Signs it’s Time to retire your Air Conditioner

Your trusty air conditioner works for you non-stop, but eventually, it will have problems, or maybe even completely break down. In most cases, you can have it up and running again by hiring an HVAC contractor to do some repairs. Nevertheless, there are times when you should know how to give up on it and buy a new one, as constant repairs at that point could be too costly.

Ten Years of Service

Sure, there may be many air conditioners capable of running for much longer than ten years, but its efficiency will already have been significantly reduced. Besides, your ten year old AC might already be outdated, so you should consider upgrading to a more advanced and perhaps more energy-efficient model.

How the Btu came to be the Standard for Measuring Heat

The HVAC industry has been using the British thermal unit (Btu) for generations in measuring heat. For furnaces, how much Btu can one unit produce at a unit of time? For air conditioners, how much Btu can a unit remove from a room?

Articles on how the Btu came to be are scarce; nobody’s certain about its origin. The only viable basis is from statements made by 19th century scientists regarding the measurement of heat, the earliest date of the term’s use being 1876. At the time, the Btu was known as simply “heat unit,” arguably a simpler and more universal term.

The first to mention Btu was James Hargreaves, better known for his spinning jenny invention. He mentioned the unit of heat to be used for his thermo-radiometer to be expressed either in Btu or calories. Basically, heat is energy, so using calories to measure the amount of heat isn’t anything new or erroneous.

However, William Anderson gave the modern definition of the Btu. Anderson, in a lecture on 1884, defined the Btu as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one lb. of water by one degree Fahrenheit. The definition has been in use in the scientific community ever since. Despite its sketchy background, the world has embraced the Btu as the standard.

Tips on Maintaining Your Appliances

Food preparation, storage, and cleaning are some of the household tasks that were improved by different household appliances. Washers, dryers, ovens, stoves, refrigerators, freezers, garbage disposals, trash compactors, microwave ovens and more have made it so that families can live the lifestyles that they are leading today.

These devices are also susceptible to wear and tear. A lack of proper care can speed up the deterioration and cost you more in replacing them. There are things that you can do in order to keep appliances working for a little while longer and get the most out of your investment.

Refrigerator

It is important that the condenser coil behind the refrigerator remains dust-free, as a dusty coil will cause the refrigerator to work harder, which in turn reduces its life span. Dust or vacuum off the coils to help it last longer. It is also advisable to keep refrigerators away from sources of heat.

Dishwasher

Dishwasher water must be kept at a high temperature so that it can effectively clean the dishes, so it is important to raise the temperature of the water heater thermostat if it is not hot enough. If the dishwasher has a removable filter, it is also advisable to keep it clean and free of food particles and other material.

Microwave Oven

Wipe the microwave interior and door seals regularly with a damp cloth. Clean the grease filters from the vent hood on a monthly basis. Never use metal cooking pans with your microwave oven.

Taking the musty smell of the basement

The basement is always one of those places at home where stuff you don’t need at the moment gets stashed away. In some cases, part of the room may have other purposes that you see fit. However, the fact that the basement is a confined space makes it a place for concentrated humidity, regardless of the temperature levels outside. The humidity will make it become susceptible to mold or mildew buildup. The remedy is a basement humidifier system.

Dehumidifiers are appliances designed to gather excess moisture from the air and reduce the humidity to acceptable levels. They are usually categorized into portable and whole-house models. Basement humidifiers fall into the portable variety, which condenses the water into a removable bucket for later disposal. A dehumidifier will usually have a float switch that cuts off the moisture flow from the bucket to prevent overflow.

When hiring a contractor to install a dehumidifier, have them analyze the basement for overall humidity and the placement of the machine to gather as much excess moisture as possible. If you do not have the time to take buckets of condensed water out of the house for disposal, your contractor may recommend installing a dehumidifier linked to an outside connection to help channel the water away from the house.

A Guide to Effectively Troubleshooting HVAC Systems

When your heating, ventilation, and AC systems have failed, reputable contractors can surely restore them to tiptop shape. On the other hand, constantly hiring contractors for minor repairs could wreak havoc on your budget. To cut back on costs, it would be wise to arm yourself with the basics of troubleshooting HVAC.

The Importance of Sizing up Your HVAC System

HVACs systems are designed to provide heating and cooling throughout the year in a cost efficient manner. However, they can be notoriously ravenous when it comes to power consumption, and households that overly rely on the systems can end up paying a fortune to keep them running. It’s important to optimize an HVAC system to properly work for a property in order to make the most out of the energy used.

The energy efficiency of an HVAC system begins with choosing the right equipment for the job. Selecting an HVAC system that’s too small or too large can severely affect its efficiency and the amount of energy it expends. Thus, homeowners should be very careful and precise when selecting an HVAC system for their residences.

A simple method of determining the right HVAC system would be to measure the square footage of a property, then divide the result by 400. This should produce a figure equal to the rough amount of cooling and heating tons the property requires. Homeowners have the option of choosing an HVAC system that outputs roughly the same amount of cooling tons, or they can simply call upon an expert contractor and leave the selection process to the experts.

Choosing an Appropriate HVAC System

Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems combine the cooling functions of air conditioners with the heating utilities of furnaces, making them the ultimate indoor temperature control devices. These dual-purpose devices help maintain ideal indoor temperatures all year round. As such, households that rely heavily on such devices consequently need to choose their HVAC systems wisely to avoid unnecessary utility expenses.

Among other things, homeowners need to take note of the size of each room in their homes to determine how much energy is needed to keep it comfortably warm or cool. Factors that influence ventilation and heat loss and/or gain such as doors, windows, and insulation must also be considered before choosing an HVAC. It’s much easier to ask an experienced HVAC contractor to compute these details.

Once the dimensions of your home are accounted for, you can then enlist a contractor for help in choosing an HVAC unit that produces the right amount of power for your entire residence. Such a contractor can be relied upon to install the HVAC unit itself. Likewise, you can leave the task of constructing the ductwork in the capable hands of HVAC installation experts, so you certainly don’t have to worry about doing all the dirty work yourself.