In this new series, I thought we'd focus time on the many things that might work against making your home a comfortable one. Although I won’t make an effort to list these 'enemies' in any particular order in future posts, this one is an important exception.
Carbon Monoxide, or CO, is the most critical factor to your home comfort.
Why is Carbon Monoxide so important?
Because it’s not only a comfort concern it’s often a matter of life and death. CO is the leading cause of accidental poisoning deaths in the US*, and conditions of CO poisoning have been
known to be misdiagnosed as the flu, viral infections and chronic fatigue, among many others. This makes CO poisoning an often hidden enemy that can be fatal over several years, or within just a few short hours.
Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas by-product of burnt fuel. It’s often associated with wood stoves, car engines and other fire combustion sources such as gas or oil furnaces. Acute poisoning takes place from breathing large concentrations, but CO poisoning may also happen gradually over many months or years. Some symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, flu-like symptoms, dizziness and fatigue.
Here’s a list of more of the symptoms.
So what can you do?
- First, if you don’t have a CO detector in your home, get one right away. You can call your local Service Experts to purchase one.
- If you do have a CO detector that is battery-powered, check or replace the batteries regularly, at least every 90 days. It's also a good idea to replace the detector every 3-5 years.
- If you experience or have experienced some of the symptoms mentioned above, ask your doctor to test for CO poisoning, and get a second opinion if necessary.
*emedicinehealth.com. Prevention information for Carbon Monoxide poisoning may be inaccurate or incomplete; none of these methods guarantee prevention of Carbon Monoxide poisoning.
Posted on: 11/24/2008 2:43:49 AM by Sam
Earlier this year I discussed
the five most common air conditioning problems. Now, the Fall season is a good time for you to know the common heating problems. Although there are potentially hundreds of reasons why your home’s furnace or heating system may need to be repaired, there are a few reasons that are quite common. Here are the top five problems that may cause your furnace or heating equipment to break down:
5. Thermostat malfunctions causing no heat, fan, or comfort problems
4. Air flow problems from fan motors, belts and bearings, causing furnace overheating or poor heating control
3. Dirty or clogged filters resulting in air flow and comfort problems
2. Furnace or heating system pilot or ignition control problems, resulting in intermittent or no heat
1. Lack of maintenance may cause unexpected breakdowns, poor comfort or increased energy costs (not to mention homeowner frustration!)
For all these common issues, a professionally qualified, NATE-certified technician can quickly diagnose the problem area and make the necessary repairs. Having a
Precision Tune-up or
maintenance plan could prevent nearly all heating problems that result in no heat or low comfort levels. During a tune-up, all the components are checked and serviced so they operate correctly and at peak efficiency during the heating season. Important items like Carbon Monoxide checks, adequate combustion air, equipment clearances, and equipment safety are also key elements to the
tune-up process.
I always stress
Safety First to my customers in heating season… the health and safety of your loved ones is more valuable than any holiday gift. Always remember that furnaces of any age may pose safety hazards from combustion or gases, particularly if a NATE-certified technician has not maintained the equipment regularly. I’ll explain some of these heating and furnace safety concerns more in a future post.
Posted on: 11/17/2008 2:38:37 AM by Sam
Maximize Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)
In the
first,
second and
third posts in this series, we discussed how important it is to choose the right home comfort company to repair, replace and maintain your heating and air conditioning system. All of these characteristics, like being informed on what to expect, no-pressure sales tactics, up-front pricing, financial stability, Standards of Excellence and a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee, and comprehensive maintenance are important to your comfort level, energy-savings and decision making.
For many families, the most important key to keeping a home comfortable is
Indoor Air Quality. That's because the quality of the air in their home impacts allergies, respiratory systems and health directly. Yet many families are confused about what exactly indoor air quality is and what it means to them. Let's start with what IAQ is.
IAQ = The Level of Air Purification Inside A Home
It's easiest to think of Indoor Air Quality like drinking water quality. There are different qualities of drinking water, from kitchen faucet water to filtered water, to the myriad of bottled spring water on the market. And, not all water is drinkable (or potable). For instance, you shouldn't drink bath or shower water, because the quality of the water hasn't been designed and cleaned properly for people to ingest.
You can think of Indoor Air Quality much the same way. Not all air is healthy to breathe without being treated. In fact, indoor air can be far more polluted than outdoor air. Some respiratory ailments that people suffer from daily could even be averted if they were just breathing healthy air inside their home and workplace.
Fortunately air inside the home can be cleaned properly with the right equipment. Here are some of the considerations that could dramatically improve the indoor air quality level of your home.
Air Filtration
Filtering out pollutants is what cleans indoor air and maximizes indoor air quality (
read about air filter ratings here). The air cleansing and filtering process can be done in a few ways, most often through the simple one inch air filters placed in your return ducts. Some people use single-room air cleaners or 'ionizers' that plug into an outlet and claim to clean the air of smoke and odors. Unfortunately, many of these off-the-shelf products have
proven to be ineffective by leading consumer ratings magazines, and can even emit potentially harmful ozone. Another more viable option is what we call
whole-home air filtration, which involves installing a larger, high-efficiency air filter at the furnace. These filters are called high-efficiency air filters because they do the best job of maximizing air quality throughout the entire home at a low cost, and usually only need to be replaced annually instead of monthly. They also do not emit ozone, so its a much greener choice. I highly recommend these air filters for anyone wanting to improve their indoor air quality.
