HVAC Blog | Heating and Air Conditioning News

What You Need to Know About Heating Efficiency Ratings

December 28th, 2020

Choosing a new heating system for your home requires balancing several different factors. One you’ll pay close attention to is the energy efficiency rating of the new heater. The number matters because you want to find a system that will save you money and help the environment with its performance.

But energy efficiency ratings can be a bit confusing and people often are unaware of what a higher rating means. Below, we’ve provided some essential information to help you understand how ratings work for furnaces and heat pumps.

Signs That It’s Time for a Plumbing Fix

December 21st, 2020

Plumbing system problems can often be difficult to spot, especially without the right professional equipment and know-how about comprehensive pipe systems. Most of these pipes, after all, are hidden from view, and the problems that crop up are usually pretty subtle when they start.

For this reason, we recommend that our customers schedule preventive plumbing maintenance at least once annually. However, it’s also important to familiarize yourself with the warning signs that you do need a plumbing fix, even if you’re due for maintenance. The faster you detect a plumbing issue, the faster you can get it fixed, after all. So, what are these signs?

Combating the Spread of Winter Illness With Air Purifiers

December 14th, 2020

This winter people are more worried than ever about the spread of illnesses inside their homes. Winter is traditionally a time when people are more exposed to colds and cases of flu because they’re spending a larger amount of time indoors in close proximity to other people. Additionally, many viruses and cold germs thrive in drier, colder environments, and these conditions contribute to dried mucus and sinus membranes that lower the body’s natural defenses.

You do have options for improving the quality of your indoor air during the winter. There isn’t anything that can guarantee to stop the spread of all germs and microbes but using a professionally installed air purifier in Stockton, CA can significantly reduce the number of harmful particles circulating through your house. These same air purifiers can provide help against allergens and asthma triggers during the spring allergy season.

Is It Time for a New Heater?

December 7th, 2020

woman-wrapped-in-robe-holding-pillow-looking-cold

Are you about to enter winter with uncertainty about what kind of shape your heating system is in? We know that it’s sometimes hard to make the decision about when it’s time to replace an aging heater. Committing to a purchase like this and spending the kind of money it takes is no small thing.

You want to be sure that you don’t replace your heater before you actually need to. After all, wouldn’t it be a waste of money to make an upgrade otherwise?

Well, honestly, today’s heaters are even more efficient and powerful than systems made even just less than a decade ago. We’ve provided some signs below that it may, in fact, be time for you to consider a new heater.

How the Right Thermostat Makes a Difference for Winter Efficiency

November 30th, 2020

What type of thermostat do you have to control the climate in your home? If you have a basic dial thermostat or one that uses manual sliders, that might seem like all that’s necessary. What’s wrong with going with something simple as long as it works?

But the truth is that older thermostats can mean lower energy efficiency in your house, and we can use the coming winter as an example. There are many great options for new thermostats in Modesto, CA if you want to make the change to climate controls that help you cut down on energy expenditures in winter without missing out on comfort.

The Efficiency of the Modern Thermostat

Today’s thermostats can be extremely advanced: Wi-Fi “smart” thermostats take care of the work of keeping a home comfortable without much input from the homeowner. They can also be controlled from almost anywhere through their Wi-Fi connection: from a tablet, a computer, a smartphone. This makes them extremely convenient. But how do they make for better winter efficiency?

The EPA has made studies of the improvement in energy savings for homes that switch from manual to programmable thermostats. They found that on average a home reduces its energy usage over a season by 5–15%. Just going digital improves the precision of the thermostat, but programmability allows a homeowner to adjust temperatures automatically, even when they aren’t home, and to automate lowering the temperature at night when there’s less need for heat. Factor out basic human error with settings, and the improvement is significant. You can program the thermostat for 68°F during the day when you’re home and have it lowered to 60°F at night, or program it to come on a half hour before you get home.

Now consider using an advanced smart thermostat. This type of climate control learns from your programming and your house so it can create its own changing program that matches your needs while maximizing energy efficiency. Smart thermostats even provide you with reports so you can see how much you’re saving. You’ll also add life to your heating system because there will be less strain on it.

There are also the environmental benefits of using improved thermostat technology. This is something we take seriously at Greenhart, because we want to help our customers save energy and also live greener. Thermostats reduce energy consumption, which helps the environment. They also do not contain any mercury like old thermostats, which is toxic to add into landfills.

Making the Upgrade

Something we want to caution you about: only professionals can install an advanced thermostat for an HVAC system. You cannot purchase one online and then attempt to install it, and you can’t have a professional install one you purchased yourself. The new thermostat must match the HVAC system. The advanced algorithms in the thermostat may damage older HVAC systems. Leave the job of selecting the new thermostat to the professionals so that you’ll have the ideal match between the controls and your heating. Our team is glad to help you find the best new climate controls so you can save money this winter and in every season.

Look to Greenhart in Modesto, CA, for energy-saving options for your house. Live Green, Save Green!

