Gorgeous day at the Aerie!

It's another beautiful day here at the Aerie. Yesterday afternoon the sun, shining from the west, drove the temperatures up both inside and out. Outside it reached 63 degrees at 3:00 PM and, upstairs in the master bedroom it was 67 degrees when we went to bed at 10 PM. The thermostats are set at 63 degrees in all zones of the house--two in the basement, three on the main floor and the one in the master suite. The radiant floor system in the basement and the first floor make even that low setting very cozy. (Although when we have company stay over, we usually jack the zone the guest bedroom is on all the way up to 65 or so.)

The fireplace can really heat up the first floor and the loft when it gets going. It's gotten up to 74 or 75 degrees on the first floor when the fire has been going good. It's a bit warmer in the loft under those conditions. Since the master suite's door is always closed to keep the cats out, it's still relatively cool in there.

The major glass front of the Aerie faces west northwest so it captures much of the late afternoon sun to both light up and warm up the interior. The eight inch thick log walls on the main floor, the poured concrete (sandwiched between styrofoam) foundation of the walk in basement and the R-38 roof insulation do an excellent job of retaining the heat. Luckily, when things finally do heat up during the summer, the near constant breezes here on the hillside at 2100 feet can keep things pretty comfortable. Only the master suite lacks sufficient cross ventilation and requires the use of either a fan or--when things really get warm--a couple of hours of window mounted AC. The AC, applied for two hours or so just before bed, is usually sufficient.

Okay, why all the talk about HVAC systems? We are coming up to the close of the heating season, believe it or not. Only several overcast, drizzly, depreasing days in succession will cause a major use of the heating system. That means we will be getting less and less propane delivered. The April delivery was a third less than the March delivery which was a third less than the February delivery. (All deliveries took place in the first week of the month and, therefore, reflect usage on the previous month.) The bill paid on April 8 was fully half of what was paid on February 8. And that is very, very good! Last year our last delivery of the season was on May 8. That held us until November despite using propane to heat water for laundry and washing and for cooking on the range.

So, as I said, it's a beautiful day here at the Aerie with goldern sunshine promised for the next day or two and temperatures in the 60s forecast. I do believe I'll head out for another walk. Later.