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Originally Posted by xepherys
1. Will has it more or less right....
2. Again, will has it exactly right....
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This guy is on a roll today!!
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Originally Posted by lurkette
Re: Insulation: the house has practically NO eaves/attic space in the upstairs; where there is space, we have had insulation blown in. The house is pretty air-tight, according to the guy who did our insulation. The windows are mostly original to the house (mostly painted shut), and mostly single-pane except, functionally, where we have left storm windows on. Nonetheless, 2600 sf is 2600 sf, and the upstairs in particular is a bear to cool in the summer. It's like a sunroom up there, with no shade and pretty much constant sun on all surfaces. It would actually be the perfect roof for solar panels.
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That's true! Solar panels on a hot roof = energy effiency. Warning: they're still expensive. I'm waiting for the price of solar shingles to go down, myself.
You need to cool upstairs. You need open windows and shades on the side of the room facing the sun. You might also want awnings over the windows that get the most sun. Is the upstairs somewhere you live in often? Or are you downstairs types during the day? Also, heat can be decreased by planting trees to cover areas of your home that get too much sun. I've found that the trees in my front and court yards are my best energy efficient things. They cover about half my roof most of the day, and prevent a great deal of direct heat from the sun. Also, they're renewable.
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Originally Posted by lurkette
We have electric A/C (2 heat pumps - 1 for upstairs and one for down). I don't know how old our furnace is; it's a natural gas furnace. The appliances are probably not the best. We're about to replace the gas stove with a new gas stove; the fridge still works, as do the washer, dryer, and dishwasher. Seems less wasteful to continue using less-efficient but functional machines than to throw away perfectly good ones and replace them, but my logic could be flawed. Is discarding the fridge, to rot in a landfill or be used in someone else's house a worth the energy saved by buying a new, energy-efficient one? (Discounting for the moment the fact that we can't afford all new appliances right this minute.)
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Fridges can be recycled, and many states pay you a bit when you get energy efficient appliances.