I hate to admit it because this is my trade but I would not be honest if I did not tell you this is happening, the good news is I can help you fight it.
Trio busted in Bay area air conditioning repair scheme
PASCO COUNTY -- Armed with warrants, police descended on the New Port Richey office of U. S. Air Friday.
AThe raid followed a six month investigation that culminated in the felony arrests of 3 U.S. technicians.
Detectives say Dannis Garlock, Stan Lachowicz and Steven Buhler each tampered with or vandalized an air conditioning unit in an attempt to gouge a total of 3 elderly customers out of thousands of dollars.
“I said what have you gotta do? He said probably have to replace it,” said Virginia Humphries, who told us that U.S. Air sent Garlock to her home for a routine inspection. “I was hurt. I was mad,” she said.
A second technician from another company found the problem. a knife wound in Virginia's coil. Detectives say Garlock confessed to stabbing the unit with this knife.
“He shows up at 4 o’clock willing to do a repair for 4,000 to the damage he had done I confront him and he confesses to doing it,” said Detective Jeff Kraft.
Lachowicz and Buhler are charged with exploitation of the elderly and attempted grand theft in connection with another case in which investigators say they disabled the unit of a 67 year old woman in order to get her to pay for a $3000 repair.
"They had shut off her unit and left the fan going. In essence, it was blowing whatever air was in the attic thru her house," said Detective Kraft.
The owner of us air would not come out of his office to answer any of our questions, but detectives believe pressure to sell expensive repairs contributed to the crimes.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Saving money on energy is a daily decision
Energy-saving tips help cool rising costs
Energy consumption and higher prices are headlining the news again.
Consider:
• The U.S. burns more energy per capita than any nation on Earth, including one quarter of the world’s oil, coal and natural gas output.
• Today’s households use about one-fifth of the primary energy consumed annually in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s “Tips for Energy Savers” pamphlet.
• Each year, Americans pay almost $100 billion in home energy bills for heating, cooling, refrigeration, cooking and other conveniences and amenities such as home entertainment.
Here’s the breakdown in costs for home energy use in the U.S.:
• 46 percent for heating and cooling the home.
• 15 percent for heating water.
• 15 percent for refrigerators and freezers.
• 24 percent for lighting, cooking and other appliances.
Now is not the time of the year to look at ways to cut home heating bills. You’ve probably paid your last big bill for the winter season.
So, here are U.S. Department of Energy suggestions for cooling energy savers as you uncover and test your dormant air conditioning system:
• When using air conditioning, set the thermostat as high as possible. The recommended temperature for reasonable comfort and energy efficiency is 78 degrees F.
• Set the air conditioner fan speed on high except in very humid weather. Set it low when it’s humid. Less cooling will occur but more moisture will be removed.
• Clean or replace air conditioning filters once a month.
• Use a fan with window air conditioners to spread the cooled air without increasing power use.
• Don’t place lamps or TV sets near the air conditioner thermostat. Heat from these appliances is sensed by the thermostat and could cause the air conditioner to run longer than necessary.
• Keep out the daytime sun with outside awnings or drawing draperies, blinds and shades indoors.
• Keep lights low or off.
• Use vents and exhaust fans to pull heat and moisture from the attic, kitchen and laundry directly to the outside.
According to our federal government’s Energy Department, if every household raised air-conditioning temperatures 6 degrees, we’d save the equivalent of 190,000 barrels of oil every day.
Here’s suggestions for saving energy when using refrigerators, washing machines, dish washers, ovens and dryers:
• Use energy-intensive appliances in the early morning or late evening hours to help reduce peak load energy use.
• Make sure the refrigerator door seals are airtight. Test them by closing the door over a piece of paper or a dollar bill with half in and half out. If the paper or dollar bill can be pulled out easily, the latch may need adjustment or the seal may need to be replaced.
• Wash most clothes in warm or cold water.
• Do not overload clothes dryer.
• Keep the dryer lint screen clean.
• Separate drying loads into heavy and lightweight items.
• Use a clothes line.
The easiest way to save energy in the home is lowering lighting levels, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Don’t use more light than you need. In fact, turn off lights in any room not being used.
• Consider using compact fluorescent lamps instead of the incandescent bulb for home lighting. Although more expensive than incandescent bulbs, CFLs use about a quarter as much electricity and pay for themselves in lower utility bills.
Turning off one outdoor gas lamp will save $40 to $50 a year in natural gas.
Energy consumption and higher prices are headlining the news again.
Consider:
• The U.S. burns more energy per capita than any nation on Earth, including one quarter of the world’s oil, coal and natural gas output.
• Today’s households use about one-fifth of the primary energy consumed annually in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s “Tips for Energy Savers” pamphlet.
• Each year, Americans pay almost $100 billion in home energy bills for heating, cooling, refrigeration, cooking and other conveniences and amenities such as home entertainment.
Here’s the breakdown in costs for home energy use in the U.S.:
• 46 percent for heating and cooling the home.
• 15 percent for heating water.
• 15 percent for refrigerators and freezers.
• 24 percent for lighting, cooking and other appliances.
Now is not the time of the year to look at ways to cut home heating bills. You’ve probably paid your last big bill for the winter season.
So, here are U.S. Department of Energy suggestions for cooling energy savers as you uncover and test your dormant air conditioning system:
• When using air conditioning, set the thermostat as high as possible. The recommended temperature for reasonable comfort and energy efficiency is 78 degrees F.
• Set the air conditioner fan speed on high except in very humid weather. Set it low when it’s humid. Less cooling will occur but more moisture will be removed.
• Clean or replace air conditioning filters once a month.
• Use a fan with window air conditioners to spread the cooled air without increasing power use.
• Don’t place lamps or TV sets near the air conditioner thermostat. Heat from these appliances is sensed by the thermostat and could cause the air conditioner to run longer than necessary.
• Keep out the daytime sun with outside awnings or drawing draperies, blinds and shades indoors.
• Keep lights low or off.
• Use vents and exhaust fans to pull heat and moisture from the attic, kitchen and laundry directly to the outside.
According to our federal government’s Energy Department, if every household raised air-conditioning temperatures 6 degrees, we’d save the equivalent of 190,000 barrels of oil every day.
Here’s suggestions for saving energy when using refrigerators, washing machines, dish washers, ovens and dryers:
• Use energy-intensive appliances in the early morning or late evening hours to help reduce peak load energy use.
• Make sure the refrigerator door seals are airtight. Test them by closing the door over a piece of paper or a dollar bill with half in and half out. If the paper or dollar bill can be pulled out easily, the latch may need adjustment or the seal may need to be replaced.
• Wash most clothes in warm or cold water.
• Do not overload clothes dryer.
• Keep the dryer lint screen clean.
• Separate drying loads into heavy and lightweight items.
• Use a clothes line.
The easiest way to save energy in the home is lowering lighting levels, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Don’t use more light than you need. In fact, turn off lights in any room not being used.
• Consider using compact fluorescent lamps instead of the incandescent bulb for home lighting. Although more expensive than incandescent bulbs, CFLs use about a quarter as much electricity and pay for themselves in lower utility bills.
Turning off one outdoor gas lamp will save $40 to $50 a year in natural gas.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Yes seriously you need to do this
Clean air conditioner before spring
Spring is fast approaching and the days are already getting warmer, a sure sign that it is time to start thinking cool.
Cleaning your air conditioning unit is an easy task but one that many people overlook.
A clean air conditioner works more efficiently, costs less to operate and is less likely to require repair. Setting up a schedule for regular cleaning is a good maintenance practice, and one of the best times is now, before the season begins.
Tools, materials needed
1. Vacuum cleaner or shop vac
2. Garden hose
3. Screwdriver, pliers
4. HVAC cleaner (available in spray cans at hardware stores)
5. Shop cloth or soft bristle brush (such as an old toilet brush)
Instructions
Window air conditioner
1. Unplug the power cord from the outlet
2. Remove the filter cover on the inside of the house
3. Remove the filter and wash thoroughly with soap and water. Let it dry before putting it back in the unit.
4. Vacuum all of the dust and dirt from the unit that you can reach from the inside, and then go outside.
5. Spray the ventilation fins with the HVAC solvent and wipe or brush them clean. Straighten any bent fins with a pair of pliers.
6. Remove the outside cover, spraying the inside of the cover with HVAC solvent and rinsing it clean with water from the garden hose.
7. Vacuum the accumulated dirt and debris from the compressor coils. Look for evidence that the coils have been leaking or cracked. If you find damage to the coils, call an HVAC serviceman.
8. Spray the compressor unit with the HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes. Clean the coils with the cloth or brush. Vacuum once more to get any dust or dirt that was missed.
9. Replace the cover
Central air conditioner (outdoor compressor unit)
1. Turn off the power supply
2. With the screwdriver, remove the screws holding the fan assembly on top of the unit, and set it aside, using care not to cut or crimp the wires.
3. Remove all accumulated leaves, grass clippings and weeds that may have been pulled into the unit by the fan.
4. Spray the coils with HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes.
5. Spray the inside of the unit with the garden hose to clean thoroughly.
6. Clean the air ventilation fins on the outside of the unit with the solvent and the cloth or brush.
7. Straighten any bent fins with the pliers.
8. Replace the fan unit.
Spring is fast approaching and the days are already getting warmer, a sure sign that it is time to start thinking cool.
Cleaning your air conditioning unit is an easy task but one that many people overlook.
A clean air conditioner works more efficiently, costs less to operate and is less likely to require repair. Setting up a schedule for regular cleaning is a good maintenance practice, and one of the best times is now, before the season begins.
Tools, materials needed
1. Vacuum cleaner or shop vac
2. Garden hose
3. Screwdriver, pliers
4. HVAC cleaner (available in spray cans at hardware stores)
5. Shop cloth or soft bristle brush (such as an old toilet brush)
Instructions
Window air conditioner
1. Unplug the power cord from the outlet
2. Remove the filter cover on the inside of the house
3. Remove the filter and wash thoroughly with soap and water. Let it dry before putting it back in the unit.
4. Vacuum all of the dust and dirt from the unit that you can reach from the inside, and then go outside.
5. Spray the ventilation fins with the HVAC solvent and wipe or brush them clean. Straighten any bent fins with a pair of pliers.
6. Remove the outside cover, spraying the inside of the cover with HVAC solvent and rinsing it clean with water from the garden hose.
7. Vacuum the accumulated dirt and debris from the compressor coils. Look for evidence that the coils have been leaking or cracked. If you find damage to the coils, call an HVAC serviceman.
8. Spray the compressor unit with the HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes. Clean the coils with the cloth or brush. Vacuum once more to get any dust or dirt that was missed.
9. Replace the cover
Central air conditioner (outdoor compressor unit)
1. Turn off the power supply
2. With the screwdriver, remove the screws holding the fan assembly on top of the unit, and set it aside, using care not to cut or crimp the wires.