“Help! My Furnace Is Blowing Out Cold Air”

November 23rd, 2020

woman-hugging-pillow-looking-cold-on-couch

This is obviously a very concerning problem—getting cold air from your vents when you turn on your furnace. After all, that’s the absolute last thing you need when you turn on your furnace, whether it’s the first time this season or you’ve already been utilizing it on a regular basis. If your furnace has indeed started blowing cold air, the best thing you can do is give our pros a call!

We cannot definitively tell you in a blog post what’s wrong with your specific system, but we can speculate. There are a number of reasons that it may experience this issue. Please don’t try to fix it on your own, as you can do more harm than good, without ever resolving the actual issue. Read on as we uncover what might be going on with your heater while you wait for a pro to come for repairs.

A Few Sources of Poor Indoor Air Quality in Homes

November 16th, 2020

The quality of air in many homes is much worse than it should be. This isn’t because polluted air from outside is moving inside. It’s because too many pollutants indoors are trapped there, with scant circulation of fresh air to remove them. This is an unfortunate side-effect of the improvement in home construction to make houses more energy efficient. The tight construction limits the ventilation that removes the concentration of pollutants.

The Pollutant Sources

“But where are these pollutants coming from?” That’s the big question. There’s no single answer because there are a range of sources for indoor pollutants that lower the quality of the air in a house. Below we’re going to look at some of the most common.

Appliances the combust fuel

If you live in a house that uses natural gas for cooking, heating, and other tasks, that is one of the main sources for harmful chemicals. True, you aren’t dealing with a toxic level of carbon monoxide (you have CO detectors to warn you if this is the case) or other gases, but they still have long-term health effects.

Building materials

Many modern materials used for the construction of homes have potentially harmful chemicals in them that will enter the house. An older home may have asbestos in it. Pressed-wood, which is much more common in homes today than even ten years before, often has chromated copper arsenate (CCA) in it, which contains arsenic, chromium, and copper, all of which can create health problems.

But the most common harmful chemical found in building material is formaldehyde—which also can result from combustion and cleaning products. Formaldehyde is often found in particleboard, hardwood paneling, and fiberboard.

Cleaning/Hobby/Personal Care Products

A large number of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) arise from these materials that can be found in almost every household. VOCs include numerous chemicals that can affect people’s health in both the short and long-term.

Mold

Yes, you may have mold hidden somewhere in your house, possibly in the ductwork or located under floorboards where excess moisture has allowed it to grow. Toxic mold spores are a significant danger in homes where mold is growing.

The Horror! What Can I Do About This?

You’re probably not likely to tear out all the walls and throw away every cleaning supply you have and then stop using your gas stove. But although you don’t have many options for reducing these sources of air pollutants in your house (aside from mold and asbestos remediation), you do have options for better indoor air quality in Modesto, CA when you work with us. We offer numerous IAQ solutions, including:

Air filters and air purifiers to remove contaminants.
UV air purifiers to target organic pollutants, including mold spores.
Heat and energy recovery ventilators, which allow for fresh air circulation without a loss of energy efficiency in the house.
Dehumidifiers to remove the source of mold growth.
Duct sealing and repair to improve ventilation.

Get in touch with our professionals, and they’ll get started finding out exactly what your house needs for better, healthier indoor air quality.

Your home should be a breath of fresh air. With Greenhart, you can Live Green, Save Green!

Do Tankless Water Heaters Need Maintenance?

November 9th, 2020

The short answer to this question is “yes,” but we understand if you’d like more of an explanation than that!

Look, we get it. Tank water heaters are huge, have a number of components, and are really noticeable. So it’s easy to understand and remember, that these systems need maintenance from time to time. After all, scaling—the buildup of hard water minerals—can really wreak havoc on the system.

But did you know that tankless water heaters can suffer from scaling as well? And this is the reason that tankless water heaters need maintenance as well. Actually, much of the service that a conventional tank water heater needs is also necessary for tankless systems. Read on as we uncover the problem with scaling in your tankless system, and be sure to give us a call when you’re ready to schedule your tankless water heater maintenance session.

How Our Professionals Do Duct Cleaning

November 2nd, 2020

Cleaning air ducts in the HVAC system of a home is an important service to help with energy savings and protecting indoor air quality. Ductwork naturally collects dust, dander, lint, and other debris; after about a year a thin layer will already build up inside the ductwork. Given enough time, this build-up creates resistance against airflow that lowers HVAC efficiency. It also turns into a reservoir of pollutants that circulate through the house, affecting air quality and making the home generally dirtier.

Thorough professional duct cleaning removes almost all of this debris and cleans other parts of the ventilation system. We recommend scheduling duct cleaning in Modesto, CA every three to five years with our team.

Have You Taken This Important Step Toward Winter Comfort?

October 26th, 2020

The weather has started cooling down, finally! True, we aren’t going to have as chilly temperatures as states in the North or Midwest, but we still need fully functional and efficient heaters when winter does come. And the good news is, now is the perfect time to take one important step toward winter comfort—scheduling your heating maintenance.

There are some maintenance steps you should do on your own, like changing the air filter. The standard air filter in an HVAC system should be swapped out or cleaned every 1-3 months. But for thorough, comprehensive maintenance, you want to call on the pros.

So, don’t delay! Give us a call to schedule your next tune-up. Read on to learn why!