Jim from Wisconsin

fishaholic · 10-14-09, 09:17 AM

Hi All,
I have a home in Wisconsin that I have extensively remodeled. I have replaced all the plumbing, wiring, windows, doors, and I removed all the lath and plaster walls, added insulation, and put up new drywall. Put in new NG furnace, central air, and new electric water heater. I did pay someone to do the new siding with more insulation, and roof. I think it took 10-13 years of weekends and holidays. This summer I had a new cement driveway poured and a new slab for garage 26 X 32. My Son who just graduated, his friend, and myself worked weekends starting the 4th of July and finished on Labor day to build the new garage. It cost me what I would have had to pay a contractor to do. But thats only because I gave the money I saved to the boys for their help.
Now that the garage is done I have somewhere to work on other projects. I did save the old water heater so I am thinking first to start working on solar projects. I would like to heat my garage with solar too. Tried to do it as part of the build but it didn't meet the WAF (wife acceptance factor).

Daox · 10-14-09, 12:10 PM

Welcome to the site Fishaholic! (again

) Thanks for posting an intro thread too.

It sounds like you have done tons of work over the years. Do you have any pictures of the house or the work?

Since we are fairly close geographically, I'd like to ask a few more specific questions.
What is the r-value of your attic and walls?
Do you have an insulated basement?
How many square feet is the house, and what style of build is it (ranch, etc)?
What is your energy usage like in the winter? I now have 1 years worth of energy usage tracked, so I can start comparing to last year. However, last year I had people at home all day and this year I don't, so I don't have to heat the house during most of the day. I'm hoping to see large benefits from this plus the work I've been doing.

fishaholic · 10-25-09, 11:51 AM

Daox,
I got the last two years worth of bills from my electric company. I couldn't compare since they don't go back before most of the work. I havn't recieved anything yet from gas. I have two teenage kids, lots of electronics, electric water heater. Seems like everything is ghosting electricity 24/7. I tried to turn everything off but I'm 1 against 3.
My kWh averages 939, or $105 a month. My wife said the gas bill averages about $100 a month two. I sealed up the air leaks in my basement yesterday and I can feel the difference already.
I suspect that the usage for electric and gas will drop significantly when the kids leave and get their own places. Dec and Jan were the highest when they were home from school for extended periods of time.

10-14-09, 09:17 AM	#1
fishaholic Lurking Renovator Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Just west of Center, WI Posts: 13 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Jim from Wisconsin Hi All, I have a home in Wisconsin that I have extensively remodeled. I have replaced all the plumbing, wiring, windows, doors, and I removed all the lath and plaster walls, added insulation, and put up new drywall. Put in new NG furnace, central air, and new electric water heater. I did pay someone to do the new siding with more insulation, and roof. I think it took 10-13 years of weekends and holidays. This summer I had a new cement driveway poured and a new slab for garage 26 X 32. My Son who just graduated, his friend, and myself worked weekends starting the 4th of July and finished on Labor day to build the new garage. It cost me what I would have had to pay a contractor to do. But thats only because I gave the money I saved to the boys for their help. Now that the garage is done I have somewhere to work on other projects. I did save the old water heater so I am thinking first to start working on solar projects. I would like to heat my garage with solar too. Tried to do it as part of the build but it didn't meet the WAF (wife acceptance factor). Last edited by fishaholic; 10-14-09 at 09:20 AM..

10-14-09, 12:10 PM	#2
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Welcome to the site Fishaholic! (again ) Thanks for posting an intro thread too. It sounds like you have done tons of work over the years. Do you have any pictures of the house or the work? Since we are fairly close geographically, I'd like to ask a few more specific questions. What is the r-value of your attic and walls? Do you have an insulated basement? How many square feet is the house, and what style of build is it (ranch, etc)? What is your energy usage like in the winter? I now have 1 years worth of energy usage tracked, so I can start comparing to last year. However, last year I had people at home all day and this year I don't, so I don't have to heat the house during most of the day. I'm hoping to see large benefits from this plus the work I've been doing. __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

10-25-09, 11:51 AM	#3
fishaholic Lurking Renovator Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Just west of Center, WI Posts: 13 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Daox, I got the last two years worth of bills from my electric company. I couldn't compare since they don't go back before most of the work. I havn't recieved anything yet from gas. I have two teenage kids, lots of electronics, electric water heater. Seems like everything is ghosting electricity 24/7. I tried to turn everything off but I'm 1 against 3. My kWh averages 939, or $105 a month. My wife said the gas bill averages about $100 a month two. I sealed up the air leaks in my basement yesterday and I can feel the difference already. I suspect that the usage for electric and gas will drop significantly when the kids leave and get their own places. Dec and Jan were the highest when they were home from school for extended periods of time. __________________ Jim from just west of center, WI. I took the road less traveled by. Hope I find a gas station soon! To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.