What are the most energy efficient ways of heating a home?

Question

Geothermal heating is very expensive to install, and takes a long time to pay off. Radiant heating using pex tubing with hot water in the floor is another option. Any other ideas, or opinions?

Answer 1

Use more blankets...JUST KIDDING..LOL

   My husband and I bought a electric energy saving room heater. and it acually warms up the whole place.

Answer 2

Gas fired forced air heating works fine for me, and is clearly the most cost effective approach in my location.

Answer 3

Probably the most efficient after Geo is a ventless gas heater. The next is probably a heat pump with gas "Piggy Back" if in an area where the temperature gets below 25 much.

Actually the most cost-effective is good caulking and good insulation.

Answer 4

rassah

i use solar convection for 100% of my homes heating. basically think of a big green house on the south side of your home with black walls and black floor. there are vents on the top and bottum of the inside wall going into my house. when the air in the room heats up the hot air rises up threw the vents in the house, pullling in cooler air from my house. then at night i simply close the vents.

i also use solar aic conditioning in the house. i have a big black metal box on the top of my home that heats up supper hot in the summer time. as hot air rises it sucks the warm  air that's collecting in my cieling, which creates a suction inside the house. i have vents on the floor that are pipes threw the dirt in the front yard which draw in the cool thermal air into the house.

i also use solar for 100% of my electricity and hot water. but that's another topic

i wrote a few guides on exactly how to do it yourself for under $100 if your interested. it shows the step be steps of it and is available at

http://www.agua-luna.com/guides.html

Dan Martin

Retired Boeing Engineer now living 100% Off-the-Grid with my family, using Alternative Energy & loving every minute.

for more info visit agua-luna com or email me at [e-mail]

http://www.agua-luna.com

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Answer 5

well, those things on the wall, that get really hot, but i think thats radiant heating...

fire place.

heat fans.

Answer 6

The most energy efficient way to heat a home is to site and build the home according to passive solar guidelines -- taking advantage of the sun's heat during the day and retaining as much of that heat as possible.  This also applies to keeping a house cool during the warm months.

Answer 7

Energy efficient?

Geothermal and solar.

But you seem also concerned about initial cost.

Energy efficient and low initial cost - high efficiency gas furnace.  Forced air is cheaper.

If you're building, super insulation and passive solar design are simple and cost effective.

Answer 8

The most cost effective and energy efficient way to heat homes would be to distribute nuclear waste in reinforced concrete canisters for installation in basements. The waste gives off heat of residual radioactive decay, and that heat can be recovered by means of a heat exchanger and distributed throughout the house. This would also solve the problem of what to do with nuclear waste, so we wouldn't have to store it in Yucca Mountain, Nevada. It would be a win-win situation.

Answer 9

I'll bet your heating bills will be about the same if you go electric. But electric is easyer to work with , a Heat pump with forced air. Works good in Oregon and we have pretty much the same kind of weather you got . Bill should be less than using a electric blower type.... So down the road  you could add  your Solor into your main power source for more savings. Then you could afford to put in the GEO thermo you didn't want to put in, in the first place?  :oI

Answer 10

I've noticed that individuals on YA concern themselves with the cost of going green, but have no problem telling business to go green no matter what it costs. I guess it is easier to tell someone else to do something.

I do not mean you, necessarily, but your question brought it to mind.