New Windows Help In The Cold Snap

Phew ;-)

The outside temperature is currently -12C/10F. If we had our old windows, they would now have sheets of ice on the inside (frozen condensation), unless I had the furnace up to about 24 or 25 (75F).

I went to high school in the interior of BC - my old hometown is currently at -33C/-27F. Houses there are built a little differently though - ALL the windows have two separate, independently sliding pieces of glass, with about a 4 inch cushion of air in between (when we first moved there from the south coast when I was in high school, I thought they were the strangest windows I'd ever seen, but when the winters produced weather cold enough to freeze exposed flesh, I understood ;-)

Anyway, thanks to our new Energy Star windows, we have the furnace set at only 18C/64F, and lo and behold - no ice anywhere (inside the house, that is ;-)
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New Energy Star Windows Are Quiet Too!

Last night (Halloween), after our kids were in bed, my husband took our dog for his nightly walk while I curled up on the couch with a cozy blanket at the TV remote to enjoy the quiet after a busy night.

When he returned, he was amazed at the noise level difference between inside the house and out. He said there were fireworks going off everywhere, and that it was still noisy and bustling outside.

Last year, with the old windows, we heard the fireworks almost as if we were still outside. This year, however, with our new Energy Star windows, it was as if there was no noise outside.

Ahhhh... warmth and quiet!!

More About Our New Energy Star Windows

Ahhhh!!! Warm house in the chilly autumn :-)

Not only are the new Energy Star windows good at keeping the cold out, they're also good at containing the heat.

My Dad is visiting and staying in our basement suite, so I have the electric baseboard heater turned up to 20C (68F) for his comfort. I am noticing that the entire house is warmer, whereas for his visits prior to the installation of the new windows, the heat on in the basement would not have made a difference upstairs.

This to me reflects the benefit of the fact that the heat is no longer escaping through drafty basement windows...

Are New Windows Really Less Drafty?

You bet!!!!

Since having our new windows installed, I can leave the heat turned off all day, and the room temperature will dip by only .5 to 1 degree (10 degrees colder outside). With the old glass, the house would have gotten down at least 3 or 4 degrees, if not more.

In fact, last night when Heat Junkie Hubby came home, I forgot to turn the furnace back on (usually I scoot over to the thermostat when I see his car pull in the driveway ;-) He gets home at about 5:30, and it wasn't until the kids' bedtime that I realized I'd forgotten. Meanwhile DH hadn't said a word, 'cause he was still comfortably warm.

Now the unfortunate part is that we have to pay for the windows (not like we can return 'em!!). Over the long term, though, they will save us money (plus the house looks so much nicer :-) !!

Brrrr...

We get new (double paned, LowE2) windows installed on the 16th, but meanwhile it's not so toasty being green!

I'm huddled over my laptop trying to keep warm, thinking about all the $$$ I'm saving keeping the furnace off. Hubby thinks I'm nuts. He doesn't handle the cold well. What the hell, once he chisels the ice out of his moustache he should be fine.

Wimp.

Windows Windows!!

The first day of autumn is here with a vengeance!!

Ok not quite, but boy is it cooling down. I may have to plug in the electric oil heater in the bedroom to deter Hubby from turning on the furnace ;-)

He's not totally "ungreen" though, in spite of his trigger happy ways with utilities. He's the one who wants to replace our windows. If we did that, then we wouldn't have to turn our furnace on as often, or up as high. I'm just cringing at the cost.

Replace them we will, however; hopefully by Christmas we'll have new, energy efficient, double paned glass throughout the house. Hopefully the savings in our hydro and gas bills will make the new debt more bearable (plus I'll be able to blog about how green we are!!) lol

Ok, Jeanne... get on with it!! You have enough quotes already - just hire someone...