Radiant Blanket for Cold Ducts

This fall we've been working on winter energy-saving tips, and last week we decided it was time to put one of our ideas into action. We have a forced-air duct system connected to our geothermal system. Our ducts have no insulation, and so are a bit inefficient. In the summer the basement feels cold, and in the winter, quite warm, and a portion of this is due to the fact that the duct system leaks. So Tom found a product called TempShield single bubble white/foil, and hired Dunbar construction to put it up (although you can really do it yourself - just requires stapling). The process took about 1/2 day. The material cost $160, and although it's hard to measure energy savings, we're guessing that it will be in the ball park of 5%.

We'd recommend this if: 1)you run your fan all the time, or 2)your basement is cold.

A Fall Tour

You've got to admit, the picture above doesn't look very fall-ish. And it certainly doesn't look like it comes from anywhere in the midwest. But for those of us lucky enough to be born in Michigan, this scene is familiar. The photo was taken last week, a little outside of Glen Arbor, Michigan, right in the midst of the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes. The dunes, located on the northwestern side of the lower peninsula, are an incredible natural resource. My daughter, Maureen, and I toured throughout this area last weekend on the Pierce Stocking Drive. Pierce Stocking is the name of a lumberman who worked in Michigan's woods and had a passion for sharing the beauty of the area with others. He planned this drive, saw it open in 1967, and operated it until his death in 1976. The view you see is of Lake Michigan, and is only one of the spectacular outlooks from the drive. The drive is open until Nov. 12 - get out and see it if you can! Here are directions. There is nothing like Michigan in the fall!