On heating

[Horse with no Name]

I love the idea about the pillows you can warm up.
I will be making a few of those...especially for the outdoor pets.
However...I was looking into kerosene heaters.
I found one that will heat up to 1000 sq feet for 12 hours using 1.9 gallons of kerosene.
I would need a minimum of two.
However, here is the kicker.
Kerosene is $3.50 a gallon.
So I am looking at heating/power bills still in the amount of $522 month.:(
I am still researching options needless to say.

[politicat]

1. Kerosenes have a nasty CO habit, too.

Easy to get a dose of dead from too much carbon monoxide.

How about a pellet stove? If you amortize the cost of the stove (about 1000) over the next 2 years, the cost will come down significantly, and pellets run about $4 a bag (we use them for kitty litter). We usually get a couple free bags, too, since some get torn in shipping or in storage.

[Horse with no Name]

2. Problem that I have is

that my house isn't going to value or devalue no matter how much I put it in--we certainly never had a real estate bubble here.
This is my last winter in this house...I will be moving in May when my daughter graduates so spending any more money isn't an option.
About 800 square foot of my house was at one time the garage. There was an addition of two bedrooms a bathroom and a den in that space.
That space does not run off my central units--instead, it is heated and cooled seperately.
However, last year we had a major gas leak.
It would have cost thousands to re-do all the natural gas lines, so I made the choice at the time to convert the two water heaters to electric.
I didn't think the house would be so hard to heat without the wall gas heaters that I had--I assumed it could be done easily. I was wrong.
I have not had a low electric bill since I have done that.
Cheapest being $400, most expensive being $700.
I am not going to invest any more money in this house as it has become the proverbial "money pit".
A friend of mine has a fairly large house and last year converted to kerosene heaters and has been very happy.
However, this year with the price of fuel, he said they were blocking off half of their house and only going to run one heater so that they can afford their bills.
He gave me one of their heaters, so I am going to try it out in the back part of the house. I have sent it to an appliance place to have it tuned up and I have purchased a CO2 detector for that end of the house. If it doesn't work out for us, it really is a matter of nothing loss nothing gained.
Hopefully it will take the edge off of my bills.

[melnjones]

3. Have you looked at this?

http://www.eheat.us/#

I ordered one and it's finally supposed to arrive in the next few days, so I'll let everyone know how it works.

[eleny]

4. Thanks!

My husband uses one of the oil filled radiators you plug in out in his workshop. It's insulated out there but I'd like to find an alternative for that heater.

This also looks like it would be great for our enclosed front porch. It has the double paned windows and also the honeycomb shades. But the porch faces north. This would be great mounted on the wall under the windows.

I'm looking forward to your report.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

6. I saw a piece on pellet stoves and some looked non permanent

do you know if that is true? If so, then (see post below) it could also be moved. I believe the media piece said that it would lead to at least 30% reduction in heating costs.

If they are transportable, (since OP wants to move) it may be more of an option.

[phantom power]

5. "Put panel in the window and let sun do the rest"

This got posted in the E+E forum. Here's a link to that thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=115&topic_id=31258

HUDSON -- Mixing a passion for recycling and environmentally friendly technology, Duane Sanborn is putting solar heat in a portable window space heater.

It's an idea he has been kicking around for 30 years, said Sanborn, who runs a recycling business, Material Management, from an old factory building where renovations are being interwoven with solar-powered designs.

Sanborn believes rising energy prices are ripening consumer interest in a low-cost alternative to heating with gas and oil. Solar panels that can be set in a window on winter days and put away in the evenings can conserve energy and save money, he said.

Solar space heaters are just one of the ideas Sanborn is pursuing at the building on Mechanic Street where he revived a recycling business he and his wife, Cindy Sanborn, started from a building on Treat Highway in Adrian. After closing the business in Adrian 10 years ago, they began renovating the building in Hudson in January 2002 to continue pursuing a goal of moving society toward a sustainable economy in balance with the environment.

http://www.freep.com/news/mich/solar15e_20050915.htm