1. Test and install fresh batteries in your smoke and CO Alarms.
2. Plan and discuss your home fire escape plan.
3. Practice a (family) home fire drill.
4. Remember to always check after friends come over for improperly discarded smoking materials.
5. Before leaving your home for the holidays check to see that all innecessary appliances are unplugged or shut off.

It is important to know what areas of your home, such as crawl spaces, basements, outside walls and unheated rooms are most vulnerable to freezing.

• You want to eliminate sources of cold air near water lines by fixing windows, insulating walls, closing off crawl spaces and stopping drafts at and near doors.
• Know where your main water shut-off valve is (tag it) located. If a pipe freezes or bursts, shut-off the water immediately.
• Protect all your pipes and water meter. Wrap exposed pipes with insulation ( inexpensive at a local hardware or building supply store) or an electrical pipe heater, newspaper or fabric may also work.
• Keep the lid closed tightly on your meter and let snow that falls cover it. Snow acts as insulation.

As cooler temperatures become the norm, residents eager to fire up an alternative heat source should plan to have chimneys and wood stoves cleaned to prevent fires. Here are a few tips for home heating this winter.

• Burn only seasoned hardwood such as oak, ash or maple. Do not burn trash, cardboard boxes or christmas trees because these items burn unevenly, and may contain poisons or cause a home fire.
• Have a professional chimney sweep inspect chimneys every year. They will fix any cracks, blockages and leaks and clean out any build-up in the chimney that could start a fire.
• Open flues before fireplaces are used.
• Use sturdy screens or glass doors to keep embers inside fireplaces.
• Keep young children away from working wood stoves and heaters to avoid contact burn injuries.

      main source: home safety council

• Look for LED holiday bulbs. The average holiday light uses 5-7 watts per bulb, and some of the older string lights use in excess of 10 watts per bulb. The new LED type lights use less than half a watt per bulb, they're shatterproof, water resistant and safe to touch.
• If LED lights aren't the look you like or want, downsize to miniature lights. They use 70% less energy and last much longer than larger bulbs. 
• Most of us never remember to turn off the lights. Use automatic timers both outside and inside. 
• Holiday lights aren't the only item that runs up your energy bill. Your kitchen oven as efficient as it might be looses as much as 25 degrees in temperature every time you open the oven door to peek inside. So instead use the oven light.
• The dishwasher - your kitchen friend. A load of dishes, cleaned in a dishwasher requires about 37%less water than washing dishes by hand. If equipped use the energy-saving cycles whenever you can. Dishwashers with air-power or overnight dry settings can take as much as 10% off dishwashing energy costs. 

The Department of Energy reports that a home's heating and cooling costs can be reduced by as much as 30% through proper insulation and air sealing.

• More Comfortable- your house will have more even temperatures, less drafts, less furnace use, and more peaceful and quiet atmosphere.
• Cooler in the Summer - Some houses have so much hot air infiltration and their attics are not properly ventilated or insulated, that the air conditioner continuously runs.
• Warmer in the Winter - 40% of heat loss is through the attic. Blown-in insulation will minimize the heat loss.

The average home only has an R-19 insulation factor, whereas the U.S. Department of Energy requires an R-49 insulation factor to be standard. Heat and moisture are every attics worst enemy.

The potential energy savings from reducing drafts in a home may range from 5% to 30% per year.

Check for indoor leaks, such as gaps along baseboard or the edge of the flooring and at junctures of the walls and ceilings. Check to see if the air can flow through electrical outlets, switch plates, window frames, baseboards and weatherstripping around doors, fireplace dampers, attic hatches and wall - or window mounted air conditioners.

Look for gaps around pipes and wires, electrical outlets, foundation seals and mail slots. Check to see if the caulking and weatherstripping are applied properly, leaving no gaps or cracks, and are in good condition.

Good article found in Sundays SouthtownStar 09-13-09

EVERY HOME SHOULD BE TESTED FOR MOLD  

According to Dr. John D. Shane, Vice President of Laboratory services of PRO-LAB millions of homes across America have hidden water leaks that are promoting mold growth that can expose homeowners to mold spores.  Mold has a potential to cause health problems like allergies, irritation (to lungs, eyes, skin, throat, nose) and are potentially toxic.  Inhaling and touching mold spores may cause allergic reactions in sensitive individuals and normally healthy individuals may become sensitive to mold after exposure.

The EPA states that, "It is important to take precautions to limit your exposure to mold and mold spores. Avoid breathing in mold or mold spores". The EPA also recommends that if you suspect you have a hidden mold problem you should consider hiring an experienced professional to avoid exposure to potentially massive doses of mold spores.