3. Remove all accumulated leaves, grass clippings and weeds that may have been pulled into the unit by the fan.
4. Spray the coils with HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes.
5. Spray the inside of the unit with the garden hose to clean thoroughly.
6. Clean the air ventilation fins on the outside of the unit with the solvent and the cloth or brush.
7. Straighten any bent fins with the pliers.
8. Replace the fan unit.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Do your reseach before you call a contractor
It helps to know your plans for A/C installation before calling up a HVAC contractor to work on your project. The knowledge that you have will help your service provider give you a more precise estimate. One thing in particular that you should be aware of is whether you are replacing a new system or tying into an existing system. If you are tying into an existing system, you will want to use the same brand as the older system. Completely replacing your system will require much more labor and be more expensive.
Often time's, homeowners will need central air conditioning installed due to an addition or remodeling project. It is important for you to explain to your HVAC contractor whether an addition or remodel is in process because it will help them size up your air conditioning needs and give you a more accurate estimate. This information is important because a house's structure, window area, sun exposure, and climate will affect your central air conditioning needs.
In addition to what is mentioned above, you should also know a little bit about how central air conditioner's cooling capacity is rated. You should become familiar with Btu's (British thermal units). Central air conditioner's cooling capacity is rated by Btu's per hour. As a general rule, you need 12,000 Btu's for 1,000 square feet of well insulated space or 400 square feet of poorly insulated space. The rule changes if you have high ceilings because it will take more cooling power to maintain a comfortable temperature.
When it comes time to decide whether to repair or replace your central cooling system, think carefully. In the last decade, air conditioners have become very energy efficient. More often than not, it is best to just replace your old system because you will end up saving more money that way. Also, if your HVAC professional is tying into an existing system, the older system's age will help determine its compatibility with the newer system and this may lead to some problems.
Lastly, it is very useful to know how much open access is available. Once again, this information will help your HVAC professional give you a more precise estimate. This is true because there is less labor involved when there is plenty of access space. During installation your service professional will be required to access the home's heating and cooling duct system. It helps when there is space to do so.
Before calling your HVAC professional, you may want to try some helpful tips. Common problems are related to the fuse and breaker, the refrigerant, the condenser coils, the drain pipe and the filter. Make sure to check the fuse and breaker, check to see if the refrigerant is low, check to see if the condenser coils are dirty, check to make sure the condenser is clean, check to see if the filter is clean and check to make sure the drainpipe isn't clogged. You can fix most of these things yourself, but if your refrigerant is low you will need to call in a professional.
Often time's, homeowners will need central air conditioning installed due to an addition or remodeling project. It is important for you to explain to your HVAC contractor whether an addition or remodel is in process because it will help them size up your air conditioning needs and give you a more accurate estimate. This information is important because a house's structure, window area, sun exposure, and climate will affect your central air conditioning needs.
In addition to what is mentioned above, you should also know a little bit about how central air conditioner's cooling capacity is rated. You should become familiar with Btu's (British thermal units). Central air conditioner's cooling capacity is rated by Btu's per hour. As a general rule, you need 12,000 Btu's for 1,000 square feet of well insulated space or 400 square feet of poorly insulated space. The rule changes if you have high ceilings because it will take more cooling power to maintain a comfortable temperature.
When it comes time to decide whether to repair or replace your central cooling system, think carefully. In the last decade, air conditioners have become very energy efficient. More often than not, it is best to just replace your old system because you will end up saving more money that way. Also, if your HVAC professional is tying into an existing system, the older system's age will help determine its compatibility with the newer system and this may lead to some problems.
Lastly, it is very useful to know how much open access is available. Once again, this information will help your HVAC professional give you a more precise estimate. This is true because there is less labor involved when there is plenty of access space. During installation your service professional will be required to access the home's heating and cooling duct system. It helps when there is space to do so.
Before calling your HVAC professional, you may want to try some helpful tips. Common problems are related to the fuse and breaker, the refrigerant, the condenser coils, the drain pipe and the filter. Make sure to check the fuse and breaker, check to see if the refrigerant is low, check to see if the condenser coils are dirty, check to make sure the condenser is clean, check to see if the filter is clean and check to make sure the drainpipe isn't clogged. You can fix most of these things yourself, but if your refrigerant is low you will need to call in a professional.
Summer is coming Arizona you first
Get AC checked out now before it heats up
The air conditioning industry has a message for Southeast Valley residents preparing for another scorching summer: now is a good time to get your home air conditioner fixed.
"We encourage people to get their air conditioning done early," said Joe Hendel, president of Hendel's Air Conditioning in Chandler. "When the weather's not there, we're not as busy."
When choosing a company to do this work, there's a key first step to take.
"The main thing is checking out a company before you do business with them," said Felicia Overton of the Better Business Bureau of Central, Northern and Western Arizona.
The bureau's Web site has background information about air conditioning repair companies, and complaint histories.
Air conditioning repair is usually among the bureau's 10 most inquired and complained about industries, Overton said.
"If they have unresolved or unanswered complaints, that could be a red flag," she said.
Licensing and complaint information is also available from the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
As a whole, the industry is healthy, said Alan Felber, an associate director with the agency who oversees inspection and licensing.
To have and maintain licenses, contractors pay into a recovery fund that provides consumers money when jobs can't or won't be completed. Felber said air conditioning repair isn't close to the top of the list of the fund's problem industries.
Air conditioners need to be serviced once a year, and filters need to be changed frequently, said Bill Wright, owner of Falcon Air Conditioning in Gilbert. Dirty filters are a major problem his company deals with.
"People forget about it, and then they get stuck with a bill," he said.
Consumers should get three bids from licensed contractors for repair work, and get references from the companies, Felber said.
Hendel said customers should also avoid paying anything until work is finished, and avoid doing business with firms that present them with a long list of needed repairs and offer maintenance contracts.
He warns that there are a lot of companies "that take advantage of people in ways you wouldn't believe."
The air conditioning industry has a message for Southeast Valley residents preparing for another scorching summer: now is a good time to get your home air conditioner fixed.
"We encourage people to get their air conditioning done early," said Joe Hendel, president of Hendel's Air Conditioning in Chandler. "When the weather's not there, we're not as busy."
When choosing a company to do this work, there's a key first step to take.
"The main thing is checking out a company before you do business with them," said Felicia Overton of the Better Business Bureau of Central, Northern and Western Arizona.
The bureau's Web site has background information about air conditioning repair companies, and complaint histories.
Air conditioning repair is usually among the bureau's 10 most inquired and complained about industries, Overton said.
"If they have unresolved or unanswered complaints, that could be a red flag," she said.
Licensing and complaint information is also available from the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
As a whole, the industry is healthy, said Alan Felber, an associate director with the agency who oversees inspection and licensing.
To have and maintain licenses, contractors pay into a recovery fund that provides consumers money when jobs can't or won't be completed. Felber said air conditioning repair isn't close to the top of the list of the fund's problem industries.
Air conditioners need to be serviced once a year, and filters need to be changed frequently, said Bill Wright, owner of Falcon Air Conditioning in Gilbert. Dirty filters are a major problem his company deals with.
"People forget about it, and then they get stuck with a bill," he said.
Consumers should get three bids from licensed contractors for repair work, and get references from the companies, Felber said.
Hendel said customers should also avoid paying anything until work is finished, and avoid doing business with firms that present them with a long list of needed repairs and offer maintenance contracts.
He warns that there are a lot of companies "that take advantage of people in ways you wouldn't believe."
Monday, March 24, 2008
Avoid Expensive Furnace Repairs with Regular Maintenance
Central forced air heater repair can be expensive, so the best plan of action is to prevent the repair in the first place if at all possible. Of course, no matter how careful you are to adhere to a regular maintenance plan, at some point you'll need to either get your system repaired or learn to do the basic repairs yourself.
A forced air heater uses ductwork to carry heated air throughout the house. There's a blower to keep the air moving to all corners of the house. Central forced air heaters are popular, because the blowers distribute the air efficiently creating few, if any, cold spots.
Older units didn't have blowers which meant the hot air rose throughout the house unevenly. But anytime you add features to a unit as sophisticated as central heat, you're bound to have a forced air heater repair at some point. The more technology involved, the more expensive the repair can be.
Forced air heaters are either gas or electric. Gas is the furnace of choice if the fuel is available in the area because it burns clean and often less expensive than electricity. But when you need a forced air heater repair on a gas unit you have to be extremely careful you don't try to repair a gas leak on your own.
Some repairs to furnaces require professional service by a certified and licensed technician. But even so, there are many maintenance steps you can take to reduce the probability of needing a forced air heater repair. A well- maintained furnace can provide years of repair-free service.
Problems that can require a forced air heater repair include the following:
• Pilot light goes out or won't stay lit
• Blower doesn't blow air through ductwork
• Furnace won't start
• Blower won't shut off
• House never reaches temperature set on thermostat
A forced air heater repair usually requires a licensed electrician in order to ensure the unit operates safely. A gas leak repair should never be attempted by a homeowner. In fact, if you smell gas you should leave all the windows open, leave the house and then call for an emergency repair.
Regular furnace maintenance includes replacing filters, keeping properly working thermostats, keeping vent openings clean, making sure ductwork doesn't leak and keeping blower blades clean. Of course, no matter how careful you are about adhering to a regular maintenance schedule, anything mechanical can break.
Some of the simple repairs can safely be done by the homeowner. For example, you can replace the thermostat and replace fuses. You can also repair ductwork and even replace blower blades. But most repairs need to be done by an authorized technician or a licensed professional for the safety of you and your family.
There's a lot to be said for having peace of mind.
A forced air heater uses ductwork to carry heated air throughout the house. There's a blower to keep the air moving to all corners of the house. Central forced air heaters are popular, because the blowers distribute the air efficiently creating few, if any, cold spots.
Older units didn't have blowers which meant the hot air rose throughout the house unevenly. But anytime you add features to a unit as sophisticated as central heat, you're bound to have a forced air heater repair at some point. The more technology involved, the more expensive the repair can be.
Forced air heaters are either gas or electric. Gas is the furnace of choice if the fuel is available in the area because it burns clean and often less expensive than electricity. But when you need a forced air heater repair on a gas unit you have to be extremely careful you don't try to repair a gas leak on your own.
Some repairs to furnaces require professional service by a certified and licensed technician. But even so, there are many maintenance steps you can take to reduce the probability of needing a forced air heater repair. A well- maintained furnace can provide years of repair-free service.
Problems that can require a forced air heater repair include the following:
• Pilot light goes out or won't stay lit
• Blower doesn't blow air through ductwork
• Furnace won't start
• Blower won't shut off
• House never reaches temperature set on thermostat
A forced air heater repair usually requires a licensed electrician in order to ensure the unit operates safely. A gas leak repair should never be attempted by a homeowner. In fact, if you smell gas you should leave all the windows open, leave the house and then call for an emergency repair.
Regular furnace maintenance includes replacing filters, keeping properly working thermostats, keeping vent openings clean, making sure ductwork doesn't leak and keeping blower blades clean. Of course, no matter how careful you are about adhering to a regular maintenance schedule, anything mechanical can break.
Some of the simple repairs can safely be done by the homeowner. For example, you can replace the thermostat and replace fuses. You can also repair ductwork and even replace blower blades. But most repairs need to be done by an authorized technician or a licensed professional for the safety of you and your family.
