Archive for the ‘Insulation’ category

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Don’t Turn Off the Furnace!

December 28th, 2011

As you head out the door this holiday season to visit family and friends for an extended period of time, there is one crucial mistake that you must not make. Do not turn off the furnace. Many homeowners are looking for any way to save money, and you may assume that since no one will be home to need the comfort of the furnace, it won’t matter if it is shut down for a few days. However, you would be wrong! Leaving the furnace off during winter puts your home at serious risk for water damage, but it can be prevented!

How Your Pipes Will Freeze

When the furnace is turned off completely, the home has no protection against the elements. All you need is one extra chilly night to surround your home and suddenly you will have frozen pipes around the house. Within hours the temperature will begin to warm as the sun rises and those pipes will begin to thaw. The ice will have expanded the pipe and could have caused cracks that compromised the integrity of the pipe. As it thaws, water will begin to force its way through and the pressure may cause the pipe to burst! » Read more: Don’t Turn Off the Furnace!

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Posted in Boiler, Furnace, Heating, Home Services, Insulation, Money Saving, Plumbing, Safty

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Conserving Energy without Sacrificing Comfort

October 24th, 2011

More and more Americans are becoming energy conscience from both a conservation and a cost standpoint. A generation ago our grandparents would have sacrificed comfort to save a few dollars, but today’s modern family looks for better more efficient ways to keep energy usage and energy cost down. Most homeowners look for the products with the ENERGYSTAR logo when purchasing household appliances. You can find the ENERGYSTAR logo on items such as high efficiency furnaces and air conditioners also.

High Efficiency Furnace and Air Conditioners

Today’s furnace and air conditioner models conserve more energy which in turn leads to a lower cost on your energy bills. You no longer have to sacrifice comfort, and instead you can look for other ways to make your home more energy efficient. For the interior of your home, you can either buy a high efficiency furnace, or you could save a few bucks and just add attic insulation to your home. » Read more: Conserving Energy without Sacrificing Comfort

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Posted in Air Conditioning, Go Green, Heating, Home Services, Insulation

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Outdated Duct Work

October 10th, 2011

So you are purchasing a new HVAC system for your home, and you have already found the perfect furnace and air conditioner to replace your old outdated units. You have the systems installed, but once you really start using them, you don’t notice much of a difference between the way the old units worked and the way the new systems work. Sure the energy bills are a little bit lower, but did you really get the return on the investment that you were expecting? If not, the problem may not be with your new systems. The problem is probably located in the most commonly neglected portion of the HVAC system: the duct work.

Assessing the Ducts

            The duct work is more important most homeowners think. Sure, the ducts may not have any fancy gadgets, but their ability to transport air effectively is crucial to the efficiency of your heating and cooling systems. If the air they are conditioning cannot get to the target rooms effectively, you will pay more every month for wasted energy that could have been saved by simply caring for this part of the system. The first step towards getting your ducts working the best that they can is to have them inspected by a professional. A true pro can give you an honest assessment of your ducts, and if they can be salvaged, the repair job is simple. If some parts need to be replaced, it may take a bit more effort, but it is necessary to complete so you can get the most out of your new heating and cooling units. » Read more: Outdated Duct Work

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Posted in Duct Cleaning, Furnace, Go Green, Home Services, Insulation, Money Saving

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Spots on the Ceiling, Moisture in the Attic

September 5th, 2011

The last time you painted your ceiling did you notice spots around the outside walls? Those spots are usually an indication that the insulation in the attic is starting to loose its R value, and condensation may be the source of your problem.

Attic Insulation and Year Round Condensation

During the summer and winter the poorly insulated attics will accumulate condensation. In the summer this moisture can leak into the lower level ceilings of the home once it soaks through the insulation, and it could also become a source of mold growth. Once wet, insulation is useless and no longer carries an r-value. In the winter this moisture becomes frost in your attic that further diminishes the effectiveness of what little insulation you may have up there. This situation can be corrected by adding blown in insulation to your attic. This blown in insulation will help to minimize future spots from occurring on your ceiling, but more importantly it will help cut your heating and cooling bills. » Read more: Spots on the Ceiling, Moisture in the Attic

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Posted in Home Improvements, Home Repairs, Insulation, Maintenace

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Outrageous Electric Bills!

August 15th, 2011

The heat wave is over but some people are still hot under the collar. Why? They just got the electric bills. More than one couple is sitting there drinking their morning coffee and blaming each other for the outrageous electric bill that just came in the mail. In most cases it wasn’t because they had their thermostat set too low it’s because they have problems with the efficiency of their air conditioner or their home isn’t insulated correctly.

How Much are You Wasting?

These two simple problems that no one seems to see until we get extremes in weather will causes high electric bills and homes that are uncomfortable in the late afternoon. This wake-up call shouldn’t be ignored. If your air conditioner is using that much electricity in extreme weather, how much is it wasting in moderate weather? » Read more: Outrageous Electric Bills!

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Posted in Air Conditioning, Go Green, Home Improvements, Home Repairs, Insulation, Money Saving

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How Much Heat Gain Do You Have?

