how are "Empty Nesters" heating your house?
11-20-2005, 03:17 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
how are "Empty Nesters" heating your house?
well, last year this time, had 5 people in my house.
now, got 2. me & mama.
our bedroom has the master bath, and that's all we really need to heat or cool.
the house is over 2k sq ft, and has a ~4ton Heat Pump/AC unit
it's just useless to heat all that.
we finally bought a remote control electric plug in heater,
set alarm 10 minutes early, one arm out the covers,
smack the alarm, zap the heater on,
wait on snooze.
that allows us to run the heat on ~63 or so.
what can i do, besides:
1 - buy a smal HVAC unit for our Bed/Bath.
2 - get another remote control heater, and put a wall shaker AC unit in?
mostly just a rant. what a pain.
now, got 2. me & mama.
our bedroom has the master bath, and that's all we really need to heat or cool.
the house is over 2k sq ft, and has a ~4ton Heat Pump/AC unit
it's just useless to heat all that.
we finally bought a remote control electric plug in heater,
set alarm 10 minutes early, one arm out the covers,
smack the alarm, zap the heater on,
wait on snooze.
that allows us to run the heat on ~63 or so.
what can i do, besides:
1 - buy a smal HVAC unit for our Bed/Bath.
2 - get another remote control heater, and put a wall shaker AC unit in?
mostly just a rant. what a pain.
11-20-2005, 03:41 PM
#2
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sounds like an electric house, how bout a secondary system, small unit to heat individual rooms, I purchased a t stat controlled burn outside and vent to outside 15k btu unit last year, bout the size of a narrow suitcase one hole through the wall where the to be burned air is drawn and the exhaust gasees flow. stand free unit requires no electric to run piezo to start and a pilot to run. cost was 400 bux + plumbing gas line. I know they are available for propane as well as natural gas. For you bottle outside seems to be what ya need and then the unit or two for another often used area of the house.
11-20-2005, 05:17 PM
#4
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I just did away with the furnace all together, I live in an old house that even when it ran all the time wouldn't keep it warm anyway. Installed the vented gas heaters that look like wood stoves, 1 on each floor. I can keep the whole house hot now for half what the furnace cost to run. Now that the kids are gone the Anti-freeze goes in the drains and I shut off the water to the upstairs. Now the only time it gets heated is when they come back to visit, just turn a couple of ***** in the basement turn up the thermostat and they are back at home in a few minutes.
11-20-2005, 05:33 PM
#5
Proprietor of Fiver's Inn and Hospitality Center
What are ya'll talking about? We just open the windows to heat the house at night - - and leave them open all day along with the three sliding glass doors. 
PleaseDon'tHitBob
PleaseDon'tHitBob
11-20-2005, 06:12 PM
#6
It's my pot and I'll stir it if I want to. If you're not careful, I'll stir your's as well!
Like FiverBob said.
I have no heater and no air conditioning. The odd night it gets cool I just throw a light blanket over myself. During the day if it gets warm we just open another door or window.
I have no heater and no air conditioning. The odd night it gets cool I just throw a light blanket over myself. During the day if it gets warm we just open another door or window.
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11-20-2005, 06:47 PM
#8
Registered User
Thread Starter
agree,
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ad.php?t=83032
but we just bought it ~year ago. i am TIRED of moving after 20 yrs in the Navy.
if i moved, i would move back home to NC or GA (where kids stayed). but wife just got a good job, so it's hard to decide.
https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...ad.php?t=83032
but we just bought it ~year ago. i am TIRED of moving after 20 yrs in the Navy.
if i moved, i would move back home to NC or GA (where kids stayed). but wife just got a good job, so it's hard to decide.
11-20-2005, 07:28 PM
#9
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Carrier makes thru the wall units that are heatpumps. Trane makes the Zoneline models found in alot of hotel rooms. You can zone the system you have but 4 tons is alot to heat/cool one beroom. I liked the idea of downsizing. Why mot get a nice rv for the back of your truck and turn into a fulltimer. Who needs a house to repair and pay taxes on anyway.
11-20-2005, 10:18 PM
#11
Registered User
We got a corn stove this year. It has been down to close to 0 once already this past week. I run it on setting 4 out of 5 on the coldest days and it stays rite at 70-72 in the house. Now that it is up to around 35* I have it on setting 2 and it is exactly 80* in here now. I had it on setting 3 and it was 82+, had to turn it down.
http://www.eventempinc.com/stcroix/stoves/stoves.html
The one we got is the Lancaster. All the corn burning models have the same guts just different tin work and diferent diferent size hoppers. They put out 40,000 BTU.
http://www.eventempinc.com/stcroix/stoves/stoves.html
The one we got is the Lancaster. All the corn burning models have the same guts just different tin work and diferent diferent size hoppers. They put out 40,000 BTU.
11-21-2005, 02:44 AM
#12
Administrator
*Looks at outdoor thermometer, 88ºF*
Now what the heck is this heater thing? I have no idea what a heater is anymore. Can't go with out A/C though, that thing runs year round.
Now what the heck is this heater thing? I have no idea what a heater is anymore. Can't go with out A/C though, that thing runs year round.
11-21-2005, 05:25 AM
#13
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I think that based on your other post and now this heating dilema ... you should rent out the house and buy a class A motorhome. Less to heat, highly mobile, very luxurious if you spend enough and besides .... you spent 20 in the Navy ... you are used to tight quarters !!!
.... all kidding aside, it would be worth looking at since it is just you two now.
PISTOL
.... all kidding aside, it would be worth looking at since it is just you two now.
PISTOL
11-21-2005, 07:46 AM
#15
Registered User
Empty nest? We are in the same but different boat. It is just the XYL and myself most of the time with the occasional grandbaby sitting. I live five or six hours due north and had a total ellectric home until last xmas. We decided that it would be nice if we had gas logs in the fire place. They work great. I had a 100 gallon tank set behind the house and the people that sold the logs did the job turn key. You can even put a free standing fire place anywhere in the house you want. It will even heat the room/house when the power goes out. Nothing like a nice fire on a cold night on a rug on the floor.