Mold damages what it grows on. The longer it grows the more damage it can cause. If there is a mold problem in your home, you should clean up the mold promptly.  Mold can be hidden, growing on the water from a hidden leak, and can develop into a potentially large problem if not caught in time.

Testing your home on a regular basis is a prudent way to prevent small problems from growing into a costly and unhealthy situation, and always avoid exposing yourself and others to mold.

 

Each year, about 280 children under 5 drown in swimming pools. In addition, the suction from drains in swimming pools and spas, under certain conditions, can entrap swimmers underwater. To help protect your family, be sure to take the following steps.

Use Layers of Protection

To prevent swimming pool drownings, layers of protection are essential. Place barriers completely around the pool, closely supervise young children, and be prepared in case of emergency.

In addition:

If a child is missing, always look first in the pool. Seconds count!

Knowing how to swim doesn't make a child drown-proof. Never use flotation devices as a substitute for supervision.

Keep rescue equipment and a phone next to the pool.

Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Install physical barriers around the pool to limit access. - Fences and walls should be at least 4-feet high and installed completely around the pool. - Gates should be self-closing and self-latching. The latch should be out of reach of small children.

If your house forms one side of the barrier for the pool, doors leading from the house to the pool should be protected with alarms that sound when the doors are unexpectedly opened. Or, use a power safety cover, a motor-powered barrier placed over the water area, to prevent access by young children.

For above-ground pools, steps and ladders to the pool should be secured or removed when the pool is not in use.

Pool and Spa Entrapment Dangers

Never use a pool or spa with a missing or broken drain cover. Be sure a newer,

safer drain cover is in place. The new drain covers are usually domed-shaped – instead of the old flat drain covers.

Consider installing a Safety Vacuum Release System (SVRS), a device that will automatically shut off a pump if a blockage is detected.

Have a professional regularly inspect your pool or spa for entrapment or entanglement hazards.

Plainly mark the location of the electrical cut-off switch for the pool or spa pump.

If someone is entrapped against a drain, cut off the pump immediately. Instead of trying to pull the person away from the powerful suction, pry a hand between the drain and the person’s body to break the seal.

Visit the CPSC web site for useful pool and spa safety information at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/359.pdf

For more safety tips please visit our website:  

 

 

Are your energy bills too high? Is your home not as comfortable as you want it to be? Do you want to do more to protect the environment? Do you have teenagers at home giving your hot water bill a beating? Whatever your situation, this will help you to find a solution that's right for you. This guide is primarily aimed at homeowners who are thinking of upgrading or replacing their home's existing heating or cooling systems. It also contains useful information for people who are having a home built for them, and for those who want to reduce their energy consumption in general.   While builders generally offer a standard heating or heating/cooling package, upgrades to more efficient equipment might be available. Familiarity with the different systems, fuel options, their comparative prices and operating costs will help you to review upgrade options with your builder. Remember to also ask your builder about other energy efficiency upgrades, which can range from extra insulation to a complete R-2000-certified home. Before being R-2000-certified, each home is evaluated and tested to ensure a high level of energy efficiency has been designed and built into it. There are both financial and environmental benefits to conserving energy and using it wisely. To help you conserve even more, this will also direct you to resources that can help you reduce energy consumed for purposes beyond heating and cooling your home.  

A Wise Choice   The options presented will help you to select heating and cooling systems that meet the needs of both your lifestyle and your check book. Besides the obvious savings for you that occur by lowering your consumption, by reducing demand for energy through conservation or, in the case of electricity, even from shifting consumption to times of lower demand, together we can lower the market price for the energy that is consumed. The advantages of investing in energy efficiency aren't only felt within your family budget- they are realized in the cleaner environment that goes hand in hand with more efficient systems and the wise use of energy.

Before You Start   Putting an energy-efficient heating system into a drafty, poorly insulated house will reduce your energy bills. But you'll notice a more dramatic saving, and even make yourself more comfortable, if you also make your entire house more energy efficient. How? Here are some ideas...

• Weatherstrip and caulk to seal air leaks. You may have to replace uncontrolled sources of air with designed sources to ensure proper ventilation.
• Increase insulation levels where appropriate (such as in the attic or walls) to reduce heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer.
• Open drapes on south-facing windows on sunny winter days so that the sun's energy can help heat your home, and close them in summer to help keep your home cool.
• Choose energy-efficient products when replacing windows and doors.

By making your house more energy-efficient, your heating and cooling systems will work less, and you may reduce the capacity needed when you replace your systems, which means more savings for you.  

