Beating the Winter Blues - and Bills!!

The polar vortex literally made our old house shiver this winter, and the utility bills to heat the house made my husband and I shiver even more, as our $400 a month bill continued to climb as temperatures plunged again. And again. And again. 

With several months of winter still ahead of us, I carefully read the current bill from People's Gas, and noticed the following message:

"Enroll in Budget Billing today to help manage your gas bills. Simply pay exactly $163.00 instead of the amount due shown on your payment coupon by your bill due date. Your monthly payment will be $163.00."

So the first thing I did to manage our utility bills was to pay the specified amount and - voila! - we were set up in the Budget Payment Plan. We received a letter that confirmed our enrollment, with an overview of how the program worked. Very straightforward and easy.

People's Gas estimates how much natural gas you'll use based on the previous year and calculates a monthly payment over the full year (12 months). Halfway through the budget year, they'll adjust to reflect gas price changes, actual usage or extreme weather impacts. Periodic adjustments spread the cost out so you don't get socked with a huge bill at year-end. 

My next step was to find out what we could do to tighten up our old house to reduce our overall energy costs - and losses. I knew our old house - with its balloon framing - would have lots of room for improvement in the areas of sealing and insulation. But what else could we do?  

People's Gas has a bunch of Heating Tips. These are still on MY list:

* Install a programmable thermostat (1 type works with steam boilers: To do)

* Install a ceiling fan (This will be more noticeable in summer; we'll think about it).

* Insulate the home (Working on this next!!!)

* Seal and insulate ducts (Working on this one).

* Seal leaks with weather stripping (Working on this too). 

For each item, there is an estimated Skill Level, Cost and Savings figure. A programmable thermostat could save $180 a year. Furnace tune-ups and insulation could each save you 10% on your monthly bill and sealing ducts and weatherstripping could each save 20% on your bills. 

Pop Goes Your Energy Bill!

When we remodeled our kitchen, I was shocked to see what was behind the drywall supporting our cabinets and appliances: nothing. Our old house has what’s called “balloon framing,” which means, once the drywall is taken out, you see the 2 x 4 boards spaced every 18 inches or so apart - and that’s about it.

This surprised me: first, because the kitchen was re-done in the last 20 years and I thought this cheap construction went out of style - and building codes - before then. This is a bad idea with harsh Chicago winters and sticky summers as they may have little or no insulation in the walls, or just in a small area, as we found in our case. (Nice use of styrofoam).

It also surprised me because it was a kitchen - where you have pipes, electrical lines and food. The first two should be covered or protected so they don’t spark or leak or freeze. We found uncapped live wires in our wall that sent this daughter of an electrician into a bit of a panic.

When I saw the results of the third item, FOOD, I was equally aghast. Balloon framing PLUS kitchen plus old house equals EEEK!! The builders made it easy for mice to find their way up the walls and underneath the stove, where they chowed and partied on a regular basis. My cats had tried to tell me about the mice and I had ignored them, but the evidence was clear, and gross.

I wondered where this type of construction started, expecting some warm climate city or country. Nope. According to wikipedia, this style of building was also known as “Chicago construction,” as it was popularized in my home city in the 19th century. I’d hoped we had learned better by the 1980’s but by the looks of my house, I was wrong.

Balloon framing is still used today because it IS cheap. I was right about that! This construction method uses 2”x4” or 2x6” studs along the walls every 16 inches (or 18 or 20 inches, it’s changed over the years). Besides being cheap it’s easy, so DIY’ers can build homes or additions. The major downsides are that fires move through the walls easily - and so do other things such as cold air and mice coming in from the cold.

Old House Web, says the term was originally derogatory, meaning it was so light, it could blow away in a breeze. Many balloon-framed buildings have survived 75 or more years, including my 110 year-old home. The method is still used today but has become less popular due to fire hazards. If you know Chicago’s history, you may find it ironic that construction type is associated with this city (hint: Great Chicago Fire).

As we cleared out the old kitchen, I wanted to know what could be done to fix this open-air balloon issue so we didn’t get unwanted guests or cold air (or fire!) going forward. I also looked online to see what we could do that was good insulation, and green.

Orange blown-in insulation sealed kitchen

Fine Home Building suggested 2 strategies: blowing in insulation between the studs into the air cavities. Our contractor used the “orange” colored version of this material in our kitchen (right) so no more mouse in our house (or kitchen, at least!). It came out of foam cans - bright orange - and hardened to seal in just a few minutes.

The other suggestion was to have a weatherization professional come out to do a home assessment for the entire building and recommend proper sealing and insulation methods. My next step: a Home Energy Assessment.

Re-cycling: old Huffy heads to Honduras*

1990's era Huffy bike

Yesterday I said goodbye to an old friend. We first got together in Houston in the early 90’s, and took some fun and scary rides on tough Texas streets before we returned to the Midwest. A few years ago, I got a new all terrain Trek for my birthday. Poor old Huffy didn’t stand a chance next to this comfy cruiser - and was left to gather dust in the basement. 

It was full of cobwebs, heavier than today's bikes, and the tires were flat, but was still "ride-able."

I thought visiting family or friends would take her out once in a while, but that didn’t happen. And it seemed wrong to keep the old bike and not put it to use, so I called Working Bikes and asked them to give Huffy a new home.

Working Bikes repairs and donates bikes to individuals that need transportation in the U.S. and about a dozen countries in Central and South America and Africa.

The organization donates 6,000 bikes every year and has a map of where the bikes have gone so far.

There are drop-off sites around the city and lots of upcoming bike drives (collections, not rides) as Working Bikes is in full Spring Bike Drive mode right now. 

I hit the jackpot: Omar would be in my neighborhood the very next day and could pick up the bike. He gave me his cell number and a time frame, then called the next day when he was on his way. It couldn't have been easier - and I didn't have to even try to squeeze the bike into the back of my car.

As promised, Omar pulled up in his small pickup truck and I handed over my old Huffy. I got a donation receipt and found out my bike would go on the next shipment of 500 bikes to Central America. I like knowing that my bike will find new life abroad and help someone get around in El Salvador (*well, relatively close to Honduras). 

If you have old (or not so old) bikes you no longer use, reach out to Working Bikes via email at donations@workingbikes.org or call the store at  773 – 847 – 5440 --- and get those wheels out of your basement and ‘back on the road,’ where they belong.