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001 Air Cleaners Buying Guide
Dust is a serious pollutant, particularly for allergy sufferers, people with bronchial problems, and those who are sensitive to airborne particulates. This guide to air cleaners discusses key types and their effectiveness, buying considerations, and price ranges. Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers. Note: This report is also listed on the "Cleaner, Safer Home, Air & Water" page.
005 Ceiling Fans: Stylish Energy Savers
Fans have been a simple but charming supplement to home heating and cooling for more than 100 years. The best of today's ceiling fans benefit from better motors, materials, finishes and controls than their air-churning ancestors. This impartial report discusses how fans can save energy, how to judge quality, size considerations, installation notes, and more. Also: resource phone numbers.
006 Central Air Conditioners
In addition to cooling, central air conditioners dehumidify and filter air, making it more comfortable and cleaner. This complete, impartial buying guide discusses how air conditioners work, typical costs, what efficiency and SEER ratings measure, refrigerant concerns, and more. Also: manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
014 Direct-vent Fireplaces Are Easy, Energy Savers
Direct-vent fireplaces are prefabricated from metal and installed in wood-frame construction without a foundation or a chimney. They burn so efficiently, they can be vented directly out a wall. RemodelGuide’s complete, impartial guide to direct vent fireplaces includes information on direct-vent fuels, pollution-fighting advantages, efficiency ratings, vent-free fireplaces, log technology, styling choices, controls, options, and installation notes. ALSO: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
016 Heat Pumps Offer Energy-Efficient Heating & Cooling
A heat pump extracts heat from cold outdoor air and uses it to heat your house in winter. In the summer, it reverses to provide cooling. Upward-spiraling energy costs have catapulted heat pumps into position as an important, energy-saving alternative to conventional heating and cooling systems. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial buying guide that includes how heat pumps work, deciding whether a heat pump is right for your home, measuring energy efficiency, and options worth considering. ALSO: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
017 Heat Recovery Ventilators Save Energy
The best way to keep a house from building up air pollution and humidity is to provide plenty of ventilation. But how can you ventilate a house without letting costly heated or cooled air out the window? You can install a heat-recovery ventilator. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial heat recovery ventilator buying guide that includes information on how these work, types, general prices, sizing, deciding whether one is right for you. Also: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
018 High-Efficiency Furnaces: A Buying Guide
Many conventional forced-air furnaces take advantage of only half the fuel they burn! Fortunately, manufacturers now make high-efficiency furnaces that utilize nearly all the fuel they consume. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial buying guide with information on how to compare performance ratings, how these furnaces work, features, zoned heating, selecting a system, and extending effectiveness through maintenance. ALSO: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
020 Humidifiers: A Buying Guide
During winter, keeping room humidity at healthy, comfortable levels often demands help from a humidifier. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial buying guide that gives you a closer look at the main types of humidifiers, how they work, and what you should know if you're shopping for one. It includes tabletop and console models, central humdifiers, steam, ductwork systems, ultrasonic, cool mist impellers, evaporative humidifiers, selecting the right humidifier. Also: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
026 Pellet Stoves Offer High-Tech Heating
First introduced a decade ago, pellet stoves have become an increasingly popular alternative to wood stoves and fireplaces. Pellet stoves look similar to wood stoves or fireplace inserts, but the similarities end there. Inside, they are very sophisticated combustion appliances. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial report on pellet stoves that discusses pellet fuel, how pellet stoves work, and buying considerations. Also: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
028 Radiant-Floor Heating Offers Comfort
Radiant-floor heating systems utilize either hot-water or electricity to warm the floor, providing general, even warmth. RemodelGuide offers a guide to radiant heating systems that discusses advantages, drawbacks, hot-water-circulating (hydronic) systems, and electrical-resistance systems. Also: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
034 Thermostats: Your Keys to Comfort
A thermostat is key to maintaining a comfortable home environment...and can save energy by automatically turning the heat (or cooling) off (or on) only when it's required, eliminating wasted energy. In fact, a new thermostat can quickly pay for itself through energy savings. RemodelGuide offers an impartial guide to thermostats that covers types of thermostats, electronic features, making a choice, and manufacturers' phone numbers. Also: Thermostat Repairs
009 Daylighting Beautifies Interiors, Saves Energy
The use of natural light to illuminate building interiors is a concept as old as the window. But relatively recent advances in lighting research, window and glazing technology and lighting controls have opened up new horizons for daylighting as a way to reduce energy bills. This report discusses how daylighting works, commercial applications that work for houses, ways to improve and increase daylight, and planning effective window placement. ALSO: Resource phone numbers.
021 Insulation: Now Is The Time To Insulate!
If your attic, walls or floors are under-insulated, a large part of your costly, conditioned air may be making a beeline for the great outdoors. By slowing heat movement, insulation not only saves energy but reduces drafts, making a house more comfortable. RemodelGuide offers a complete, impartial report on insulation that discusses proper amounts, where belongs, types, getting it done, and R-values.
024 Lighting Controls for The 21st Century
A world of newer lighting controls can do the job of the simple toggle light switch with much greater pizzazz, handling many lighting tasks both more efficiently and, in some cases, automatically. By shedding the right amount and quality of light on a given space, they reduce wasted electricity and help you sculpt spaces with light to create warm, inviting interiors. RemodelGuide offers a lighting controls primer that discusses dimmers, 3-way and 4-way switches, central lighting control systems, occupancy sensors, remote controls, and more. Also: Manufacturers' & resource phone numbers.
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