Where to start to save on Energy bill?

pr0cess0r · 06-01-18, 09:31 AM

Hello, im new to the forum and would like to know where to start to save on my power bill.

Its a 1970 house and it use baseboard heating.

Im wondering if to start its better to switch to heat pump or to start with insulation?

I dont want to open wall or anything like this for now but dont know where to start.

Im in Quebec and winter can be very cold so im not sure about heat pump efficency most of the winter.

NiHaoMike · 06-01-18, 12:03 PM

Look around for really cheap used servers and use them to mine cryptocurrency.

pr0cess0r · 06-01-18, 12:09 PM

i dont think your comment help me at all... but i dont want to make any high risk investment for mining.

If you want to mine you have to buy good recept equiment motherboard that can support many gpu so no old servers are not good for this..

One of my friend have 60 gpu mining and he make good money with them plus he is trading crypto but to make money you need to have money!

so i just look for some help idea how to start impriving my home.

NiHaoMike · 06-01-18, 12:28 PM

There are coins that mine well on CPUs but not GPUs. I would say that Monero is probably the most stable one. I mine earnhoney (more profitability but more uncertainty/less stability) on really cold days, and even my old Core i7 from 6 years ago ends up with a lower net cost per heat generated than a heat pump - on the order of getting back 90-95% of the power cost. Something more efficient will actually make a profit.

I personally have found that just one GPU and one 6 core CPU will easily keep my apartment warm, but your place gets much colder. The nice thing about used servers is that they're crazy cheap if you wait for a deal. (Reddit's homelab section is a good resource.) I would say that 10 or so total CPUs (chips, not cores) would be a good start for your case.

And then there are infrared heat lamps for localized heating, easily fine tuned with ordinary dimmers. The point of those is not really to reduce the cost of getting heat but to try to get more of it where it's really needed.

pr0cess0r · 06-01-18, 12:41 PM

i alredy have two server running 24/7 i should try to use them to mine. Didnt know that there is some money that i can mine with cpu. Hydro is very cheap so maybe i will be even.

oil pan 4 · 06-01-18, 04:37 PM

Insulation.
My new windows I put in 2 years ago and insulation projI started 3 years ago and finished about 6 months later plus high efficiency heat pumps has decreased the power bill 100 to 150 per month during the summer and 50 to 100 in natural gas in winter.

I didn't want to bust open walls either. So what I did was take a 5 inch hole saw and make a hole at the top of the wall between the stud exposingthe bottom half inch or so of the wall header and hand filled with cellulose.
And it worked.

mejunkhound · 06-02-18, 02:46 AM

Start with ceiling and floor insulation if accessible.

Church had unoccupied parsonage kept at 60F
Associate pastor's familily moved in, 4 kids.

Floor and ceililg uninsulated, they were warm climate foks and wife liked house at 74F

Installed just R11 in floors an ceiling last November where there had been none. Heating bill each months since then has been lower than the previous year. About 2000 sq ft ceiling and 1000 sq ft floor insulated. Outdoor average about 40F, so BIG savings, heating bills would have gone up over 50%otherwise.

Walls still uninsulated as large single pane windows.

definetly start with insulation if yu have none or little now.

Is electric your only source of energy? No big free wood source, NG or ??

pr0cess0r · 06-02-18, 07:51 AM

my only source is hydro but its cheap over here.

Rate D structure
Fixed charge per day in the consumption period: 40.64¢
Price of energy for energy consumption up to 36 kilowatthours (kWh) times the number of days in the consumption period (1st tier): 5.91¢/kWh
Price of energy for the remaining energy consumption (2nd tier): 9.12¢/kWh

I will look to add some insulation to ceiling the ceiling.

Is it a good idea to hire some one to make a leak test of my house to know what to improve ?

natethebrown · 06-03-18, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pr0cess0r

Is it a good idea to hire some one to make a leak test of my house to know what to improve ?

I think you are better off buying, renting, or borrowing an Infrared Camera. You should be able to spot most leaks easier than a blown door test as well as quickly see the results of your labor.

ecomodded · 06-07-18, 02:47 PM

As your using baseboard heat right now your best bang for buck is to install a cold weather ASHP with your house winter heating in mind.
My guesstimate is your winter heating bill will be around 50% or more lower then the current bill with the two tier pricing.

Divide your yearly heating bill in half to get a sense of pay back time vs a heat pump installation costs. If your bill heating bill is high ASHP's pay back time is relatively quick especially when compared to the ducted GSHP's.

06-01-18, 09:31 AM	#1
pr0cess0r Lurking Renovator Join Date: May 2018 Location: Quebec Posts: 26 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Where to start to save on Energy bill? Hello, im new to the forum and would like to know where to start to save on my power bill. Its a 1970 house and it use baseboard heating. Im wondering if to start its better to switch to heat pump or to start with insulation? I dont want to open wall or anything like this for now but dont know where to start. Im in Quebec and winter can be very cold so im not sure about heat pump efficency most of the winter.