Why Energy Efficiency Matters   It's good for your budget, your comfort and our environment. Each year you spend hundreds of dollars to heat and cool your home and to heat your hot water. By installing energy-efficient equipment, which gives you the same comfort for less energy, you can lower these costs. Furthermore, the lower you can make your energy costs now, the better off you will be should energy prices go up - and conservation reduces upward pressure on energy prices.   Whenever fuels are burned - in your home, in a generating station to produce electricity, in vehicles or elsewhere - carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide are released. These emissions contribute to environmental concerns including smog, acid rain and climate change. Reducing energy use lowers the amounts of these emissions and their impact on the environment. You can help by practicing energy efficiency and conservation not only in heating and cooling your home, but everywhere at home, in the workplace and in your transportation choices. Many factors can affect your annual energy bill such as size and location of your home, yearly variations in weather, efficiency of your furnace and other appliances, thermostat settings, number of occupants, and the local cost of energy.  

Are you serious about how to go about cutting your heating and cooling costs?   Follow these steps:

• Where appropriate, improve the insulation and air sealing in your home.
• Use this guide to help you decide what kinds of changes to your heating and cooling systems will be right for you.
• Consult with a registered heating/cooling contractor and your fuel supplier before making a final decision.
  

Heating Units and Controls
There are four common types of heating units:

• A furnace provides heat through a forced air distribution system.
• A boiler provides heat through a hydronic distribution system. (Hydronic systems are also referred to as hot water systems.)
• A space heater supplies heat directly to the room where it is located.
• A heat pump extracts heat from the air, ground or water outside the house and usually delivers it through a forced air distribution system.

Most heating systems need air for combustion. Furnaces, boilers and space heaters that burn fuels need a supply of air to be able to burn properly, and a vent to the outdoors so that combustion gases can escape from the house. Electric heaters do not need to be vented. Combustion is a two-step process: air in, and gases out.

 Air in In the past, there was usually plenty of air leaking into a house to keep the furnace, boiler or stove burning well. Modern homes, however, are better sealed and use controlled ventilation, rather than uncontrolled leakage, to provide greater comfort and energy efficiency. Vents that supply air for heating units should never be blocked. It is important to ensure that there is an adequate supply of combustion air available, even when other air exhausting equipment is in use.  

Gases out Venting used to be done through a chimney. Today, however, many models of natural gas, oil and propane equipment can be vented by pipe directly through the wall, which greatly simplifies installation. Remember that combustion gases cannot escape from your home unless you provide air to replace them. That's why venting problems can often be traced to air supply problems.  

Controls The indoor temperature is automatically controlled by a thermostat. Two important considerations are location and type. Central systems are normally controlled by a single thermostat. To achieve proper temperature control, the thermostat must be located in an area where it will sense the "average" indoor temperature. Locations exposed to localized temperature extremes (outside walls, drafts, sunlight, hot ducts or pipes, etc.) should be avoided.   Different types of thermostats are available. Basic types maintain a fixed indoor temperature. However, you can reduce your heating costs by installing a set-back thermostat which can be programmed to automatically lower the temperature when no one is home or everyone is in bed, and then warm up the house before you get home or wake up. Savings will vary, but a set-back of 3ºC for eight hours daily could reduce your heating costs by about 5%.   Where space heaters are used, each unit will likely be individually controlled by its own thermostat - which is usually the basic type. This allows you to keep unused areas at a lower temperature than those areas you do use.

Are your energy bills too high? Is your home not as comfortable as you want it to be? Do you want to do more to protect the environment? Do you have teenagers at home giving your hot water bill a beating? Whatever your situation, this will help you to find a solution that's right for you. This guide is primarily aimed at homeowners who are thinking of upgrading or replacing their home's existing heating or cooling systems. It also contains useful information for people who are having a home built for them, and for those who want to reduce their energy consumption in general.   While builders generally offer a standard heating or heating/cooling package, upgrades to more efficient equipment might be available. Familiarity with the different systems, fuel options, their comparative prices and operating costs will help you to review upgrade options with your builder. Remember to also ask your builder about other energy efficiency upgrades, which can range from extra insulation to a complete R-2000-certified home. Before being R-2000-certified, each home is evaluated and tested to ensure a high level of energy efficiency has been designed and built into it. There are both financial and environmental benefits to conserving energy and using it wisely. To help you conserve even more, this will also direct you to resources that can help you reduce energy consumed for purposes beyond heating and cooling your home.

