Energy, such as heat or cold, moves from more to less
The rule that “stuff” moves from more to less explains a great deal about how a house responds to different temperature, moisture and pressure conditions. A good basic illustration of more to less occurs when you put a drop of red food coloring into a glass of water. As soon as the concentrated color hits the water, it moves from more to less, diffusing through the entire volume of water until the red color is nearly gone.
Heat moves from more to less, so if you’re indoors when it’s cold outside, you’ll feel chilly when you stand next to a window. The greater the difference between the “more” and the “less,” the more noticeable the chilly feeling will be. Since window glass is colder than the wall surface, you’ll feel more heat loss when you’re next to the glass.
The air in a damp basement or a bathroom (after someone has taken a shower) contains more moisture than air elsewhere in the house. Just like heat, the moist air “wants” to move from more to less, diffusing into other areas where it can cause mold or moisture damage. In the basement, a dehumidifier can take moisture out of the air before it gets upstairs into the main living space. In the bathroom, an exhaust fan can move moist air outside before it leaks up through the ceiling and condenses in the attic.
Ready for one more energy saving example?
Sealing the heating or air-conditioning ducts in a house is an important energy upgrade because the air inside the ducts is under more pressure than the air outside the ducts. If there are leaks in the system (which is usually the case), the higher pressure will push conditioned air through the duct leaks (more pressure moving toward less pressure). This compromises energy efficiency as well as comfort, especially when “conditioned” air leaks away in an attic, basement or crawlspace, before it can reach its intended destination –the living area.
The experts at Dr. Energy Saver can fill you in on other examples of the more-to-less rule during an energy audit. For now, you can simply rest assured that the more knowledge you have about how your house uses energy, the less you need to spend on energy.