06-01-18, 12:03 PM	#2
NiHaoMike Supreme EcoRenovator Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,154 Thanks: 14 Thanked 257 Times in 241 Posts	Look around for really cheap used servers and use them to mine cryptocurrency. __________________ To my surprise, shortly after Naomi Wu gave me a bit of fame for making good use of solar power, Allie Moore got really jealous of her...

06-01-18, 12:28 PM	#4
NiHaoMike Supreme EcoRenovator Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,154 Thanks: 14 Thanked 257 Times in 241 Posts	There are coins that mine well on CPUs but not GPUs. I would say that Monero is probably the most stable one. I mine earnhoney (more profitability but more uncertainty/less stability) on really cold days, and even my old Core i7 from 6 years ago ends up with a lower net cost per heat generated than a heat pump - on the order of getting back 90-95% of the power cost. Something more efficient will actually make a profit. I personally have found that just one GPU and one 6 core CPU will easily keep my apartment warm, but your place gets much colder. The nice thing about used servers is that they're crazy cheap if you wait for a deal. (Reddit's homelab section is a good resource.) I would say that 10 or so total CPUs (chips, not cores) would be a good start for your case. And then there are infrared heat lamps for localized heating, easily fine tuned with ordinary dimmers. The point of those is not really to reduce the cost of getting heat but to try to get more of it where it's really needed. __________________ To my surprise, shortly after Naomi Wu gave me a bit of fame for making good use of solar power, Allie Moore got really jealous of her...

06-07-18, 02:47 PM	#10
ecomodded Supreme EcoRenovator Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Vancouver Island,Canada. Posts: 1,037 Thanks: 116 Thanked 100 Times in 87 Posts	As your using baseboard heat right now your best bang for buck is to install a cold weather ASHP with your house winter heating in mind. My guesstimate is your winter heating bill will be around 50% or more lower then the current bill with the two tier pricing. Divide your yearly heating bill in half to get a sense of pay back time vs a heat pump installation costs. If your bill heating bill is high ASHP's pay back time is relatively quick especially when compared to the ducted GSHP's. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-01-18, 12:09 PM	#3
pr0cess0r Lurking Renovator Join Date: May 2018 Location: Quebec Posts: 26 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	i dont think your comment help me at all... but i dont want to make any high risk investment for mining. If you want to mine you have to buy good recept equiment motherboard that can support many gpu so no old servers are not good for this.. One of my friend have 60 gpu mining and he make good money with them plus he is trading crypto but to make money you need to have money! so i just look for some help idea how to start impriving my home.

06-01-18, 12:41 PM	#5
pr0cess0r Lurking Renovator Join Date: May 2018 Location: Quebec Posts: 26 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	i alredy have two server running 24/7 i should try to use them to mine. Didnt know that there is some money that i can mine with cpu. Hydro is very cheap so maybe i will be even.

06-01-18, 04:37 PM	#6
oil pan 4 Land owner Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: NM Posts: 1,026 Thanks: 12 Thanked 127 Times in 107 Posts	Insulation. My new windows I put in 2 years ago and insulation projI started 3 years ago and finished about 6 months later plus high efficiency heat pumps has decreased the power bill 100 to 150 per month during the summer and 50 to 100 in natural gas in winter. I didn't want to bust open walls either. So what I did was take a 5 inch hole saw and make a hole at the top of the wall between the stud exposingthe bottom half inch or so of the wall header and hand filled with cellulose. And it worked.

06-02-18, 02:46 AM	#7
mejunkhound Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: PNW Posts: 197 Thanks: 0 Thanked 47 Times in 31 Posts	Start with ceiling and floor insulation if accessible. Church had unoccupied parsonage kept at 60F Associate pastor's familily moved in, 4 kids. Floor and ceililg uninsulated, they were warm climate foks and wife liked house at 74F Installed just R11 in floors an ceiling last November where there had been none. Heating bill each months since then has been lower than the previous year. About 2000 sq ft ceiling and 1000 sq ft floor insulated. Outdoor average about 40F, so BIG savings, heating bills would have gone up over 50%otherwise. Walls still uninsulated as large single pane windows. definetly start with insulation if yu have none or little now. Is electric your only source of energy? No big free wood source, NG or ??

06-02-18, 07:51 AM	#8
pr0cess0r Lurking Renovator Join Date: May 2018 Location: Quebec Posts: 26 Thanks: 1 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	my only source is hydro but its cheap over here. Rate D structure Fixed charge per day in the consumption period: 40.64¢ Price of energy for energy consumption up to 36 kilowatthours (kWh) times the number of days in the consumption period (1st tier): 5.91¢/kWh Price of energy for the remaining energy consumption (2nd tier): 9.12¢/kWh I will look to add some insulation to ceiling the ceiling. Is it a good idea to hire some one to make a leak test of my house to know what to improve ?