New Windows In Basement: Worth It?

Great thread !

As Chris writes, it can be less than obvious where the heat loss problem(s) source. Tiny drafts that cannot be easily felt can be murder. Snow on the windows outside will increase heat conduction through the glass. Glass solutions that decrease light penetration while increasing insulation are trade-offs when you want to heat the interior.

I try to approach this problem using the HS physics I still somewhat remember ..
Conduction
Convection
Radiation

Glass manufacturers for the most part emphasize conduction improvements, but a lot of problems for homeowners are convection (draft) related. Radiation is a matter of keeping clean windows for sunlight during hte day, and blinds at night.

Has anybody used IR devices to track down culprits ? I'd love to hear reccs.
One other thought: humidity will change how you perceive your ambient temperature.

 

ymmv ...

 

Good energy contractors use IR cameras and thermometers to look for and track down heat loss and infiltration.

By putting plastic over the windows, you cut down heat loss from convection, but probably as important if not more so is cutting down on infiltration. Remember, every Cu ft of air coming in is at outside temp, replacing a Cu Ft of heater air, losing the btus to the outside.

 

And if you're worried about sealing things too tight, there's a solution for that: just google "Heat Recovery Ventilator". (and if you balance it properly, it will mitigate moderate radon)

 

In the real world, getting houses too tight is not a problem. (especially if you are worried about cold windows!) Most houses that were built before ~2000 have tons of air leaks unless they were REALLY well built.

Air/air heat exchange with heat recovery is a very smart move, centralize all the exhausts so that most of the btus are recaptured by the incoming air.

 

It can be. In fact it's the 3rd leading cause of lung cancer:



it's only because our 2nd home is in Kalispell that I bring that up. Cold weather winters, even in 10 & 20 year old homes have issues in many areas. but if you live in the blue areass, never mind.

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While not under stating the issue of Radon, as well as other indoor air pollutants, most houses are pretty leaky. With radon monitoring, and venting, plus proper air/air heat exchange technology solves most of these problems with the added benefit of reducing energy use net/net.