A Wise Choice   The options presented will help you to select heating and cooling systems that meet the needs of both your lifestyle and your check book. Besides the obvious savings for you that occur by lowering your consumption, by reducing demand for energy through conservation or, in the case of electricity, even from shifting consumption to times of lower demand, together we can lower the market price for the energy that is consumed. The advantages of investing in energy efficiency aren't only felt within your family budget- they are realized in the cleaner environment that goes hand in hand with more efficient systems and the wise use of energy.

Before You Start   Putting an energy-efficient heating system into a drafty, poorly insulated house will reduce your energy bills. But you'll notice a more dramatic saving, and even make yourself more comfortable, if you also make your entire house more energy efficient. How? Here are some ideas...

• Weatherstrip and caulk to seal air leaks. You may have to replace uncontrolled sources of air with designed sources to ensure proper ventilation.
• Increase insulation levels where appropriate (such as in the attic or walls) to reduce heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer.
• Open drapes on south-facing windows on sunny winter days so that the sun's energy can help heat your home, and close them in summer to help keep your home cool.
• Choose energy-efficient products when replacing windows and doors.

By making your house more energy-efficient, your heating and cooling systems will work less, and you may reduce the capacity needed when you replace your systems, which means more savings for you.  

Why Energy Efficiency Matters   It's good for your budget, your comfort and our environment. Each year you spend hundreds of dollars to heat and cool your home and to heat your hot water. By installing energy-efficient equipment, which gives you the same comfort for less energy, you can lower these costs. Furthermore, the lower you can make your energy costs now, the better off you will be should energy prices go up - and conservation reduces upward pressure on energy prices.   Whenever fuels are burned - in your home, in a generating station to produce electricity, in vehicles or elsewhere - carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide are released. These emissions contribute to environmental concerns including smog, acid rain and climate change. Reducing energy use lowers the amounts of these emissions and their impact on the environment. You can help by practicing energy efficiency and conservation not only in heating and cooling your home, but everywhere at home, in the workplace and in your transportation choices. Many factors can affect your annual energy bill such as size and location of your home, yearly variations in weather, efficiency of your furnace and other appliances, thermostat settings, number of occupants, and the local cost of energy.  

Are you serious about how to go about cutting your heating and cooling costs?   Follow these steps:

• Where appropriate, improve the insulation and air sealing in your home.
• Use this guide to help you decide what kinds of changes to your heating and cooling systems will be right for you.
• Consult with a registered heating/cooling contractor and your fuel supplier before making a final decision.
  

Heating Units and Controls
There are four common types of heating units:

• A furnace provides heat through a forced air distribution system.
• A boiler provides heat through a hydronic distribution system. (Hydronic systems are also referred to as hot water systems.)
• A space heater supplies heat directly to the room where it is located.
• A heat pump extracts heat from the air, ground or water outside the house and usually delivers it through a forced air distribution system.

Most heating systems need air for combustion. Furnaces, boilers and space heaters that burn fuels need a supply of air to be able to burn properly, and a vent to the outdoors so that combustion gases can escape from the house. Electric heaters do not need to be vented. Combustion is a two-step process: air in, and gases out.

 Air in In the past, there was usually plenty of air leaking into a house to keep the furnace, boiler or stove burning well. Modern homes, however, are better sealed and use controlled ventilation, rather than uncontrolled leakage, to provide greater comfort and energy efficiency. Vents that supply air for heating units should never be blocked. It is important to ensure that there is an adequate supply of combustion air available, even when other air exhausting equipment is in use.

Gases out Venting used to be done through a chimney. Today, however, many models of natural gas, oil and propane equipment can be vented by pipe directly through the wall, which greatly simplifies installation. Remember that combustion gases cannot escape from your home unless you provide air to replace them. That's why venting problems can often be traced to air supply problems.

Controls The indoor temperature is automatically controlled by a thermostat. Two important considerations are location and type. Central systems are normally controlled by a single thermostat. To achieve proper temperature control, the thermostat must be located in an area where it will sense the "average" indoor temperature. Locations exposed to localized temperature extremes (outside walls, drafts, sunlight, hot ducts or pipes, etc.) should be avoided.   Different types of thermostats are available. Basic types maintain a fixed indoor temperature. However, you can reduce your heating costs by installing a set-back thermostat which can be programmed to automatically lower the temperature when no one is home or everyone is in bed, and then warm up the house before you get home or wake up. Savings will vary, but a set-back of 3ºC for eight hours daily could reduce your heating costs by about 5%.   Where space heaters are used, each unit will likely be individually controlled by its own thermostat - which is usually the basic type. This allows you to keep unused areas at a lower temperature than those areas you do use.