Despite what you might think, portable heaters are a very efficient way to heat your home. I’m Lou Manfredini, Ace’s “Helpful Hardware Man” and as we all know, every house has one room that is always colder than the rest. So instead of cranking up the heat in the entire house, consider plugging in a portable heater only where you need it.
Your most efficient electric heaters are those with metal coils. These models can be small and portable, but they certainly get the job done. You can also choose electric oil filled radiators, which are another great option. The electricity heats the oil in machine and once it reaches a certain temperature, the electricity turns off, but the oil stays hot.
The biggest concern with portable heaters, however, is that you must turn them off when you are done using them or leaving the room they are in. Make sure you keep them at least 3 feet from any combustibles and never plug them into an extension cord. I also recommend installing a smoke and CO2 detector in any room that has a portable heater. Another thing to look for when choosing a portable heater is anti-tip technology, which will cut off the heat, should the unit start to tip over.
A big no-no for portable heaters are kerosene heaters. Any heater with an open flame should never be used indoors.
There is nothing quite as romantic as an evening spent in front of a wood-burning fireplace, but boy do I hate the maintenance that goes with it. I’m Lou Manfredini, Ace’s “Helpful Hardware Man” and I’m here to talk to you about another way to use your fireplace, with gas logs.
The upkeep of wood-burning fireplaces is intense and can dissuade you from using your fireplace all together. Plus, you run the risk of encountering issues with drafting which can make your whole house smoky. With gas logs, there is none of this to worry about.
Gas logs can be installed very quickly and look quite realistic. And the upkeep is so much simpler! No more cleaning out the debris after every fire or lugging in chopped wood on cold days. Now, you’ll still have to have your chimney cleaned every 3-4 years, but that’s much less than the annual cleaning that I recommend for wood-burning fireplaces. You also might have to look at having a gas line moved, which would increase your cost to install. But in my opinion, it is absolutely worth it. Another bonus, gas logs turn on with the flick of a switch, or in some models, the click of a remote control. Talk about instant romance!
Hi folks, this is Lou Manfredini, Ace’s “Helpful Hardware Man” and I’ve got some tips for one of the most complained about household issues: pilot lights. Hopefully we are all moving to a world without pilot lights, but for those of us living in older homes, it’s not something we can get rid of just yet.
The biggest thing when dealing with pilot lights is to make sure that you have a good sensing device, called a thermocouple, which can sense when the light is on. These need to be changed every 5-6 years and need to be cleaned on a regular basis. If you are having a hard time keeping your pilot light on, 9 out of 10 times, you just need to check your thermocouple.
If your pilot light that is attached to your heater or furnace is going out, it could be from wind that is coming through the chimney and literally blowing it out. A way to stop this from happening is to use a mechanical damper, which opens and closes when needed.
Finally, if you have an electronic ignition, you might want to check that your flame sensor is working properly. This is a piece of metal that is shaped similar to a large paperclip. When the gas turns on it ignites and senses when the flame is on.