There's a lot to be said for having peace of mind.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Think about lowering your Summer Air Conditioning Bills Now
Most offices and homes today think of air-conditioning more as a necessity than a luxury. Is it because of the vagaries of the weather? Or is it because we've been accustomed to having a uniform temperature that we feel comfortable in? Whatever the reason, air-conditioning is an expensive proposition. To maintain it and pay the bills means a dent in most pockets every month. How can we keep the comfort and yet save on the running costs? Here are a few tips in that direction. Tips that could help you not just bring down your costs but bring them down a great deal.
The first thing to do is to choose right. Make sure that the air-conditioning that you install is the right size for your room or building. If your room is very small, why on earth would you install a very large horsepower unit? You need expert advice here. You need to know exactly what size of air-conditioning you need given the area you have. Nothing more and nothing less – it's just got to be right.
We take our air-conditioning for granted and only think about it when it's not on and we're uncomfortable. But do you realize that it need not be on all the time? That you can be perfectly comfortable even if it's off for a while? Maybe you could turn it on just after it turns hot. Or, if you have more than one unit, you could use the ones you have in rotation. There may be a case for using just a few out of the many you have. All you need is that the building is comfortable and cool. You could perhaps work out some kind of an air-conditioning on-off schedule to maximize your savings.
To keep your air-conditioning units running well, you must remember that they need to have regular maintenance. When you maintain your machines well, you increase their performance. Maybe you feel that regular maintenance is yet another recurring cost that drains you but in the long run, it means savings because if your units run efficiently, the cost of running them reduces. Units that are badly maintained incur much more by way of running costs than those that are kept in good running order. Units that do not run at their peak efficiency tend to use more power than they actually need so you end up paying more for units that cool less.
Make a note to turn off the air-conditioning ½ an hour before you stop work. Most people tend to turn them off as they are leaving the building. But it makes more sense to turn it off 30 minutes before that. Why is that so? Because it takes as long for the temperature to get to an uncomfortable level. So by the time it gets to that level, you're on your way home.
Just a little bit of thought and you could save big on your bills. Pay a little attention to your air-conditioning and it will serve you with more than just comfort on a hot day – it will show you the way to savings.
The first thing to do is to choose right. Make sure that the air-conditioning that you install is the right size for your room or building. If your room is very small, why on earth would you install a very large horsepower unit? You need expert advice here. You need to know exactly what size of air-conditioning you need given the area you have. Nothing more and nothing less – it's just got to be right.
We take our air-conditioning for granted and only think about it when it's not on and we're uncomfortable. But do you realize that it need not be on all the time? That you can be perfectly comfortable even if it's off for a while? Maybe you could turn it on just after it turns hot. Or, if you have more than one unit, you could use the ones you have in rotation. There may be a case for using just a few out of the many you have. All you need is that the building is comfortable and cool. You could perhaps work out some kind of an air-conditioning on-off schedule to maximize your savings.
To keep your air-conditioning units running well, you must remember that they need to have regular maintenance. When you maintain your machines well, you increase their performance. Maybe you feel that regular maintenance is yet another recurring cost that drains you but in the long run, it means savings because if your units run efficiently, the cost of running them reduces. Units that are badly maintained incur much more by way of running costs than those that are kept in good running order. Units that do not run at their peak efficiency tend to use more power than they actually need so you end up paying more for units that cool less.
Make a note to turn off the air-conditioning ½ an hour before you stop work. Most people tend to turn them off as they are leaving the building. But it makes more sense to turn it off 30 minutes before that. Why is that so? Because it takes as long for the temperature to get to an uncomfortable level. So by the time it gets to that level, you're on your way home.
Just a little bit of thought and you could save big on your bills. Pay a little attention to your air-conditioning and it will serve you with more than just comfort on a hot day – it will show you the way to savings.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
High Power Bills With a Heat Pump
Here are some things to look for when you get that big electric bill.
Bob is a service technician who is well trained and nationally certified. However, he sometimes suffers from the same confusion that all technicians occasionally do — the facts that he gathers may or may not point to the obvious cause of the problem or the best solution. But Bob has something that no one else has. He recalls his long-time HVACR mentor and imagines him accompanying him as “Btu Buddy,” someone who reminds him to take time to stop and think before rushing to judgment, helping keep him on the right track, even with facts that are confusing.
Bob was called to a new customer’s home that had a 5-ton heat pump. The home was a large ranch style home, all on one floor. The customer met Bob at the door and she explained to him that her power bills were considerably higher than the same months last year. Bob looked at the comparison and agreed. The seasons were similar, but the bills for this year were much higher.
Bob then went to the indoor air handler under the house and looked at the filter. All seemed normal with them.
He then went to the outside unit and looked around and nothing stood out to be a problem. He then went inside and checked the outlet temperature at one of the room registers. The temperature was 120°F. He then went to the room thermostat and checked the thermostat to see if the strip heat was calling for heat and it was not. He was looking confused when Btu Buddy appeared and asked, “What is the problem, Bob?”
Bob explained what he knew and asked Btu Buddy for some advice.
Btu Buddy said, “Check for amp draw at the strip heaters on both lines going to the heaters. Remember the time you had a strip heater that was grounded and it was drawing current all the time (Figure 1)?”
Bob got his ammeter from the truck and went under the house and checked all three strip heaters and there was no current flow. Bob then asked, “Now what?”
Btu Buddy then said, “You have ruled out heat from any source except the heat pump refrigerant cycle, so the excess heat must be coming from the heat pump coil itself. With an air discharge temperature like you are getting, I would suggest that you have a reduced airflow. A heat pump should not have a discharge temperature above about 105° and this one is running 120°. Feel the liquid line and tell me if it feels normal.”
Bob put his hand on the liquid line and exclaimed, “Boy, that line is really hot. Normally it would be about hand temperature, but that could burn you if you held it for long.”
“What does that tell you, Bob?” asked Btu Buddy.
“It tells me that the air stream is not taking the heat out of the refrigerant condenser coil, which is the indoor coil in the heat cycle,” said Bob.
Btu Buddy then asked, “What could be some reasons for these symptoms?”
Bob answered, “The filter could be stopped up, the coil could be dirty, the fan may not be moving enough air, trash in the ductwork, insulation may have come loose and dropped down, supply registers or return grilles may be restricted are possibilities (Figure 2). The duct is insulated on the outside, so there shouldn’t be any insulation on the inside that could be loose and cause a restriction.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Then you must eliminate those possibilities one at the time. It may be a combination of several of those things.”
Bob said, “I never thought of it being more than one thing. Most all of the trouble calls that I have worked on get back to one problem.”
Btu Buddy said, “That is usually the case. Let’s go do some checking. The simplest things to check would be the supply registers and return air grilles. I noticed that this house has multiple returns, so be sure to check them all.”
Bob went from room to room and checked the airflow possibilities and told Btu Buddy, “I found several rooms that both the supply and return fixtures were shut off. I talked to the homeowner and she said she was trying to save money by not heating those rooms. I explained to her that closing those fixtures was at least part of the problem.”
Btu Buddy said, “Now check the liquid line temperature.”
Bob held the liquid line and said, “That is much better. I think I will check the temperature with my thermistor temperature tester.”
After the check, Bob said, “The temperature is still 107°. I am not sure that we have gotten to the bottom of this problem.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Good point, check further.”
Bob looked at the fan wheel and commented, “The fan wheel has a lot of dirt in the curves of the wheel. I think I will clean the wheel.”
“Good point, Bob”, said Btu Buddy. “If the fan wheel is dirty, where did the dirt come from?”
Bob responded, “It had to come through the filters. At some point the filters must have been really dirty and let dirt pass.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Most filters only get the larger particles of dirt; much of the fine dirt slips through. In the summer, the coil is wet and acts as a super filter. I would suspect that the coil is dirty also.”
Bob got set up and cleaned the fan wheel and the coil, and said, “I can’t believe how much dirt came out of the core of that coil. It is a good thing I had this pressure washer. It just kept pushing out dirt. That especially made detergent for coils really did the trick.”
When Bob got the system back together, he started the unit up and after it had run for about 20 minutes, he looked at the temperature of the liquid line and said, “The temperature is down to 100°. That works for me.”
Btu Buddy suggested, “Bob, you need to check the outlet air temperature now that you have made these changes.”
Bob went in the house and checked the air temperature at the same place he had checked before and the temperature was 100°.
Bob went back outside with Btu Buddy and told him the results and Btu Buddy said, “Now you have confidence that you got to the complete bottom of the situation. Be sure and talk to the homeowner and tell her what you did. Be sure and mention the outlet air temperatures will be lower, but that the system will be more efficient.”
Bob asked, “Why didn’t you suggest that we put gauges on the system and check the pressures?”
Btu Buddy explained, “You could have connected your gauges. However, we came to the same conclusions without installing gauges. Remember, every time you fasten your gauges, you let out some refrigerant. The system has a critical charge and you may alter the charge when connecting the gauges. Also, you always have the possibility of leaving a leak behind and then you would be called back to the same job later to add refrigerant.”
Bob then said, “None of that would be good.”
Bob talked to the homeowner and explained everything to her and she understood to leave all airflows alone.
When riding away, Bob asked Btu Buddy why high head pressure resulted in such a dramatic change in power consumption in a heat pump and Btu Buddy said, “Let’s go to lunch and talk about it. Bring your text book so we can discuss some examples.”
Bob is a service technician who is well trained and nationally certified. However, he sometimes suffers from the same confusion that all technicians occasionally do — the facts that he gathers may or may not point to the obvious cause of the problem or the best solution. But Bob has something that no one else has. He recalls his long-time HVACR mentor and imagines him accompanying him as “Btu Buddy,” someone who reminds him to take time to stop and think before rushing to judgment, helping keep him on the right track, even with facts that are confusing.
Bob was called to a new customer’s home that had a 5-ton heat pump. The home was a large ranch style home, all on one floor. The customer met Bob at the door and she explained to him that her power bills were considerably higher than the same months last year. Bob looked at the comparison and agreed. The seasons were similar, but the bills for this year were much higher.
Bob then went to the indoor air handler under the house and looked at the filter. All seemed normal with them.
He then went to the outside unit and looked around and nothing stood out to be a problem. He then went inside and checked the outlet temperature at one of the room registers. The temperature was 120°F. He then went to the room thermostat and checked the thermostat to see if the strip heat was calling for heat and it was not. He was looking confused when Btu Buddy appeared and asked, “What is the problem, Bob?”
Bob explained what he knew and asked Btu Buddy for some advice.
Btu Buddy said, “Check for amp draw at the strip heaters on both lines going to the heaters. Remember the time you had a strip heater that was grounded and it was drawing current all the time (Figure 1)?”
Bob got his ammeter from the truck and went under the house and checked all three strip heaters and there was no current flow. Bob then asked, “Now what?”
Btu Buddy then said, “You have ruled out heat from any source except the heat pump refrigerant cycle, so the excess heat must be coming from the heat pump coil itself. With an air discharge temperature like you are getting, I would suggest that you have a reduced airflow. A heat pump should not have a discharge temperature above about 105° and this one is running 120°. Feel the liquid line and tell me if it feels normal.”
Bob put his hand on the liquid line and exclaimed, “Boy, that line is really hot. Normally it would be about hand temperature, but that could burn you if you held it for long.”
