Keeping warm in a Wyoming winter
Basic Forms of heat and how to utilize them.
Wyoming is a harsh environment, known particularly for it's long, cold and windy winters. So what do we do to stay comfortable in a place where the very air hurts our faces? In this post I am going to focus on a few principles in making heat more efficient and effective based of course on my own understanding. Then in future articles I am going to focus a bit more on what WE DO in our current situation as well as giving you a sneak peak into some future posts where we will go into a little more detail on some of the specific techniques we use and plan to use in our efforts not to freeze to death:).
Heat Production and Retention Principles
“Good Quote from the following paragraph”
There are essentially 3 basic forms of heat that are worth considering when trying to stay warm; Convective heat, Radiant Heat, and Conductive Heat. These can be described rather simply, and when understood and leveraged, they can be used to make yourself and the rest of your family more warm and comfortable.
Convective Heat
In terms of heating people, this is typically seen as the least efficient and effective method for keeping warm. Convective heat can be observed by placing a tea kettle full of water on the stove top. When heat is applied directly beneath the tea kettle, the water warmed from that applied heat, rises. That hot water gets pushed to the surface and then forced aside, then, when contacting the relatively cold side of the kettle, falls down to the bottom of the kettle and is then sucked back into the rising water column, creating a cyclical movement that causes that rolling boil in the water you've boiled for your tea.
In regards to the heating of a home or other space, convection of course takes place with air, not water. You've likely heard that hot air rises and cool air sinks and this is really what you're trying to capitalize on when heating a home with convection. This is all about heating the air, which indirectly heats the people or objects that are in contact with the air. You can make this aspect of your heating plan more effective by; eliminating drafts, without eliminating ventilation, designing heating elements in such a way that allows cold air to be drawn in and hot air to be forced upwards, this is why radiant heaters have "fins" with spaces between them. Placing heating elements lower will create a more active convective current, which may cause more air to be heated as it passes near or through the heating element. On the other hand, obstructions may lessen convective efficiency by creating drag in the current or preventing good air flow into the warm space. This does not mean that one absolutely needs a bare, empty space near heaters for effectiveness. However placing any item near the base of the heater where cold air gets drawn in could slow that draw or cause the heater to draw from higher in the air column, leaving the coldest air to settle on the floor longer than it may otherwise. Likewise, placing a shelf directly over a heating element could cause some drag in your convective current. Enough to make a significant difference? I don't know, certainly not from experience, I will say here that there are those who intentionally place shelves directly over radiant style heaters to improve the aesthetic appeal of the space, and there is of course nothing wrong with this but I personally question whether the loss of efficiency is not noticeable in comfort or cost.
Radiant Heat
Sticking with our tea analogy, radiant heat can be experienced by placing your hands near the mug, but not on it,, the heat that one feels striking their skin from a distance is radiant heat. This is also experienced when staring at a fire or feeling the sun on your skin on a warm day. Radiant heat is decidedly more effective at heating people than convective heat is and is essentially electromagnetic wave lengths that are converted to heat when intercepted or absorbed, such as when your skin captures the heat radiating off your tea mug.
Radiant heat, therefore is best utilized by maintaining an unbroken line of sight between the heat source and the object or person you intend to heat. Such as placing a wood stove centrally where it can radiate into the most occupied space or by sitting in a sunny spot near a window, especially older windows that allow heat in and don't have the newer heat blocking film. Using incandescent light bulbs instead of LED's or CFL's can also utilize radiant heat, especially when they are sited directly overhead the person they are intended to heat. In fact, unless you are in a warm location, where cooling is the primary concern, I am of the opinion that incandescent lights are likely more efficient due to this possibility of stacking functions with them and reducing your homes need for heating when used properly.
Conductive Heat
In regards to the heating of people and objects, conductive heat is certainly the most efficient and effective. This is the form of heat that is felt when holding the hot mug of tea as the herbs or leaves steep. Or the warmth felt when snuggling up with loved ones. You can make use of conductive heat in a few ways, with warmed rice/bean bags, with heated blankets or dog beds placed where they can effectively warm your person. Heated floors, seat covers or mattress covers, and of course, you could just cuddle up! There are likely other methods that one could employ, but I must admit at this point that this is difficult for me to list that many options on how to take advantage of conductive heat in most conventional heating systems. In the unconventional, however, I would be remiss if I didn't mention things such and the ancient Korean Ondol, the modern day Rocket Mass Heater, or the native American use of Adobe as a building material to regulate temperature and humidity. There are likely many other options if one looks at traditional heating methods that I can't recall at the moment, look for future blog posts as we share some of what we do to heat our home and some of the plans we have for future winter warmth.
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