Solar Heater
With a solar heater you can greatly reduce the costs of heating your
home. If you have South facing windows, this might be a good option
for you. You can customize your solar heater to fit your windows. It
is also important to angle your solar heater so the sun can hit at the
optimum level.
There is a lot of useful information on the internet on how to build
your own solar heater. If you are handy with tools and a wiz at geometry,
this might be the best and least expensive option for you. If building
one yourself isn’t your cup of tea, you can also have one installed
for you.
Solar heaters are slightly more expensive than electric ones, at first.
In the long run though, you will see the benefits of spending more in
the beginning on a solar heater. Although you will be spending less
on an electric heating system, it will eventually cost you more month
to month to heat your home.
Solar heaters are different than electric heaters, as the solar heater
will blow warm air through a fan into your home, but does not have a
thermostat to maintain the temperature in your home. Solar heaters will
generate heat as long as the sun is out, so there is no turning it off;
you must wait for the sun go down. So to maintain a desired temperature
in your home you must open windows or doors.
It is also a good idea with a solar heater, to help keep the heat in
winter by opening curtains on the south, east and west side of your
home. North facing windows let in the cold, so keep those curtains closed.
After the sun goes down make sure to close the open curtains to keep
the heat you generated throughout the day inside. Also make sure that
you have double paned windows, single paned windows are not as effective
with keeping the cold air outside and the warm air that the solar heater
generates inside.