“What does that tell you, Bob?” asked Btu Buddy.
“It tells me that the air stream is not taking the heat out of the refrigerant condenser coil, which is the indoor coil in the heat cycle,” said Bob.
Btu Buddy then asked, “What could be some reasons for these symptoms?”
Bob answered, “The filter could be stopped up, the coil could be dirty, the fan may not be moving enough air, trash in the ductwork, insulation may have come loose and dropped down, supply registers or return grilles may be restricted are possibilities (Figure 2). The duct is insulated on the outside, so there shouldn’t be any insulation on the inside that could be loose and cause a restriction.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Then you must eliminate those possibilities one at the time. It may be a combination of several of those things.”
Bob said, “I never thought of it being more than one thing. Most all of the trouble calls that I have worked on get back to one problem.”
Btu Buddy said, “That is usually the case. Let’s go do some checking. The simplest things to check would be the supply registers and return air grilles. I noticed that this house has multiple returns, so be sure to check them all.”
Bob went from room to room and checked the airflow possibilities and told Btu Buddy, “I found several rooms that both the supply and return fixtures were shut off. I talked to the homeowner and she said she was trying to save money by not heating those rooms. I explained to her that closing those fixtures was at least part of the problem.”
Btu Buddy said, “Now check the liquid line temperature.”
Bob held the liquid line and said, “That is much better. I think I will check the temperature with my thermistor temperature tester.”
After the check, Bob said, “The temperature is still 107°. I am not sure that we have gotten to the bottom of this problem.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Good point, check further.”
Bob looked at the fan wheel and commented, “The fan wheel has a lot of dirt in the curves of the wheel. I think I will clean the wheel.”
“Good point, Bob”, said Btu Buddy. “If the fan wheel is dirty, where did the dirt come from?”
Bob responded, “It had to come through the filters. At some point the filters must have been really dirty and let dirt pass.”
Btu Buddy then said, “Most filters only get the larger particles of dirt; much of the fine dirt slips through. In the summer, the coil is wet and acts as a super filter. I would suspect that the coil is dirty also.”
Bob got set up and cleaned the fan wheel and the coil, and said, “I can’t believe how much dirt came out of the core of that coil. It is a good thing I had this pressure washer. It just kept pushing out dirt. That especially made detergent for coils really did the trick.”
When Bob got the system back together, he started the unit up and after it had run for about 20 minutes, he looked at the temperature of the liquid line and said, “The temperature is down to 100°. That works for me.”
Btu Buddy suggested, “Bob, you need to check the outlet air temperature now that you have made these changes.”
Bob went in the house and checked the air temperature at the same place he had checked before and the temperature was 100°.
Bob went back outside with Btu Buddy and told him the results and Btu Buddy said, “Now you have confidence that you got to the complete bottom of the situation. Be sure and talk to the homeowner and tell her what you did. Be sure and mention the outlet air temperatures will be lower, but that the system will be more efficient.”
Bob asked, “Why didn’t you suggest that we put gauges on the system and check the pressures?”
Btu Buddy explained, “You could have connected your gauges. However, we came to the same conclusions without installing gauges. Remember, every time you fasten your gauges, you let out some refrigerant. The system has a critical charge and you may alter the charge when connecting the gauges. Also, you always have the possibility of leaving a leak behind and then you would be called back to the same job later to add refrigerant.”
Bob then said, “None of that would be good.”
Bob talked to the homeowner and explained everything to her and she understood to leave all airflows alone.
When riding away, Bob asked Btu Buddy why high head pressure resulted in such a dramatic change in power consumption in a heat pump and Btu Buddy said, “Let’s go to lunch and talk about it. Bring your text book so we can discuss some examples.”
Friday, March 21, 2008
Lennox will pay you to go Green and tell about it
Lennox Industries Encourages Consumers to 'Get a (Green) Life' By Entering Online Sweepstakes
Promotion from Home Comfort Solutions Provider Offers Consumers Chance to Win Up to $20,000 Worth of Lennox Home Heating and Cooling Equipment and Other Eco-friendly Prizes
DALLAS, March 18 /PRNewswire/ -- From improving your home's energy efficiency to decorating with eco-friendly furniture to recycling and using non-toxic household products, there are many ways consumers can embrace a "green" lifestyle. To make it easier than ever, Lennox Industries -- a leading provider of customized home comfort systems and indoor air quality products -- today launched the "Get a Green Life" online sweepstakes.
How to Get a Green Life
As part of the promotion, which kicked off March 17 and runs through June 6, 2008, Lennox is encouraging consumers to share their tips for living a green lifestyle at http://www.GetAGreenLifeSweepstakes.com and enter for the chance to win a high-efficiency, money-saving Lennox home comfort system and other eco-friendly products.
"Lennox has been designing environmentally friendly products for many years and is committed to developing energy-efficient heating, cooling and indoor air quality products that help homeowners save money, enhance air quality and improve their health," said Jennifer Hammons, a certified indoor environmentalist with Lennox Industries. "As part of our commitment, we're excited to be helping homeowners think about getting a green life and begin to make an impact on conserving our natural resources."
Sweepstakes Prizes
Consumers who enter the "Get a Green Life" sweepstakes will have the chance to win one of the following prizes:
-- Grand Prize: One grand-prize winner will choose from either a new
high-efficiency Lennox home heating and cooling system or an
eco-friendly landscaping package (approximate retail value of up to
$20,000).
-- First Prizes: Two first-prize winners will receive a $5,000 gift
certificate to Vivavi, an online retailer that offers modern,
eco-friendly furniture and home furnishings.
-- Second Prizes: Ten second-prize winners will receive their choice of
one of the following prizes:
-- A $250 gift certificate from Green-Kits.com, which offers
non-toxic household cleaning products, environmentally friendly
paper and household goods, and earth-friendly personal care
products.
-- A $250 gift certificate from Environmental Home Store, which
offers green building materials ranging from countertops and
bamboo flooring to non-toxic paints and organic bedding.
Winners will be selected by random drawing on or about June 20, 2008. No purchase necessary. Entry forms and the official rules are available between March 17 and June 6, 2008, on the sweepstakes Web site at http://www.getagreenlifesweepstakes.com.
How to Make Your Home More Comfortable and Energy Efficient
1. Schedule an annual routine check-up for your heating and cooling
equipment to keep the system running as efficiently as possible, and
check the air filter each month to see if it needs to be replaced.
2. Seal cracks around windows and doors with caulk or weather stripping
to prevent cool, air conditioned air from escaping.
3. Install a programmable thermostat to adjust the temperature at certain
times of the day, automatically regulating the temperature when you're
away.
4. Consider replacing an older system with a newer, more efficient model,
such as the Dave Lennox Signature(R) Collection XC21 Air Conditioner,
which is ENERGY STAR(R) qualified and can reduce annual energy bills
by hundreds of dollars, compared to a standard air conditioner.
5. Add extra insulation to the attic. Insufficient insulation may result
in the home's heating and cooling system having to work harder to
regulate the indoor temperature.
Promotion from Home Comfort Solutions Provider Offers Consumers Chance to Win Up to $20,000 Worth of Lennox Home Heating and Cooling Equipment and Other Eco-friendly Prizes
DALLAS, March 18 /PRNewswire/ -- From improving your home's energy efficiency to decorating with eco-friendly furniture to recycling and using non-toxic household products, there are many ways consumers can embrace a "green" lifestyle. To make it easier than ever, Lennox Industries -- a leading provider of customized home comfort systems and indoor air quality products -- today launched the "Get a Green Life" online sweepstakes.
How to Get a Green Life
As part of the promotion, which kicked off March 17 and runs through June 6, 2008, Lennox is encouraging consumers to share their tips for living a green lifestyle at http://www.GetAGreenLifeSweepstakes.com and enter for the chance to win a high-efficiency, money-saving Lennox home comfort system and other eco-friendly products.
"Lennox has been designing environmentally friendly products for many years and is committed to developing energy-efficient heating, cooling and indoor air quality products that help homeowners save money, enhance air quality and improve their health," said Jennifer Hammons, a certified indoor environmentalist with Lennox Industries. "As part of our commitment, we're excited to be helping homeowners think about getting a green life and begin to make an impact on conserving our natural resources."
Sweepstakes Prizes
Consumers who enter the "Get a Green Life" sweepstakes will have the chance to win one of the following prizes:
-- Grand Prize: One grand-prize winner will choose from either a new
high-efficiency Lennox home heating and cooling system or an
eco-friendly landscaping package (approximate retail value of up to
$20,000).
-- First Prizes: Two first-prize winners will receive a $5,000 gift
certificate to Vivavi, an online retailer that offers modern,
eco-friendly furniture and home furnishings.
-- Second Prizes: Ten second-prize winners will receive their choice of
one of the following prizes:
-- A $250 gift certificate from Green-Kits.com, which offers
non-toxic household cleaning products, environmentally friendly
paper and household goods, and earth-friendly personal care
products.
-- A $250 gift certificate from Environmental Home Store, which
offers green building materials ranging from countertops and
bamboo flooring to non-toxic paints and organic bedding.
Winners will be selected by random drawing on or about June 20, 2008. No purchase necessary. Entry forms and the official rules are available between March 17 and June 6, 2008, on the sweepstakes Web site at http://www.getagreenlifesweepstakes.com.
How to Make Your Home More Comfortable and Energy Efficient
1. Schedule an annual routine check-up for your heating and cooling
equipment to keep the system running as efficiently as possible, and
check the air filter each month to see if it needs to be replaced.
2. Seal cracks around windows and doors with caulk or weather stripping
to prevent cool, air conditioned air from escaping.
3. Install a programmable thermostat to adjust the temperature at certain
times of the day, automatically regulating the temperature when you're
away.
4. Consider replacing an older system with a newer, more efficient model,
such as the Dave Lennox Signature(R) Collection XC21 Air Conditioner,
which is ENERGY STAR(R) qualified and can reduce annual energy bills
by hundreds of dollars, compared to a standard air conditioner.
5. Add extra insulation to the attic. Insufficient insulation may result
in the home's heating and cooling system having to work harder to
regulate the indoor temperature.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Taking action now will save money all year long
I know I keep telling you this stuff but seriously folks.
Clean air conditioner before spring
Spring is fast approaching and the days are already getting warmer, a sure sign that it is time to start thinking cool.
Cleaning your air conditioning unit is an easy task but one that many people overlook.
A clean air conditioner works more efficiently, costs less to operate and is less likely to require repair. Setting up a schedule for regular cleaning is a good maintenance practice, and one of the best times is now, before the season begins.
Tools, materials needed
1. Vacuum cleaner or shop vac
2. Garden hose
3. Screwdriver, pliers
4. HVAC cleaner (available in spray cans at hardware stores)
5. Shop cloth or soft bristle brush (such as an old toilet brush)
Instructions
Window air conditioner
1. Unplug the power cord from the outlet
2. Remove the filter cover on the inside of the house
3. Remove the filter and wash thoroughly with soap and water. Let it dry before putting it back in the unit.
4. Vacuum all of the dust and dirt from the unit that you can reach from the inside, and then go outside.
5. Spray the ventilation fins with the HVAC solvent and wipe or brush them clean. Straighten any bent fins with a pair of pliers.
