With fall now upon us, it's time to start thinking and preparing for winter. Tough to imagine, but here in New England that means the days of sunshine and warmth are replaced by days of snow and ice. It's inevitable. But one of the best things you can do to prepare...
Air conditioners are the big electricity hogs of summer and with recent temperatures in the triple digits across much of the South, heat-weary residents are pushing their AC to the max. Georgia Power has released a sheet of energy-saving tips to help all consumers...
Most of the time, having fungus or mold of any kind in your home is a big, big problem. But not so for inventors Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre. Together they have created an organic insulation made from mushrooms. Both graduates of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute,...
I am a clearance-rack shopper. Granted, it's not because I'm committed to saving money, it's that I find myself shopping for clothes when they are clearing away the items I need. Very handy—it saves me lots of money. Well, the same can be said for shopping for a...
Brrrr! Today hundreds of thousands of folks in the Midwest are still without power thanks to a powerful winter storm. That means a lot of people are probably using supplemental heating sources, like kerosene space heaters and fireplaces, to heat their homes. I’m...
One of the hazards of my job is that I become highly informed—sometimes to the point of panic. What if my windows are leaking? What is my furniture emitting? Should I replace all of the mechanicals in my home? What about the wiring? You see where I'm going, I'm sure....
This may be the coolest upgrade in heating since the fireplace—no kidding! The Aqueon from Heat & Glo is a hydrogen-burning fireplace, which means it uses ordinary hydrogen available in water to produce a flame and heat. You just fill the Aqueon with water and plug it...
Insulation may not be the most glamorous of home ownership topics, but when increased R-values and air leakage prevention equal money saved on energy costs, it’s like blowing a dog whistle in a kennel—a whole lot of ears perk up. Icynene's insulation system kills two...
I love to see products that snub the grid. The Solar Star from Solatube is a solar-powered attic fan that installs in 30 minutes and requires no wiring, no electrician, and no dependence on a thermostat. This “run on the sun” unit battles the heat and moisture that...
I'm a huge fan of innovation, especially when it takes advantage of age-old principles. Radiant heat, for example, is one of my big favorites. It just makes sense to have heat accumulate in objects and then radiate out to warm the rest of the room. Redoing my house to...
