Our (sizable) tax rebate came in the mail today, so we immediately started dreaming about what we could do to upgrade the house with the money. leading contenders are windows and solar hot water heater, since those will payoff as rebates next year as well.
Well, one of us was dreaming about upgrades. The other one started planning a trip to Vegas.
What would you spend money on to upgrade your house?
Well, I would install those point of use water heaters to save water. How about ceiling fans or a whole house fan to cut down on AC usage?
ReplyDeleteI love a good ceiling fan, but Mr. House isn't in to them as much for some reason. I think it depends on if you were brought up with them or not. I would definitely consider putting one in the bedroom so we wouldn't have to use our other little fan anymore.
ReplyDeleteOne thing about that whole house fan is that they can be so damn noisy! My dad put one in at our old house and cheaped out and got a less expensive model that ended up being very very loud. So I would say if you get one don't cheap out!
PV panels on the roof and point-of-use water heaters are what I would do, if I could...
ReplyDeleteI'm in the same boat as Mr. House about fans, but they really only bother me in the night, when I wake up feeling like a dried-up pile of bones. But, I'm the same way with stand fans at night, too.
Okay, in all honesty I'd get a really nice kayak for my wife, and start planning a trip to Europe...
ReplyDeletehey, thanks for the ideas! PoU heaters are a good idea, and may enter into things. PV cells are always intreguing, however I fear that even with subsidies, they will never pay off before they fail. So that is why I was thinking solar hot water heater, since it does. Plants are also in the plan.
ReplyDeleteWe got our deposit from the apartment back (mostly) so we have even more money to play with.
I do not hate overhead fans, I just dislike having my hair mussed, my hands wacked, and the sound.
ReplyDeletePlus, not good for birds.
I've done some research on whole-house fans, and I read that they are optimal in climates where the temperature stays in the lower 80's. However attic fans were recommended for higher temps. We will probably get an attic fan pretty soon, esp. as they are about $70 for one that will work in our tiny house.
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