August 1st, 2011

Do you have a room that isn’t cooling as well as it should? Is there air coming from the vent? If you answered yes to these questions, chances are you have too much heat gain in that part of the home. Now the other two questions you should be asking yourself are: where is that heat gain coming from, and when did it start?

Time and Your Attic Insulation

Time is your attic insulation’s number one enemy! Over the years attic insulation has a tendency to settle and compact. This is a major factor of heat gain in older homes. As time rolls on and your insulation becomes denser (more compact), and the R-Value decreases. A decrease in R-value is a decrease in efficiency, and excess heat from the attic will seep into the rooms below.

The air flow from the vents in the effected room may not have changed over the years, but the amount of heat it has to over come may have. If you think your air flow has been diminishing with time, duct cleaning could be a solution, but chances are the problem is heat gain. » Read more: How Much Heat Gain Do You Have?

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Posted in Air Conditioning, Home Improvements, Insulation, Money Saving

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Heat Wave Problems: Overheating the Attic

July 25th, 2011

During the high 70 and mid 80 degree days, many of us can easily ignore temperature differences throughout the home. It isn’t until we get a week long string of 90 to 100 degree days that the temperature difference becomes terribly noticeable. Many people that have this problem notice a difference between the temperature on the main level of the home and the upstairs. Since the upstairs is where most of us sleep, a 95 degree bedroom can be very difficult to sleep in. Most automatically jump to the conclusion that the air conditioner is to blame, but we would challenge you to make one other check during this hot week before you call your HVAC technician.

Feel the Ceiling!

Feel the ceiling! Yes, it sounds crazy, but get out a ladder, if you have to, and touch the ceiling that makes a barrier between your upstairs rooms and the attic. How does it feel? Odds are its pretty warm, or maybe even hot! Poke your head up in your attic and we are sure that our suspicions will be confirmed. You attic is gathering loads of hot air during this heat wave, and you don’t have the insulation or the ventilation needed to keep it from seeping into the floors below. » Read more: Heat Wave Problems: Overheating the Attic

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Posted in Air Conditioning, Home Improvements, Home Services, Insulation

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The A/C is Cooling, but the House is Still Warm!

April 18th, 2011

One thing that I have learned over my years as a service technician is that if an air conditioner is blowing out cold air but the home doesn’t seem to be cooling down, heat gain may be the source of the problem in that home. Heat gain is the amount of heat entering the home through windows, doors, poorly insulated walls and ceilings, and we cannot forget the heat gained by having kids constantly running in and out of the house. As a homeowner, there are many ways you can increase your energy efficiency by decreasing your home’s heat gain.

Keep the Heat Out!

  1. Check Insulation: During the hottest time of the day feel your walls and ceilings. Do they feel warm to the touch? If they do feel warm you have located a major source of heat gain. Having a specialist come out and check the insulation in your attic can be a true money saver. They will be able to tell you how much insulation you are lacking and help you resolve this problem. There are a variety of insulation materials and depending on the company you hire, each will have their own type that they prefer. » Read more: The A/C is Cooling, but the House is Still Warm!

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Posted in Air Conditioning, Home Repairs, Home Services, Insulation

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Water Logged Insulation

April 4th, 2011

Floods, leaking roofs, and frozen pipes all can cause varying degrees of water damage in a home. The clean up process is often tedious and time consuming, but of the items that need to be replaced due to water exposure, insulation should be near the top of your list. Crawl spaces, attics, walls, and duct work are common places that insulation can become water damaged, and although it may be tempting to ignore this issue, the consequences of failing to remove wet insulation material can be detrimental to your homes safety and comfort level.

Normal Functions of Insulation

For those that do not know, the insulation in your home works as a heat barrier. When it is located in the attic, the walls, the floors, and the crawl space, it is working to keep the heat in the home during the winter and keeping the heat out during the summer. When insulation is located surrounding your duct work, it acts as a heat barrier to protect the conditioned air from temperature loss before it reached the various rooms in the house. Your insulation’s ability to do this is rated on an efficiency scale called its R-value and the higher the R-value the better. However, water interferes with your insulation’s ability to carry out this purpose in two ways. » Read more: Water Logged Insulation

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Posted in Home Repairs, Home Services, Insulation

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Spring is the Best Time to Insulate

February 15th, 2011

As you cleaned the snow off your car this morning, the last thing you probably thought was that spring is on its way. However, many of you have probably already compiled a list of home repair jobs and improvements that need to be taken care of come springtime. Well, spring is just a couple months away, and we have one home improvement that should defiantly be added to your to-do list. Adding insulation to your attic is one of the most cost effective home improvements that you can make to your home, and spring is one of the best times to finally get this project done!

Turn the Furnace Down!

All of the extra strain that was placed on your furnace this winter most likely drove up your energy bills. At this point, you are probably looking for any way to use the furnace less often, and when spring arrives you will get your chance. However, if your home is poorly insulated, you may find yourself relying on the furnace more than you would like to. » Read more: Spring is the Best Time to Insulate

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Posted in Home Improvements, Home Services, Insulation, Money Saving

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