Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Heating and Cooling System Health Check
A Little Preventive Medicine for Your Heating and Air Conditioning System Can Go a Long Way!
As summer is coming to an end and winter's cold weather is just around the corner, you'll definitely want to make sure your home’s heating system is functioning properly for the winter ahead...and that your air conditioner has successfully survived the long, hot summer without any damage or problems. The following checklist can help you decide if you need to make some improvements, replace equipment, or consult a professional about more extensive repairs.
If your heater, heat pump or air conditioner is more than 10 years old, consider replacing it with an Energy Star rated system. When installed by an expert, these units will improve your home’s energy efficiency and can help you save up to 20% on your utility bills.
If your furnace or boiler is more than 15 years old, you may want to research Energy Star certified units. These newer systems are almost 15% more energy efficient than older furnaces, while an Energy Star boiler is about 5% more efficient than an older model.
If you’ve noticed a dramatic increase in the number of times you have to call in a professional to repair your heating and cooling system, or your utility bills keep rising no matter what you try to do to save energy, your current system is not working as efficiently as it should and it may be time to replace your unit.
If you notice that certain rooms in your house are always too hot or too cold, your heating or cooling system may be malfunctioning or your ductwork or insulation could need some attention.
If you spend the better part of the day away from home and you don’t have a programmable thermostat, you could be wasting energy—and money. An Energy Star certified programmable thermostat lets you control the temperature of your home when you’re not there, saving energy and money.
If you notice condensation on windows and sills or the humidity in your home is never quite right, your system could need work and an overhaul. Leaky ducts can also make your home too humid in summer and overly dry in winter.
If you find it nearly impossible to keep up with the dust inside your home, it could mean that your ductwork is leaking. Improperly sealed ducts pull air and dust particles from attics, basements and crawl spaces, circulating them throughout your home.
If your heating or cooling system makes a lot of noise, your ducts could be too small or one of the key components of your system could be malfunctioning.
Use the Home Energy Yardstick found on the EPA's Energy Star website to determine your home’s energy health. To complete the survey, you’ll need to gather your utility bills from the last 12 months or request a 12-month summary of charges from your energy provider, information about your home’s energy sources—natural gas, oil, electricity, propane, kerosene—and the total square footage of your home. Simply enter this information in the right places and let the yardstick calculate your home’s energy efficiency rating. If you score lower than five, your home is using more energy than average and you are likely paying more than you have to on your utility bills.
Finally, it's always a great idea to give your heating and air conditioning system a tune-up and cleaning before the start of the summer or winter season. A tune-up will make sure that your heater or air conditioner starts the season in optimal working condition and will operate at peak energy-efficiency. It will also extend the life of your heating and air conditioning system and is your best assurance that your heater or air conditioner won't break down at an inopportune time -- like right in the middle of a heatwave or cold snap!
Related Heating & Air Conditioning Information from Horizon Services...
Eggless Chocolate cake
Baking a cake was always considered as a very cumbersome process. I would initially think that cakes can me baked only by professionals and the ingredients for the would not be available very easily.I was always of the opinion that the ingredients for baking a cake was not easily available, all cakes have to be baked using eggs and so on and so forth. It was when I was jobless in the first few months of my married life and the boredom of a housewife in the US led me to search for various recipes . I was so amazed to see the number of people involved in writing food blogs. I was truly awestruck.
Cooking and blogging often collectively called as "Blooking" are making news everywhere.It was when I was all alone and just idling at home, I realized that I could also write a blog and do something that was in my style. But it could not last for long as I got an admission into school and started my Master's program and I got so very busy. But I do make it a point to keep writing something on my blog here and keep it going.
One of the wonderful sites that I have come across for vegetarians and vegans and for all baking needs is http://www.chefinyou.com. This website is an amazing one with lots of efforts by DK. My Eggless Chocolate Cake is also tried and recreated from the same site by DK.I have used all the ingredients in the same quantity as mentioned in the above recipe with a few changes. I have changed the proportion by doubling the quantity of all the ingredients. But, the final product turned out as delicious as it was promised.I have made a few changes in the decoration part of the final cake presentation.