6. Remove the outside cover, spraying the inside of the cover with HVAC solvent and rinsing it clean with water from the garden hose.
7. Vacuum the accumulated dirt and debris from the compressor coils. Look for evidence that the coils have been leaking or cracked. If you find damage to the coils, call an HVAC serviceman.
8. Spray the compressor unit with the HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes. Clean the coils with the cloth or brush. Vacuum once more to get any dust or dirt that was missed.
9. Replace the cover
Central air conditioner (outdoor compressor unit)
1. Turn off the power supply
2. With the screwdriver, remove the screws holding the fan assembly on top of the unit, and set it aside, using care not to cut or crimp the wires.
3. Remove all accumulated leaves, grass clippings and weeds that may have been pulled into the unit by the fan.
4. Spray the coils with HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes.
5. Spray the inside of the unit with the garden hose to clean thoroughly.
6. Clean the air ventilation fins on the outside of the unit with the solvent and the cloth or brush.
7. Straighten any bent fins with the pliers.
8. Replace the fan unit.
Clean air conditioner before spring
Spring is fast approaching and the days are already getting warmer, a sure sign that it is time to start thinking cool.
Cleaning your air conditioning unit is an easy task but one that many people overlook.
A clean air conditioner works more efficiently, costs less to operate and is less likely to require repair. Setting up a schedule for regular cleaning is a good maintenance practice, and one of the best times is now, before the season begins.
Tools, materials needed
1. Vacuum cleaner or shop vac
2. Garden hose
3. Screwdriver, pliers
4. HVAC cleaner (available in spray cans at hardware stores)
5. Shop cloth or soft bristle brush (such as an old toilet brush)
Instructions
Window air conditioner
1. Unplug the power cord from the outlet
2. Remove the filter cover on the inside of the house
3. Remove the filter and wash thoroughly with soap and water. Let it dry before putting it back in the unit.
4. Vacuum all of the dust and dirt from the unit that you can reach from the inside, and then go outside.
5. Spray the ventilation fins with the HVAC solvent and wipe or brush them clean. Straighten any bent fins with a pair of pliers.
6. Remove the outside cover, spraying the inside of the cover with HVAC solvent and rinsing it clean with water from the garden hose.
7. Vacuum the accumulated dirt and debris from the compressor coils. Look for evidence that the coils have been leaking or cracked. If you find damage to the coils, call an HVAC serviceman.
8. Spray the compressor unit with the HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes. Clean the coils with the cloth or brush. Vacuum once more to get any dust or dirt that was missed.
9. Replace the cover
Central air conditioner (outdoor compressor unit)
1. Turn off the power supply
2. With the screwdriver, remove the screws holding the fan assembly on top of the unit, and set it aside, using care not to cut or crimp the wires.
3. Remove all accumulated leaves, grass clippings and weeds that may have been pulled into the unit by the fan.
4. Spray the coils with HVAC solvent and let sit for a few minutes.
5. Spray the inside of the unit with the garden hose to clean thoroughly.
6. Clean the air ventilation fins on the outside of the unit with the solvent and the cloth or brush.
7. Straighten any bent fins with the pliers.
8. Replace the fan unit.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
It is time to get ready for spring
Get AC checked out now before it heats up
The air conditioning industry has a message for Southeast Valley residents preparing for another scorching summer: now is a good time to get your home air conditioner fixed.
"We encourage people to get their air conditioning done early," said Joe Hendel, president of Hendel's Air Conditioning in Chandler. "When the weather's not there, we're not as busy."
When choosing a company to do this work, there's a key first step to take.
"The main thing is checking out a company before you do business with them," said Felicia Overton of the Better Business Bureau of Central, Northern and Western Arizona.
The bureau's Web site has background information about air conditioning repair companies, and complaint histories.
Air conditioning repair is usually among the bureau's 10 most inquired and complained about industries, Overton said.
"If they have unresolved or unanswered complaints, that could be a red flag," she said.
Licensing and complaint information is also available from the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
As a whole, the industry is healthy, said Alan Felber, an associate director with the agency who oversees inspection and licensing.
To have and maintain licenses, contractors pay into a recovery fund that provides consumers money when jobs can't or won't be completed. Felber said air conditioning repair isn't close to the top of the list of the fund's problem industries.
Air conditioners need to be serviced once a year, and filters need to be changed frequently, said Bill Wright, owner of Falcon Air Conditioning in Gilbert. Dirty filters are a major problem his company deals with.
"People forget about it, and then they get stuck with a bill," he said.
Consumers should get three bids from licensed contractors for repair work, and get references from the companies, Felber said.
Hendel said customers should also avoid paying anything until work is finished, and avoid doing business with firms that present them with a long list of needed repairs and offer maintenance contracts.
He warns that there are a lot of companies "that take advantage of people in ways you wouldn't believe."
The air conditioning industry has a message for Southeast Valley residents preparing for another scorching summer: now is a good time to get your home air conditioner fixed.
"We encourage people to get their air conditioning done early," said Joe Hendel, president of Hendel's Air Conditioning in Chandler. "When the weather's not there, we're not as busy."
When choosing a company to do this work, there's a key first step to take.
"The main thing is checking out a company before you do business with them," said Felicia Overton of the Better Business Bureau of Central, Northern and Western Arizona.
The bureau's Web site has background information about air conditioning repair companies, and complaint histories.
Air conditioning repair is usually among the bureau's 10 most inquired and complained about industries, Overton said.
"If they have unresolved or unanswered complaints, that could be a red flag," she said.
Licensing and complaint information is also available from the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
As a whole, the industry is healthy, said Alan Felber, an associate director with the agency who oversees inspection and licensing.
To have and maintain licenses, contractors pay into a recovery fund that provides consumers money when jobs can't or won't be completed. Felber said air conditioning repair isn't close to the top of the list of the fund's problem industries.
Air conditioners need to be serviced once a year, and filters need to be changed frequently, said Bill Wright, owner of Falcon Air Conditioning in Gilbert. Dirty filters are a major problem his company deals with.
"People forget about it, and then they get stuck with a bill," he said.
Consumers should get three bids from licensed contractors for repair work, and get references from the companies, Felber said.
Hendel said customers should also avoid paying anything until work is finished, and avoid doing business with firms that present them with a long list of needed repairs and offer maintenance contracts.
He warns that there are a lot of companies "that take advantage of people in ways you wouldn't believe."
Home Insulation Tips
The time between the heating and cooling season is the best time to take actions that will save you money in the coming year not to mention the fact that there are tax credits available to help pay for it.
Most modern homes are insulated well, but some older homes could stand to have some additional insulation put in. The only way to figure out if you need more insulation is to find out what the recommended R-values for insulation are in your area. They vary from region to region. Then you will want to check the amount of insulation you have in your attic and basement or crawl space to see if it matches the recommended levels of insulation.
There are various types of insulation you can buy: blankets, batts, and loose cellulose insulation. They all are good for different situations. In the attic you can use any one of these types of insulations. Blankets can be used in the attic as well. For walls, loose cellulose is often used by blowing it into the wall spaces. In the basement, you might want to try putting batts in between the floor joists and along the walls.
Try to keep a good amount of ventilation in the attic and crawl space. You don't want to over-insulate the space. If you don't leave enough air space for insulation, warm air can rise in the winter and condense in your attic into moisture where it will end up trapped by too much insulation. This can cause rotting. The same is true about the basement, if you have too much insulation water can be trapped and cause rotting. You should try to keep the insulation away from any metal flues or recessed light fixtures. Try to also keep it away from masonry chimneys.
For safety reasons, you should handle the fiberglass insulation with gloves, goggles, and a respirator on. This may seem like overkill but you don't want the fiberglass particles getting into your lungs. Over the years, health concerns from breathing in fiberglass fibers has increased and should be taken into consideration when installing your own insulation.
When insulation your home, don't forget your windows. They should be weather-stripped to keep drafts from reducing the energy efficiency of the house. In addition, if you see any area that has cracks, try to caulk them up. If you have enough money and want to invest in double-glazed windows, these help to insulate the home against heat loss from the windows.
Insulating your home is not a difficult task. There are many different people who can help you get the information you need from R-values for your area to the types of insulation best suited for you job. As always, take your own personal safety into account when choosing to install the material. Try to follow the manufacturer's directions and keep the ventilation clear so that moisture does not accumulate and cause rot. After you have finished insulating the basement and attic, take a look at your windows and doors and see where some additional weather-stripping might help. If you're still not happy with the warmth of your home, then think about installing double-glazed windows for added insulation value and home efficiency.
Most modern homes are insulated well, but some older homes could stand to have some additional insulation put in. The only way to figure out if you need more insulation is to find out what the recommended R-values for insulation are in your area. They vary from region to region. Then you will want to check the amount of insulation you have in your attic and basement or crawl space to see if it matches the recommended levels of insulation.
There are various types of insulation you can buy: blankets, batts, and loose cellulose insulation. They all are good for different situations. In the attic you can use any one of these types of insulations. Blankets can be used in the attic as well. For walls, loose cellulose is often used by blowing it into the wall spaces. In the basement, you might want to try putting batts in between the floor joists and along the walls.
Try to keep a good amount of ventilation in the attic and crawl space. You don't want to over-insulate the space. If you don't leave enough air space for insulation, warm air can rise in the winter and condense in your attic into moisture where it will end up trapped by too much insulation. This can cause rotting. The same is true about the basement, if you have too much insulation water can be trapped and cause rotting. You should try to keep the insulation away from any metal flues or recessed light fixtures. Try to also keep it away from masonry chimneys.
For safety reasons, you should handle the fiberglass insulation with gloves, goggles, and a respirator on. This may seem like overkill but you don't want the fiberglass particles getting into your lungs. Over the years, health concerns from breathing in fiberglass fibers has increased and should be taken into consideration when installing your own insulation.
When insulation your home, don't forget your windows. They should be weather-stripped to keep drafts from reducing the energy efficiency of the house. In addition, if you see any area that has cracks, try to caulk them up. If you have enough money and want to invest in double-glazed windows, these help to insulate the home against heat loss from the windows.
Insulating your home is not a difficult task. There are many different people who can help you get the information you need from R-values for your area to the types of insulation best suited for you job. As always, take your own personal safety into account when choosing to install the material. Try to follow the manufacturer's directions and keep the ventilation clear so that moisture does not accumulate and cause rot. After you have finished insulating the basement and attic, take a look at your windows and doors and see where some additional weather-stripping might help. If you're still not happy with the warmth of your home, then think about installing double-glazed windows for added insulation value and home efficiency.
Monday, March 17, 2008
How to reduce your spring electric bill
We are all worried about the planet right now and with all the information being thrown at you I know you are just trying to find out what is the most effective way for you to help depending on your financial situation you need to know that no investment you can make concerning your home will make a greater impact than properly maintaining and upgrading your home comfort system "there is no better way to green up your home".
Air Conditioner Tips - How To Reduce Energy Bills
To reduce your air conditioner bills, the best way is to have a well-maintained air conditioner unit. Although tasks like cleaning can be easily done by you, for more complicated technical tasks, it is best to leave the hard work to an air conditioner professional to have you fulfil it.
