keeping warm

KEEPING WARM
Buying guide
Electric tankless water heater: $400 to $700 at major hardware stores; can be installed easily by an electrician; consumes no natural gas; more energy-efficient than electric tank water heaters.
Programmable thermostat: $40 to $100 at major hardware stores; can be installed easily by owner; can cut overall heating bill by 10 percent.
Dual-fuel heat pump: A dual-fuel heat pump (one that relies on electricity most of the time, and on natural gas only in temperatures that fall below a certain point) can be bought and installed for anywhere from $2,600 to $5,000; greatly curtails natural gas use, because energy source is divided between gas and electricity; can cut electricity bills by 30 percent to 40 percent.
Electrical outlet insulation: Foam inserts that fit behind electrical outlets on outside walls can be bought from hardware stores for less than $1 per insert. They may save you only a few dollars per winter, but considering how easy they are to install, it's worth the cost.
Storm windows: Storm windows typically cost about one-fourth of the cost of new primary windows; installing storm windows with a "low-e" coating over standard, uncoated, single-pane windows can reduce heating bills by up to 36 percent.
Wall/attic insulation: Prices vary widely according to type of insulation and amount required; adding insulation where it is needed -- in ceilings, attics, exterior and basement walls, floors and crawl spaces -- can save you up to 30 percent.
Caulking and weatherstripping: Caulk is cheap; it can be found for under $5 per tube; a 17-foot-long ribbon of self-adhesive rubber weatherstripping can be bought for under $6; by properly sealing spaces around doors, windows and skylights, homeowners can realize a savings of 10 percent.
ALTERNATIVE FUELS
The natural-gas crunch that is leading to this year's higher heating costs has made some people take a second look at alternative fuel sources, such as wood pellets and corn, which are cleaner-burning and much easier to come by.
Takoma Park, Md., writer and environmental activist Mike Tidwell heats his family's 1,600-square-foot home using organic corn. As a member of the Save Our Sky Home-Heating Cooperative, he says he saves anywhere from $200 to $600 per year in heating bills by using the commonly found grain instead of natural gas. Members buy their corn at the beginning of the heating season from the urban granary they've set up in Takoma Park -- last winter Tidwell needed about $600 worth -- and burn it in stoves that can be bought for anywhere from $1,500 to about $2,700, from retailers such as Magnum Fireplace (www.magnumfireplace.com).
Tidwell, whose house is almost entirely fueled using renewable energy sources, says that in addition to being economical, corn as an energy source does not contribute to global warming as long as it is grown organically and with no-till planting. (The corn used by the cooperative meets stringent environmental tests, he says.)
As for the smoke it gives off? "Just a barely visible wisp," he says, "smelling faintly of grilled corn." Sounds like a nice, summery smell for a cold mid-Atlantic winter.
For more information on the Save Our Sky Home-Heating Cooperative, call (301) 891-8891.