Posts Tagged ‘Vent’

Plumbing – may not understand it, can’t live without it

If you have ever gone camping for a weekend, you know it doesn’t take long to miss running water, flushing toilets, clean clothes, and hot showers. These modern innovations are the benefits of plumbing systems.  Your house has several separate plumbing systems- bathubs, sinks, toilets, washers, and related fixtures.

Water runs through pipes and the types of pipes for different plumbing usage may vary, from:

1. Copper

2. Plastic

3. Lead

4. Concrete

5. Steel

6. Cast iron

Most homes contain copper and plastic or PVC pipes.

Plumbing, like elextricity, is something we couldn’t imagine not having and most of use know very little about it. Shopping for your own plumbing fixtures rather than getting them through your plumber allows you choose from a wider selection and potentially save some money. And if you don’t have the time to shop on your own – your plumber does have an understanding of the different makes and models of appliances and plumbing fixtures so you can give them a budget if you’d prefer.

Most of us are familiar with residential plumbers, who come to their homes to stop a leak or install an appliance. When a residential home or commericla building is being built,  construction plumbers install piping in an office building, for example, they work from plans or drawings that show the planned location of pipes, plumbing fixtures, and appliances. This is why its a good idea to  have a copy of these plans should you need to find where the pipes are in a wall at a later date.

Water enters your house through a pipe that connects either to a municipal water line or a private well. Faucets, like all plumbing fixtures with moving parts, are apt to require more repair than non-moving fixtures. The less strain you put on your faucets, the less frequently they need repair.

Some causes of your issues may not be in the pipes themselves. If your plumbing fixtures drain slowly, the problem could be a clogged vent. This happens when vents are improperly located and when birds or animals deposit debris in the vent where it exits the roof.

Whatever your intended plumbing projects, the first step is to acquaint yourself with the plumbing system in your home. At the very least it is important to know where to find the switch off the mains in case of an emergency.

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Heat Recycling Using Electric Clothes Dryer

Due to the fact that the cost of electricity increases more and more often, consumers are looking for new ways in order to get the most value out of their widgets. One of them is the electric dryer.

Even though the intake cannot be taken down, there is a twist to benefit from the heat that it produces. This twist is a dryer heat recycler. It has proven the top-qualityfighting against wasting too much energy.

A heat recycler does just what its name indicates. It redirects the warm air coming from the household electric clothes dryer back into the laundry room. If your washing room is in a cold basement this is an additional bonus and the heat is free.

It is really simple to make clear how the recycler functions. It applies the hot air from the electric dryer to heat the laundry room which involves that it is unnecessary to keep the vent open. As a result, this brings down your heating prices. Hence, the air that you normally dumps out of the house can be redirected into your home, and all this for the price not greater than $15. This is done by the plastic handle. In winter months the handle is set to direct the hot air into the house while during summer it directs the air back outside.

The heat recycler installation is accomplished very easy. Usually, it is mounted to a wall after which it can be cut and reattached to the appliance, or beam behind, and slightly above the electric dryer console area. Make sure you put it on easy available positions; or, no one is going to clean the filter. Follow the instructions to hold proper direction of airflow.

Before you make up your mind to purchase it, ensure the model you have picked out is equipped with two venting clamps. It may happen that some cheap types don’t include the clamps, what is an important matter for a proper installation. Do not bind the venting parts to the recycler with duct tape as it may dry out and make the venting fall off.

The recycler has a built-in filter screen that has to be cleaned in the same way like the one within the electric dryer. We prefer the type that has a mesh screen filter as opposed to the one with a sock-like filter. It it costs two dollars more, but the metal filter can be used more times and it is a lot less complicated to clean than the cotton type.

If you have set the recycler let it work to try it out. Adjust the temperature selector to hot and start dryer. Let it work a couple of minutes. Check whether the air is directed inside when the handle is in the winter mode, and then shift the handle to summer mode. Go outside and make sure that air is freely expelled outdoors. If nothing happens, it may be because the screen in the outdoor vent is stopped with lint, or due to the fact that the vent cap flapper valve can be sticking. In that case, check all joints for air leakage. If there is a leak, tape joints with duct tape.

You are further required to clean the heat recycler filter every few laundry loads. What is more, turn the handle to redirect the flow of air twice a year. As you have already noted, I am using the term electrical clothes dryer. There is no possibility to use the heat recycler with a gas clothes dryer. The venting pipe of a gas dryer should not be opened or redirected. There can be small amounts of gas vapour in the electric outlet air of a gas clothes dryer. Hence, have constantly in mind that the heat recycler cannot be used with a gas dryer.

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Do-t-yourself Geothermal Cooling System

One form of alternative energy you can use in cooling your home is geothermal energy. This might sound surprising, but you can use the energy found in your own backyard by utilizing geothermal heat pumps. You can save up to 70% on cooling bills.

The bad news is that professionally installed geothermal systems are too expensive. The good news is that there are ways in which you can harness geothermal energy, to partially cool your house, without shelling out a fortune for it.

You might already be utilizing geothermal energy without realizing it. Northern state homeowners often use this renewable energy without their direct knowledge.

This article will teach you how to maximize the cool air that’s stored within your basement.

You need to have a basement, or at least some crawl space beneath your house, for this cooling method to work. You must be able to access the space from within the confines of your home. If the space has a small window or vent, this will help with the air flow. You’ll also need a small portable fan for this one.

The principle of geothermal cooling works this way. During hot summer days, the basement is cooler than most parts of the house. The basement’s exterior walls are controlled by the constant heat trapped a few feet underground, right next to the house’s foundation. The temperature penetrates the basement walls and cools the air trapped inside. You must then distribute the cool from this musty and damp air, throughout the rest of home.

The most efficient way of doing so is to cover your windows with shades or curtains during sunrise, to minimize the natural heating by the sun. During nighttime when the outside temperature falls below 75 degrees, open your upstairs windows while leaving your fan on, to suck in the cool air.

But, once the temperature get higher than 75 degrees, you can turn on your geothermal cooling system by opening one of the windows in the basement. You don’t need to fully open it. A small opening is enough just to let some air through. Be sure to close all other windows in your house except for one. That way, air flows through the open windows. The open window should be the highest one in your house. This will vent out the most hot air.

Your small fan should be turned on and pointed toward the window. This should make the air from the basement move up to the open window, and let the hot air go out. It usually takes between thirty minutes to one hour to circulate the cool air from the basement to the rest of the house.

This method of utilizing geothermal energy might seem to involve lots of work, but your family will benefit from it in the long run. You’ll see your dependency on your air conditioner decrease, resulting in lower energy bills.

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There are more ways to cool your homes without the need of plugging into the grid. For information on where to find complete and step-by-step instructions on how to install DIY Wind and Solar Power systems, along with pictures, videos, and diagrams, please visit Bestselling DIY Wind and Solar Power Guides.

You can also find more general information and solar power projects at DIY Solar Power.

Source Article: [uc]DIY[/uc] Geothermal Cooling

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