An air conditioning unit is more complex than what you think it might be. Any adjustments or repairs should always be done by professionals. In a unit, there are refrigerant gases, compressors, fans, fins, coils, electrical starters, thermostats, and so many more. It is just to overwhelming for you to do the task by yourself.
When you find that the bills are shooting really high for the past few months, it is time to ask for a servicing so as to make your unit more efficient and save energy. You can engage a professional service technician and he should be able to clean the evaporator and condenser coils, check refrigerant pressures, and adjust and lubricate moving parts. Sometime, there will not be enough refrigerant gas. In this case, the technician will also help you to top up the unit. A professional technician will be able to detect symptoms that can lead to energy wastage or inefficiencies, and rectify them.
One major culprit for tremendous energy wastage is that your unit does not have a damper or have a malfunctioning one. A damper is place in the duct of an air conditioner unit so as to prevent cool air from entering the furnace cabinet in summer, and warm air from escaping to the air conditioner unit in winter. If the technician finds that you have a damaged damper, he will help you to repair or replace it.
You might ask how often do you need to call a professional technician to check on your air conditioner unit. Actually, it really depends on how your unit cooling system operates. Different model of air conditioners unit will have different cooling operations. However, as a rule of thumb, the followings are a general interval guideline that you can take for reference:
1. Hot regions. If your unit operates for 8 or more months per year, you need to engage a professional once a year.
2. Warm regions. If your unit operates for 5 to 8 months per year, you need to engage a professional every 2 to 3 years.
3. Cold regions. If operating for less than 5 months every year, engage a professional every 3 to 5 years.
With a well-maintained and energy saving air conditioning unit, you will get to see a slide in your air conditioner bill.
Air Conditioner Tips - How To Reduce Energy Bills
To reduce your air conditioner bills, the best way is to have a well-maintained air conditioner unit. Although tasks like cleaning can be easily done by you, for more complicated technical tasks, it is best to leave the hard work to an air conditioner professional to have you fulfil it.
An air conditioning unit is more complex than what you think it might be. Any adjustments or repairs should always be done by professionals. In a unit, there are refrigerant gases, compressors, fans, fins, coils, electrical starters, thermostats, and so many more. It is just to overwhelming for you to do the task by yourself.
When you find that the bills are shooting really high for the past few months, it is time to ask for a servicing so as to make your unit more efficient and save energy. You can engage a professional service technician and he should be able to clean the evaporator and condenser coils, check refrigerant pressures, and adjust and lubricate moving parts. Sometime, there will not be enough refrigerant gas. In this case, the technician will also help you to top up the unit. A professional technician will be able to detect symptoms that can lead to energy wastage or inefficiencies, and rectify them.
One major culprit for tremendous energy wastage is that your unit does not have a damper or have a malfunctioning one. A damper is place in the duct of an air conditioner unit so as to prevent cool air from entering the furnace cabinet in summer, and warm air from escaping to the air conditioner unit in winter. If the technician finds that you have a damaged damper, he will help you to repair or replace it.
You might ask how often do you need to call a professional technician to check on your air conditioner unit. Actually, it really depends on how your unit cooling system operates. Different model of air conditioners unit will have different cooling operations. However, as a rule of thumb, the followings are a general interval guideline that you can take for reference:
1. Hot regions. If your unit operates for 8 or more months per year, you need to engage a professional once a year.
2. Warm regions. If your unit operates for 5 to 8 months per year, you need to engage a professional every 2 to 3 years.
3. Cold regions. If operating for less than 5 months every year, engage a professional every 3 to 5 years.
With a well-maintained and energy saving air conditioning unit, you will get to see a slide in your air conditioner bill.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
How To Stop Your Air Conditioner From Freezing Up
One of the most common service complaints is an Air Conditioner freezing up, here are some tips to help you avoid a service call.
How To Stop Your Air Conditioner From Freezing Up
Scenario:
My air conditioner is freezing up almost daily. I've tried resetting the temperature and nothing seems to work. What would you suggest I to to stop my air conditioner from freezing?
Here some solution for your air conditioning repair:
Solution:
There are several factors that could be the cause. The four main reasons for air conditioner freeze ups:
Refrigerant charge
Outdoor temperature
Insufficient air flow
Defective blower
You may have a low refrigerant charge which can cause the air conditioner to freeze up. The system needs to be charged correctly to enable it to work properly. You may have a leak in the refrigerant lines.
If the lines have been vibrating or rubbing other parts or objects the friction could cause a leak. In addition if there are loose fittings or weak solder joints it could be leaking from those areas. If you've determined the refrigerant lines are not leaking than it may just need to be recharged. If you don't know how to recharge it you may need to contact a service technician.
In temperatures under 60 degrees outdoor air conditioning units tend not to function as well. When the temperature drops the system begins to not function properly and freeze ups can occur. The simplest method is to not use your unit when the temperature cools down and open your windows or doors. If that's not a option you will probably need to have a ambient temperature control installed in your system.
The evaporator coils will become dirty over time. A dirty filter restricts the air flow making it lose air flow and eventually it becomes so slow that it freezes up, or at best, not cooling as well as it should. This results in dirty coils that will need to be cleaned. Depending on your air conditioner you may have to remove the coils to clean them. You should replace the AC filter yearly. For central air conditioning units another problem that occurs is when you have duct work that is undersized causing the unit to freeze up. If you feel that may be the problem you'll need to consult a professional. Try replacing the filter first and it may do the trick. Air conditioner freeze ups can occur when the blower is not running at the required speed and may need to be replaced.
These are the main reasons why air conditioners freeze up. If you're lucky it may just be a dirty filter which you should be able to replace yourself.
How To Stop Your Air Conditioner From Freezing Up
Scenario:
My air conditioner is freezing up almost daily. I've tried resetting the temperature and nothing seems to work. What would you suggest I to to stop my air conditioner from freezing?
Here some solution for your air conditioning repair:
Solution:
There are several factors that could be the cause. The four main reasons for air conditioner freeze ups:
Refrigerant charge
Outdoor temperature
Insufficient air flow
Defective blower
You may have a low refrigerant charge which can cause the air conditioner to freeze up. The system needs to be charged correctly to enable it to work properly. You may have a leak in the refrigerant lines.
If the lines have been vibrating or rubbing other parts or objects the friction could cause a leak. In addition if there are loose fittings or weak solder joints it could be leaking from those areas. If you've determined the refrigerant lines are not leaking than it may just need to be recharged. If you don't know how to recharge it you may need to contact a service technician.
In temperatures under 60 degrees outdoor air conditioning units tend not to function as well. When the temperature drops the system begins to not function properly and freeze ups can occur. The simplest method is to not use your unit when the temperature cools down and open your windows or doors. If that's not a option you will probably need to have a ambient temperature control installed in your system.
The evaporator coils will become dirty over time. A dirty filter restricts the air flow making it lose air flow and eventually it becomes so slow that it freezes up, or at best, not cooling as well as it should. This results in dirty coils that will need to be cleaned. Depending on your air conditioner you may have to remove the coils to clean them. You should replace the AC filter yearly. For central air conditioning units another problem that occurs is when you have duct work that is undersized causing the unit to freeze up. If you feel that may be the problem you'll need to consult a professional. Try replacing the filter first and it may do the trick. Air conditioner freeze ups can occur when the blower is not running at the required speed and may need to be replaced.
These are the main reasons why air conditioners freeze up. If you're lucky it may just be a dirty filter which you should be able to replace yourself.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
How to fix a noisy Air Conditioner
Hers is a little help for things that go bump in the night
How To Fix A Noisy Air Conditioner
Scenario:
I have a portable window mount air conditioner set up. Sometimes it runs okay and at other times it makes a lot of noise. I've tried to fix the noise coming from my air conditioner but it always comes back. I believe it's caused by excessive vibrating. Do you have any suggestions?
Solution:
There are many reasons why an air condition produces noise. Sometimes loose hardware is the culprit. Air conditioner noise could be caused from the refrigerant tubing that has a bend in it that produces rattling because it's too close to other parts of the air conditioner.
These are some of the basics of air conditiong repair. But there is much more to learn.
You can correct this by carefully bending it back into it's original place. Take a look at the unit and see if there are any loose parts that could be banging around causing the noise. It may be the fan blades have gotten bent over time. To remedy this simply bend them back to their original position.
Is you portable air conditioner mounted properly in the window? While the unit is making noise and rattling carefully apply pressure to the window sash and listen for any changes in the sound. This can be remedied by inserting shims between the air conditioner frame and the sash. Another good idea is to check the screws on the front panel of your air conditioner. If loose they'll need to be tightened.
There may be more serious problems that would require a service technician such as compressor issues. Refrigerant floodback occurs when the liquid enters into the compressor crankcase. This noise would usually occur when the compressor starts up. Another issue could be oil leaks causing a low oil level in the compressor but it would probably be pretty rare.
It's most likely the way your air conditioner is mounted that is causing it to make noise. Experiment with the shims and I'll bet it goes away. Remember to unplug it from your electrical outlet before attempting to do any internal work on it.
How To Fix A Noisy Air Conditioner
Scenario:
I have a portable window mount air conditioner set up. Sometimes it runs okay and at other times it makes a lot of noise. I've tried to fix the noise coming from my air conditioner but it always comes back. I believe it's caused by excessive vibrating. Do you have any suggestions?
Solution:
There are many reasons why an air condition produces noise. Sometimes loose hardware is the culprit. Air conditioner noise could be caused from the refrigerant tubing that has a bend in it that produces rattling because it's too close to other parts of the air conditioner.
These are some of the basics of air conditiong repair. But there is much more to learn.
You can correct this by carefully bending it back into it's original place. Take a look at the unit and see if there are any loose parts that could be banging around causing the noise. It may be the fan blades have gotten bent over time. To remedy this simply bend them back to their original position.
Is you portable air conditioner mounted properly in the window? While the unit is making noise and rattling carefully apply pressure to the window sash and listen for any changes in the sound. This can be remedied by inserting shims between the air conditioner frame and the sash. Another good idea is to check the screws on the front panel of your air conditioner. If loose they'll need to be tightened.
There may be more serious problems that would require a service technician such as compressor issues. Refrigerant floodback occurs when the liquid enters into the compressor crankcase. This noise would usually occur when the compressor starts up. Another issue could be oil leaks causing a low oil level in the compressor but it would probably be pretty rare.
It's most likely the way your air conditioner is mounted that is causing it to make noise. Experiment with the shims and I'll bet it goes away. Remember to unplug it from your electrical outlet before attempting to do any internal work on it.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Tax Breaks for Upgrading your Home Comfort System
Are You Eligible for a Home Energy Tax Credit?
Homeowners that installed high efficiency heating and cooling systems between Jan. 1, 2006 and Dec. 31, 2007 may benefit from an unfamiliar tax option saving them up to $500 in tax credits.