Fresh Air Ventilation
As homes become more energy efficient, they become better sealed, which prevents heated and cooled air from escaping. Consequently, less fresh air flows into the house and the air inside stagnates and can smell stale and affect proper humidity levels. Natural ventilation from an open window invites pollutants like dirt, pollen and bacteria into the home. A Fresh Air Ventilator is a product that will draw outside air into your home, then properly filter and regulate its temperature so you have a constant source of clean, fresh air without dramatically increasing energy costs.
Air Flow
There are several times that I have mentioned tips to improve air flow in your home, like ensuring ducts are not blocked by curtains or furniture. I can't understate the importance of this simple tip enough. Inadequate air flow causes extremely poor heating and air conditioning equipment performance, increased energy consumption, and could also lead to improper humidity levels. All this adds up to an uncomfortable home and a serious drain on your wallet. I measure air flow on every visit to a customer's home to help determine if your home comfort system needs changes made, to ensure maximum comfort and efficiency.
Duct Cleaning and Sealing
Conditioned are travels throughout your home via a duct system. Over time, the inside of air ducts can get dirty and cause microbial growth, which can cause respiratory problems. Ducts can be professionally cleaned from the inside to help alleviate these symptoms.
Sealing duct joints and elbows ensures the energy your home comfort system used to condition the air isn't wasted by leaking that conditioned air into walls and attics. Sealing ducts may also help prevent humidification around air leaks and help prevent the creation of microorganisms.
Humidity Control
Humidity Control is really indoor moisture control. Excessive moisture must first be eliminated at its source, whether that means a plumbing repair, patched room or a moisture barrier to prevent groundwater from seeping into your foundation. Wet conditions in your home's interior are a natural breeding ground for toxic microbial growth, a biohazard that can make your house uninhabitable. This is a very serious situation that can lead to severe respiratory problems, allergies, immune system disorders and chronic fatigue. Excessive moisture and even excessive dryness can be easily controlled via an integrated whole-house humidifier or de-humidifier. These products provide safe, clean air and humidity control.
A Word About Carbon Monoxide
Last but most definitely not least, know the dangers of
Carbon Monoxide inside your home. This toxic gas is odorless, colorless and extremely dangerous. It is commonly produced in your home during the normal combustion process in furnaces, hot water heaters and gas stoves. If not properly vented, it can cause severe headaches, nausea, vomiting and even death. The ideal way to prevent a hazardous situation and keep your family safe is with properly vented and sealed appliances and heating equipment, as well as a high quality, working Carbon Monoxide detector.
All of these factors add up and determine the quality of comfort in your home. Even if you don't have allergies and respiratory issues now, they could develop under the right bad air quality conditions. Children and the elderly are also very susceptible to polluted indoor air. For an affordable indoor air analysis of your home,
schedule an appointment for a
System Inspection. As part of our inspection, we provide our
Home HealthTM Report Card, a summary of your home's Indoor Air Quality. For more information,
visit our Indoor Air Quality section.
Posted on: 11/5/2008 8:25:20 AM by Sam
If you think of heating your home like traveling in your car, you can more easily understand your home’s energy efficiency. In the auto world, 'miles per gallon' (MPG) of gasoline is the measure of how efficient the vehicle operates. If you get 30MPG, you understand that it potentially takes a distance of 30 miles to consume 1 gallon of gasoline.
When it comes to heating your home, the concept of fuel efficiency is the same, the terms and measurements are just different. However, you still typically want the optimal 'distance' or length of heating usage for the lowest amount of fuel consumed in that length.
In the home heating industry, this fuel efficiency measurement is called AFUE, Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency. The 'length' of use measured is a standard of one calendar year. The amount of fuel used to heat your home within that year denotes how efficient the heating equipment actually is. Similar to MPG, the AFUE rating of a furnace is determined by the U.S. Department of Energy and is a simple measure of efficiency by percentage. The higher the percentage the less fuel that is consumed by the furnace to heat your home.
Here's a simple way to understand the concept and potential savings. We'll compare a 95% AFUE furnace to an 65% AFUE furnace. Remember to think of the heating and air conditioning system in your home is an 'engine', with the goal being less fuel use for a single time period. For example:
-
95% AFUE furnace = approximately $863 in yearly heating costs for Chicago IL
-
65% AFUE furnace = approximately $1,261 in yearly heating costs for Chicago IL
It’s important to note that different regions of the country will naturally use more fuel due to colder temperatures. Like a car’s MPG, furnace AFUE helps take the regional variances into account and provides a method to compare different types of furnaces, and provides homeowners with a means to evaluate average operating costs. As you can see, there is
$398 in annual savings with the higher efficiency 95% AFUE furnace used in this example.
Over five year's time, that's nearly $2,000! (And that's not counting any annual increases in home energy prices.)
Many older furnaces operate at an efficiency level well below 70%. That's because it wasn't until 1992 that the U.S. Department of Energy created new standards requiring at least 78% furnace efficiency.
The point is, if you happen to have high-cost heating repair services that need to be done to keep your home warm throughout the winter heating season, consider the savings a high efficiency heating or furnace equipment might save you in wasted utility dollars. Your savings may vary, and they may be significantly more than this example. If you would like a free furnace replacement consultation and home energy analysis, just
find a Service Experts location near you and call us today. And don't forget, you may even be eligible for new
Tax Credits!
Posted on: 11/3/2008 4:00:00 AM by Sam