of the house. If you put all of your small valuables in a home safe, you've avoided 90% of the risk right there.

So there you have Tip #8, still 2 more to go. Remember if you would like one of our window and door experts to come by and assess the level of security at your home, call us to schedule a free Home Security inspection - 702-642-6669

You can also find more info at www.installprolv.com