The tax credit applies to select energy-efficient home improvement installations. The rebates can be received from a variety of products including:
Insulation systems that reduce heat loss or gain
Metal roofs (must meet Energy Star requirements)
Select heating and cooling equipment
Natural gas furnaces or hot water heaters
Exterior windows (includes skylights and storm windows)
Solar panels or water heating systems
"Filing taxes can be a stressful and time consuming process. Homeowners might overlook some tax credits," said Doyle James, president of Aire Serv Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc. "Not all manufacturers inform their customers about rebate opportunities, so it's important to be aware that you can receive money back from heating and cooling improvements."
Tips this tax season:
Go to the EnergyStar.gov Web site and look under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to become aware of what home improvements are eligible for a tax credit.
Look for the model numbers on your equipment to refer to qualifying standards.
Visit your manufacturer's Web site; many have lists of models that apply and available forms necessary to submit to the IRS.
Make sure you have a copy of the manufacturer's certification and receipts proving you purchased the improvements to qualify for the rebate.
Homeowners that installed high efficiency heating and cooling systems between Jan. 1, 2006 and Dec. 31, 2007 may benefit from an unfamiliar tax option saving them up to $500 in tax credits.
The tax credit applies to select energy-efficient home improvement installations. The rebates can be received from a variety of products including:
Insulation systems that reduce heat loss or gain
Metal roofs (must meet Energy Star requirements)
Select heating and cooling equipment
Natural gas furnaces or hot water heaters
Exterior windows (includes skylights and storm windows)
Solar panels or water heating systems
"Filing taxes can be a stressful and time consuming process. Homeowners might overlook some tax credits," said Doyle James, president of Aire Serv Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc. "Not all manufacturers inform their customers about rebate opportunities, so it's important to be aware that you can receive money back from heating and cooling improvements."
Tips this tax season:
Go to the EnergyStar.gov Web site and look under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to become aware of what home improvements are eligible for a tax credit.
Look for the model numbers on your equipment to refer to qualifying standards.
Visit your manufacturer's Web site; many have lists of models that apply and available forms necessary to submit to the IRS.
Make sure you have a copy of the manufacturer's certification and receipts proving you purchased the improvements to qualify for the rebate.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Copper is high watch your Air Conditioner
If this hasn't happened in your area yet it will
Thieves target air conditioners
Copper is their gold mine
March 5, 2008
LAKEWOOD (KWGN) — Thieves in Lakewood are rendering outdoor air conditioning units useless. Police said while you may not need it now, you may want to check your cooling system and make sure it's still in tact.
Copper is what they're after. Three people were arrested Sunday night and charged in connection with a theft in the 900 block of Wadsworth Boulevard. Police said the suspects may be linked to other crimes and therefore, have not released their mug shots.
There have been at least 20 copper thefts in Lakewood so far this year, and of those officials say the three may be responsible for half of them.
The building engineer for 940 Wadsworth caught the thieves dismantling what used to be 2 of 3 air conditioning units sitting outside the south end of the office building. He called 911. "It's probably going to cost about $12,000 dollars to repair the damage. We had two units that were vandalized," said building engineer Josh Bean.
Police said they discovered 10 pounds of copper in the getaway car driven by a female.
Scrap metal, especially copper, has become very valuable selling for $3.75 a pound and officials said copper thefts are on the rise.
Lakewood police said the number of metal thefts this year is on pace to break last year's number. In all of 2007, there were 66 metal thefts.
Air conditioning units appear to be the target right now.
The folks at National Heating and Cooling across the street agree. "We've had several calls where people go up and turn on the air conditioning and doesn't work," said employee Jana Scardello.
Matter of fact, the company had a full flat bed of copper piping stolen from behind its building recently. Scardello said it was worth a couple of hundred dollars.
Police emphasized, the amount thieves get from copper thefts is not anywhere near the cost to repair the damage left behind.
They advised folks to check on their outdoor units to make sure they're still in tact.
Lakewood police were checking with other jurisdictions to see if the suspects may be connected to metal thefts there.
Thieves target air conditioners
Copper is their gold mine
March 5, 2008
LAKEWOOD (KWGN) — Thieves in Lakewood are rendering outdoor air conditioning units useless. Police said while you may not need it now, you may want to check your cooling system and make sure it's still in tact.
Copper is what they're after. Three people were arrested Sunday night and charged in connection with a theft in the 900 block of Wadsworth Boulevard. Police said the suspects may be linked to other crimes and therefore, have not released their mug shots.
There have been at least 20 copper thefts in Lakewood so far this year, and of those officials say the three may be responsible for half of them.
The building engineer for 940 Wadsworth caught the thieves dismantling what used to be 2 of 3 air conditioning units sitting outside the south end of the office building. He called 911. "It's probably going to cost about $12,000 dollars to repair the damage. We had two units that were vandalized," said building engineer Josh Bean.
Police said they discovered 10 pounds of copper in the getaway car driven by a female.
Scrap metal, especially copper, has become very valuable selling for $3.75 a pound and officials said copper thefts are on the rise.
Lakewood police said the number of metal thefts this year is on pace to break last year's number. In all of 2007, there were 66 metal thefts.
Air conditioning units appear to be the target right now.
The folks at National Heating and Cooling across the street agree. "We've had several calls where people go up and turn on the air conditioning and doesn't work," said employee Jana Scardello.
Matter of fact, the company had a full flat bed of copper piping stolen from behind its building recently. Scardello said it was worth a couple of hundred dollars.
Police emphasized, the amount thieves get from copper thefts is not anywhere near the cost to repair the damage left behind.
They advised folks to check on their outdoor units to make sure they're still in tact.
Lakewood police were checking with other jurisdictions to see if the suspects may be connected to metal thefts there.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Going green you should first consider your Air Conditioner
Hotels Find it is Time to Go Green
Hyatt Bonaventure
The hospitality sector is rushing to jump into green building, years behind other commercial real estate sectors such as office towers or retail. But hotel operators are finding that using solar panels, computerized air conditioning and heating systems, intense recycling, reduced water usage and cutting-edge energy-saving architectural designs proves going green can end up black on owner’s books.
“There’s no question we’re not leaders in that (green) business, but I think we’re slowly coming around that way,” says John Fox of PKF Consulting in New York City, a hospitality research and consulting firm. “All major chains have started green programs and are looking at this area with a level of consciousness never heard of before.’’
For hotels, green means more than sustainable building materials, water-saving fixtures, programmable heating and air conditioning for each area of a hotel on an as-needed basis, or unique atrium designs that rely on passive light for heating, illumination and air flow. It’s also a strong reaction to an educated consumer now insisting on environmentally sensitive hotels, and, surprisingly, it’s the seasoned corporate traveler as well as a younger, environmentally conscious generation of travelers that are demanding green accommodations, say operators, architects and analysts.
Many hotels have undergone major renovations to turn green; but for new development the unanswered denominator is the premium in building to green specifications versus the payoff in energy savings down the road. The US Green Building Council has specific guidelines for hotels to earn the commonly known Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The program can also qualify developers for federal tax credits, and states are also now giving tax credits and other incentives for hotels to become environmentally sound. “We are seeing a rush of interest in green hotels, a drastic change just within the last nine months,” says Marc Heisterkamp, manager of corporate and investment real estate for the council.
Much of the activity is in renovations and management operations. Whether renovating an existing hotel with green initiatives and materials, or building from ground up, experts from The American Hotel & Lodging Association and hospitality architects are finding that a far more sophisticated traveler is now seeking out green hotels. “Major clients are now asking questions on green issues before booking, showing how much they care. Corporate travel in part is pushing this. Senior executives are much more sophisticated and showing much more interest in worker accountability and social responsibility,” says Heisterkamp. “They want to show clients a sense of community goodwill by selecting green hotels while spreading the same word to others in their organization.” Major clients are pressing hoteliers on these questions, driving home that they care about these issues, he says.
In the past, owners and management have resisted the move to environmentally friendly properties, but Ernst & Young’s 2008 lodging forecast cites “increased focus on the environment and climate change in the past few years’’ as a force driving developers, operators and guests for change. The resistance in the past has been fear of construction premiums for new technologies and materials when retrofitting existing properties or developing ground-up. The E&Y report shows that a few years ago the hospitality industry was seeing construction premiums of 20 % to build green, while some hotel companies insisting construction costs approach 30% to meet green standards. In its 2008 forecast, E&Y says Green Building Council statistics show the extra cost has dropped to 2% to 7%. The reports states that the initial increased construction costs are usually recaptured in one to two years.
An example of older properties going green is the $100 million renovation of the 501-room Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center and Spa in Weston, FL, a sprawling 23-acre, multi-building property. The site is 25 years old, and has flown nearly a dozen different flags in that time. Hyatt took over management in 2006 and coordinated the implementation of green renovation with its owner, says Hyatt Bonaventure director of marketing and sales Kelly Commerford.
The company officials devised a master plan following guidelines from the Green Building Council, the Green Hotel Association and the Florida Green Lodging Program, a Florida Department of Environmental Protection program that awards tax credits and recognition to top green development in the hospitality sector. Bonaventure is set to receive the state’s top award in green technology initiatives. “This is a time of change for the hospitality industry, and as a company, Hyatt is committed to sustainable business practices,” says Fred Euler, the hotel’s general manager, in a written statement. “We felt it was our responsibility to be proactive, so we established…the hotel’s eco-friendly program. We are eagerly awaiting the results of our audit from the state, so we can officially announce our certification.”
One of the many energy saving devices is computerized heating and air conditioning. “We’ve got state of the art (HVAC) controls for any single room,” says Commerford. “The system can automatically turn on to cool a meeting room an hour before arrival of the first function and shut down 45 minutes after. Normally you’d rely on the hotel’s chief engineer to run from room to room dealing with complaints, too-hot, too-cold, or the systems would run constantly, sometimes freezing, blasting out the guests. Now the engineers can just go home at night.” The hotel opened in early 2007 but Commerford said that they achieved a 35% reduction in energy savings. After a full year of operations, he expects savings to be a 48% to 50% reduction.
Thomoson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates, also known as TVS, is a hospitality consulting, design and architectural firm and member of the Green Hotel Association. Scott Sickeler, a leading design principal with the Atlanta firm, says due to confidentiality agreements he can not speak to specific project,s but that nearly every one he has recently been working with is seeking sustainability, green certification and many the top crown, LEED certification. That wasn’t the case in the past. He agrees the phenomena is consumer driven, but that in the present economy, hoteliers really have little choice other than green technologies to reduce operational costs.
Helen Hatch, also a principal with TVS, says in the past she didn’t initially see a “big shift among hotel owners and operators toward green design...The hospitality clients are not often coming to us requesting a LEED certified hotel, as many of our office and institutional clients. “But we are close to a tipping point in sustainable design and I think hotel guests will really want the hotels where they stay to be sustainable-designed, built and managed. It won’t take long. Once it happens, you will see a tremendous change in the industry,” she says.
The rush to green may be on but the industry has had its pioneers. The best example may be the Crowne Plaza Cabana Palo Alto, which when built in 1999, installed a solar-panel electrical generating roof that covered nearly all of the facilities electrical costs, says Andrew Kidde, the Cabana’s regional director of sales. “Our owners (BPR Hotels & Resorts LLC) are mechanical engineers and were ahead of the times,” says Kidde. “We’ve been green for 12 years.”
