Many a building’s HVAC system has had repeated, mysterious problems in operation. In these same buildings, frequenters may believe themselves to have chronic allergies, perhaps having onset suddenly and recently. In these same buildings again, energy consumption and the power bill are larger than necessary. The cause of all the above-listed problems may be surprisingly simple: not having had a duct cleaning in the last few years, or possibly never having had one performed. A duct cleaning is as necessary, if not more so, as any other of the regular HVAC maintenances: changing the vent filters, cleaning the condenser...

You know that if you pay your auto technician to service your car regularly, you can avoid expensive repairs later on. The same applies to your air conditioning system. If you don’t have regular air conditioning service, you could find yourself hot under the collar – both from the weather and from an unexpected repair. Air conditioners are tough pieces of equipment. They are engineered to stand up to all kinds of abuse and still keep running. While this is good to know, don’t become complacent about air conditioning service. Like your car, your air conditioner needs a regular...

Worrying about the Utility Bill? Here Are 4 Mistakes to Avoid Homeowners in very hot climates use more electricity for their air conditioners than they do for anything else. According to some estimates, up to 70% of a summer utility bill is spent on air conditioning. However, there are ways to reduce this load by changing a few habits and avoiding the following four mistakes. # 1: Buying Air Conditioners That Are Too Big Air conditioners that are too big do not make homes cooler. They do not extract more humidity, nor do they generate more constant temperatures. In...

The name of the devices and systems we call heat pumps can be misleading, but we’ll get to that in a moment. First of all, let’s talk about how heat pumps work to passively heat our buildings using no fuels and no electricity. The ground in almost any given area at a certain depth is the same, moderate upper 50ºF temperature, be it summer or winter. Heat pumps use this steady ground temperature to regulate the heat inside a building. Heat pump systems are laid partly underground in the direct vicinity and partly inside of the buildings they will...