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I live in Japan, which means the thermal envelope in my house is nonexistent. I want to improve efficiency, but have some major problems. Each room is individually heated, meaning that only the room you are in is heated at any time, and all other rooms are at outside temps. Also, the builder said that due to the high (extremely) humidity, the walls, ceilings and floors need about 3in of air space (in a 2X4 wall), and thus could only have about 1in of insulation board.
At night, when it cools down outside, I can watch the temp drop inside as well. I’m really tired of spending $500-600/mo for electricity in the winter (there were no gas forced air furnaces at the time this house was built). Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.
Just call me moron.
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First, I think your builder is deserving of the moniker, not you. High levels of humidity are common in various places in the US, no 3" air gaps used here to "solve" that problem.
An air gap between siding and sheathing is a good practice to allow natural convection to remove moisture that migrates into the space. An air gap of 1" will provide about 0.8 R of insulation value, more does little extra. Besides that, humidity is not usually a problem in the heating season, particularly not so in a leaky house.
Alot of people on this BB know all there is to know about construction methods for efficiency, I'm not one of those.
Insulated exterior walls with a vapor barrier will help you in a major way.
What is the cost of electricity there and is gas forced air now available? What is the construction of exterior walls and the roof?
Dehumidifying, requires moving air and refrigeration, usually associated with a cooling system. Other means exist such as solar or gas fired desiccant based air exchangers, though not a the top of the list of preferences.
The individual room controls actually help, rather than hurt. No need heating an unoccupied space. Timer based thermostats help, assuming some regular use patterns.
Advice: Insulate and seal leaks, find another builder.
*I know of an excellent builder near the Kobe area. His name is Matt Fugal. His number is 0794-47-0636. You should give him a call. I`m sure that he would be able to help.
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I live in Japan, which means the thermal envelope in my house is nonexistent. I want to improve efficiency, but have some major problems. Each room is individually heated, meaning that only the room you are in is heated at any time, and all other rooms are at outside temps. Also, the builder said that due to the high (extremely) humidity, the walls, ceilings and floors need about 3in of air space (in a 2X4 wall), and thus could only have about 1in of insulation board.
At night, when it cools down outside, I can watch the temp drop inside as well. I'm really tired of spending $500-600/mo for electricity in the winter (there were no gas forced air furnaces at the time this house was built). Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.
Just call me moron.