This cake can be made in a jiffy and is eggless. It can be a perfect cake during breakfast or tea-time and I am sure all the members at home - kids or adults will surely love it. Here is how I made it.
Cooking and blogging often collectively called as "Blooking" are making news everywhere.It was when I was all alone and just idling at home, I realized that I could also write a blog and do something that was in my style. But it could not last for long as I got an admission into school and started my Master's program and I got so very busy. But I do make it a point to keep writing something on my blog here and keep it going.
One of the wonderful sites that I have come across for vegetarians and vegans and for all baking needs is http://www.chefinyou.com. This website is an amazing one with lots of efforts by DK. My Eggless Chocolate Cake is also tried and recreated from the same site by DK.I have used all the ingredients in the same quantity as mentioned in the above recipe with a few changes. I have changed the proportion by doubling the quantity of all the ingredients. But, the final product turned out as delicious as it was promised.I have made a few changes in the decoration part of the final cake presentation.
This cake can be made in a jiffy and is eggless. It can be a perfect cake during breakfast or tea-time and I am sure all the members at home - kids or adults will surely love it. Here is how I made it.
Eggless Chocolate Cake
Ingredients required:
All Purpose Flour / Maida - 2 cup
Cocoa Powder - 4 table spoon (I used Hershey's cocoa powder)
Baking Powder - 2 teaspoons
Baking Soda - 1 teaspoon
Melted Butter - 1 cup
Sweetened Condensed milk - 1 can
Vanilla essence - 2 teaspoons
Whole milk - 100ml
Vanilla Frosting - 1/2 can
Chocolate chips - 1/2 cup
m & m's - A few
Method:
- Sift all the dry ingredients - All purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda and mix all of these together so that they can be blended well.
- Add the remaining ingredients such as sweetened condensed milk, melted butter, vanilla essence and mix it well along with 100 ml of whole milk using a spatula or a whisk.
- Pour this mixture onto a greased baking dish that is of 8" in diameter.Tap the dish as you are pouring so that the incorporated air bubbles can be removed.
- Bake this at a temperature of 180°C or 360°F for roughly about 30 minutes.At the end of 20 minutes insert a fork in the cake to check if it emerges out clean.
- Once the cake is done, allow it to cool and unmould it from the baking dish.
- Once the cake is completely cooled, take a spreader or a butter knife and spread out vanilla frosting over the cake.
- Decorate it with some chocolate chips and m & m's.
- This cake is ready and looks absolutely delicious and tastes heavenly.
Multi-Vegetable Kootu
After a very long break i m back @ A Healthier ME :). Not Necessarily mean, that i wasnt eating healthy, didnt find time to cook myself. Now Back in my Kitchen, Cooking for my Small Family.
Made this multi-vegetable kootu for Lunch. Goodness of Veggie makes it a healthy choice for kids and Low Calories makes its great for all those Diet People!!!!
1 Medium-Sized Carrot
1 Medium-Sized Sweet Potato
1 Capsicum
4-5 Cauliflower Florets
1/4 cup Green Peas
1/2 cup Moong dal
Salt to taste
To Grind
3 Green Chillies
1/2 inch ginger
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
2 tbsp Freshly grated coconut
a Fistful of Fresh Coriander
Method
Wash all the veggies. Peel Carrot and Sweet Potato. Chop them all to slightly bigger cubes.
Grind all the given ingredients under "To Grind" to fine paste with little water.
Take all the veggies in to Pressure pan, add the grinded paster, add Moong Dal and enough water for the veggies to immerse. Add salt and Mix well. Pressure Cook for 4-5 Whistles.Once the Pressure is down. Transfer it to another dish, Heat a tsp of oil, Splutter mustard seeds and fry some urad dal and add this tadka to the Kootu.
Makes a Healthy Combo with Hot Chapathis/Rotis. I Served this with Rice and a blob of ghee for My 4 year old. No Complaints!!!! :)
Sending this to MLLA-27 @ Susan. Also to 'ONLY' Low oil/Low Calorie Event hosted by Priya Mitharwal Event by Pari of Foodelicious
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