A Little R and R

Continuing with the SEMCO post we scheduled Dupras Plumbing and Heating to tune up and clean our furnace. I took Friday morning off for the appointment.

I learned that our cold air returns should be open and free to move air. (Duh) They were drafty, so we sealed them off with insulation, carpet treads, and a fireplace.
I also learned that the people who owned the house before us didn't have the cold air ducts connected to the vents in the living room and dining room. Even though we blocked the vents with insulation and our faux fireplace they wouldn't have worked anyway because they weren't connected to the furnace. Last year Bill tore out the basement ceiling above the carpeted sewing area and replaced it in March. This is the area below the living room where the cold air duct was not and still is not connected. I think we're going to keep it sealed off with the fireplace where it was, under the window.

Bruce, the Dupras worker informed me that my husband could nail these foil wrapped cardboard pieces to the ceiling of the basement to connect the cold air return to the furnace. The grid thing on the ceiling is the cardboard. After Bruce left I, fully-caffeinated and no breakfast, used foil duct tape to attach the foil cardboard to the ceiling. I trimmed out sections of the grid where the electricity goes up through the floor and sealed it off. Looks good, eh?

Hoping that this air-flow stuff increases the efficiency of the furnace.