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how are "Empty Nesters" heating your house?

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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 03:17 PM
  #1  
04ctd's Avatar
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From: Charleston SC
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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 03:41 PM
  #2  
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From: Cedar Grove, New Jersey
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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 03:44 PM
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From: N. FLORIDA
Get a oil filled heater. Heats by convection. Super cheap to buy and run.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 05:17 PM
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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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 05:33 PM
  #5  
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From: Sarasota, Florida
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
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 06:12 PM
  #6  
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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!
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From: Central Mexico.
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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 06:27 PM
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From: Nebraska
Maybe it's time to think about down sizing?
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 06:47 PM
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From: Charleston SC
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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 07:28 PM
  #9  
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From: Medina, Ohio
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.
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 09:16 PM
  #10  
blown32's Avatar
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From: Cheyenne Wyoming
Wife an I are using a corn stove (has pellet conversion if needed) this year. So far several 16 is degree nights and it's great!
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Old Nov 20, 2005 | 10:18 PM
  #11  
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From: boyden, IA
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.
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Old Nov 21, 2005 | 02:44 AM
  #12  
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From: League City, TX
*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.
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Old Nov 21, 2005 | 05:25 AM
  #13  
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From: near Magnolia, Tx.
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
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Old Nov 21, 2005 | 07:25 AM
  #14  
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From: Va Beach
Better yet get a 5ver and enjoy using that cummins
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Old Nov 21, 2005 | 07:46 AM
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From: Smithfield, VA
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.
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