Hyatt Bonaventure
The hospitality sector is rushing to jump into green building, years behind other commercial real estate sectors such as office towers or retail. But hotel operators are finding that using solar panels, computerized air conditioning and heating systems, intense recycling, reduced water usage and cutting-edge energy-saving architectural designs proves going green can end up black on owner’s books.
“There’s no question we’re not leaders in that (green) business, but I think we’re slowly coming around that way,” says John Fox of PKF Consulting in New York City, a hospitality research and consulting firm. “All major chains have started green programs and are looking at this area with a level of consciousness never heard of before.’’
For hotels, green means more than sustainable building materials, water-saving fixtures, programmable heating and air conditioning for each area of a hotel on an as-needed basis, or unique atrium designs that rely on passive light for heating, illumination and air flow. It’s also a strong reaction to an educated consumer now insisting on environmentally sensitive hotels, and, surprisingly, it’s the seasoned corporate traveler as well as a younger, environmentally conscious generation of travelers that are demanding green accommodations, say operators, architects and analysts.
Many hotels have undergone major renovations to turn green; but for new development the unanswered denominator is the premium in building to green specifications versus the payoff in energy savings down the road. The US Green Building Council has specific guidelines for hotels to earn the commonly known Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. The program can also qualify developers for federal tax credits, and states are also now giving tax credits and other incentives for hotels to become environmentally sound. “We are seeing a rush of interest in green hotels, a drastic change just within the last nine months,” says Marc Heisterkamp, manager of corporate and investment real estate for the council.
Much of the activity is in renovations and management operations. Whether renovating an existing hotel with green initiatives and materials, or building from ground up, experts from The American Hotel & Lodging Association and hospitality architects are finding that a far more sophisticated traveler is now seeking out green hotels. “Major clients are now asking questions on green issues before booking, showing how much they care. Corporate travel in part is pushing this. Senior executives are much more sophisticated and showing much more interest in worker accountability and social responsibility,” says Heisterkamp. “They want to show clients a sense of community goodwill by selecting green hotels while spreading the same word to others in their organization.” Major clients are pressing hoteliers on these questions, driving home that they care about these issues, he says.
In the past, owners and management have resisted the move to environmentally friendly properties, but Ernst & Young’s 2008 lodging forecast cites “increased focus on the environment and climate change in the past few years’’ as a force driving developers, operators and guests for change. The resistance in the past has been fear of construction premiums for new technologies and materials when retrofitting existing properties or developing ground-up. The E&Y report shows that a few years ago the hospitality industry was seeing construction premiums of 20 % to build green, while some hotel companies insisting construction costs approach 30% to meet green standards. In its 2008 forecast, E&Y says Green Building Council statistics show the extra cost has dropped to 2% to 7%. The reports states that the initial increased construction costs are usually recaptured in one to two years.
An example of older properties going green is the $100 million renovation of the 501-room Hyatt Regency Bonaventure Conference Center and Spa in Weston, FL, a sprawling 23-acre, multi-building property. The site is 25 years old, and has flown nearly a dozen different flags in that time. Hyatt took over management in 2006 and coordinated the implementation of green renovation with its owner, says Hyatt Bonaventure director of marketing and sales Kelly Commerford.
The company officials devised a master plan following guidelines from the Green Building Council, the Green Hotel Association and the Florida Green Lodging Program, a Florida Department of Environmental Protection program that awards tax credits and recognition to top green development in the hospitality sector. Bonaventure is set to receive the state’s top award in green technology initiatives. “This is a time of change for the hospitality industry, and as a company, Hyatt is committed to sustainable business practices,” says Fred Euler, the hotel’s general manager, in a written statement. “We felt it was our responsibility to be proactive, so we established…the hotel’s eco-friendly program. We are eagerly awaiting the results of our audit from the state, so we can officially announce our certification.”
One of the many energy saving devices is computerized heating and air conditioning. “We’ve got state of the art (HVAC) controls for any single room,” says Commerford. “The system can automatically turn on to cool a meeting room an hour before arrival of the first function and shut down 45 minutes after. Normally you’d rely on the hotel’s chief engineer to run from room to room dealing with complaints, too-hot, too-cold, or the systems would run constantly, sometimes freezing, blasting out the guests. Now the engineers can just go home at night.” The hotel opened in early 2007 but Commerford said that they achieved a 35% reduction in energy savings. After a full year of operations, he expects savings to be a 48% to 50% reduction.
Thomoson, Ventulett, Stainback & Associates, also known as TVS, is a hospitality consulting, design and architectural firm and member of the Green Hotel Association. Scott Sickeler, a leading design principal with the Atlanta firm, says due to confidentiality agreements he can not speak to specific project,s but that nearly every one he has recently been working with is seeking sustainability, green certification and many the top crown, LEED certification. That wasn’t the case in the past. He agrees the phenomena is consumer driven, but that in the present economy, hoteliers really have little choice other than green technologies to reduce operational costs.
Helen Hatch, also a principal with TVS, says in the past she didn’t initially see a “big shift among hotel owners and operators toward green design...The hospitality clients are not often coming to us requesting a LEED certified hotel, as many of our office and institutional clients. “But we are close to a tipping point in sustainable design and I think hotel guests will really want the hotels where they stay to be sustainable-designed, built and managed. It won’t take long. Once it happens, you will see a tremendous change in the industry,” she says.
The rush to green may be on but the industry has had its pioneers. The best example may be the Crowne Plaza Cabana Palo Alto, which when built in 1999, installed a solar-panel electrical generating roof that covered nearly all of the facilities electrical costs, says Andrew Kidde, the Cabana’s regional director of sales. “Our owners (BPR Hotels & Resorts LLC) are mechanical engineers and were ahead of the times,” says Kidde. “We’ve been green for 12 years.”
Our Air Conditioners Devalue Daylight Savings
If we are not saving money why do we do it I guess some habits are hard to break.
Delaying the nominal time of sunset and sunrise reduces the use of artificial light in the evening and increases it in the morning. As Franklin's 1784 explanation pointed out, lighting costs are reduced if the evening reduction outweighs the morning increase, as in high-latitude summer when most people wake up well after sunrise. An early goal of DST was to reduce evening usage of incandescent lighting, formerly a primary use of electricity.[6] Although energy conservation remains an important goal,[24] studies are contradictory, and suggest that DST can increase energy use in some common cases:
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation (DOT) concluded in 1975 that DST might reduce the country's electricity usage by 1% during March and April,[25] but the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) reviewed the DOT study in 1976 and found no significant energy savings.[21]
In 2000 when parts of Australia began DST in late winter, overall electricity consumption did not decrease, but the morning peak load and prices increased.[26]
Although a 2007 study estimated that introducing DST to Japan would reduce household lighting energy consumption,[27] a 2007 simulation estimated that DST would increase overall energy use in Osaka residences by 0.13%, with a 0.02% decrease due to less lighting more than outweighed by a 0.15% increase due to extra cooling; neither study examined non-residential energy use.[28]
DST may increase gasoline consumption: U.S. gasoline demand grew an extra 1% during the newly introduced DST in March 2007.[29]
A 2007 study found that the earlier start to DST that year had little or no effect on electricity consumption in California.[30]
A 2007 study estimated that winter daylight saving would prevent a 2% increase in average daily electricity consumption in Great Britain.[31]
A 2008 study examined electricity billing data in Indiana before and after it adopted DST in 2006, and concluded that DST increased electricity consumption by 1% to 4%, primarily due to extra afternoon cooling.[7
Delaying the nominal time of sunset and sunrise reduces the use of artificial light in the evening and increases it in the morning. As Franklin's 1784 explanation pointed out, lighting costs are reduced if the evening reduction outweighs the morning increase, as in high-latitude summer when most people wake up well after sunrise. An early goal of DST was to reduce evening usage of incandescent lighting, formerly a primary use of electricity.[6] Although energy conservation remains an important goal,[24] studies are contradictory, and suggest that DST can increase energy use in some common cases:
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation (DOT) concluded in 1975 that DST might reduce the country's electricity usage by 1% during March and April,[25] but the National Bureau of Standards (NBS) reviewed the DOT study in 1976 and found no significant energy savings.[21]
In 2000 when parts of Australia began DST in late winter, overall electricity consumption did not decrease, but the morning peak load and prices increased.[26]
Although a 2007 study estimated that introducing DST to Japan would reduce household lighting energy consumption,[27] a 2007 simulation estimated that DST would increase overall energy use in Osaka residences by 0.13%, with a 0.02% decrease due to less lighting more than outweighed by a 0.15% increase due to extra cooling; neither study examined non-residential energy use.[28]
DST may increase gasoline consumption: U.S. gasoline demand grew an extra 1% during the newly introduced DST in March 2007.[29]
A 2007 study found that the earlier start to DST that year had little or no effect on electricity consumption in California.[30]
A 2007 study estimated that winter daylight saving would prevent a 2% increase in average daily electricity consumption in Great Britain.[31]
A 2008 study examined electricity billing data in Indiana before and after it adopted DST in 2006, and concluded that DST increased electricity consumption by 1% to 4%, primarily due to extra afternoon cooling.[7
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Many are considering insurance to keep repair payments low
Keeping Things Easy -- Pay Less to Protect Your Home Heating
With heating costs on the rise, it's a welcome change to have cover options that keep your premium low.
(PRWEB) February 28, 2008 -- At the end of this month, Homeserve, a leading provider of home repairs and insurance in the UK, are to introduce two new home cover products allowing customers to make convenient savings on their boiler and central heating repair bills.
EasyPay Boiler Cover and EasyPay Central Heating Cover offer reliable protection when it's needed, at an attractive price. Customers pay a low annual fee to keep their boiler or central heating insured -- if a repair is needed they then simply pay a set fee of £50 to have a qualified heating engineer on hand. In other words, customers get cover protection for less money by paying for repairs only when they need them.
As people become increasingly concerned about cowboy tradesmen and the difficulty of finding an affordable emergency repair, Easypay products also have the benefit of giving customers access to reliable professionals in their area at a no-hidden-cost fee. Homeserve use only CORGI registered engineers who are legally qualified to carry out gas repairs, so customers can be sure about their safety.
EasyPay Boiler Cover gives protection against gas boiler problems for just £5.99 a month, and EasyPay Central Heating Cover protects the home's gas central heating (including boiler pumps, hot water supply, faulty thermostats and radiator leaks) for £7.99. These products also allow customers to make an unlimited number of claims during their policy period.
Paul Ramsey, Marketing Manager of Homeserve Plc, said: "Our EasyPay products give customers tempting cover in terms of price. Everyone these days is interested in ways to save on home insurance - we wanted to make sure our customers don't loose out."
Homeserve have a full range of home insurance policies, including heating insurance that comes with an Annual Boiler Service to prevent problems before they start. From a consumer point of view, the more options the better, since different people have different needs for their home. EasyPay is the latest offering from Homeserve for those customers who want a small fixed premium that allows them to pay for repairs as they go.
With heating costs on the rise, it's a welcome change to have cover options that keep your premium low.
(PRWEB) February 28, 2008 -- At the end of this month, Homeserve, a leading provider of home repairs and insurance in the UK, are to introduce two new home cover products allowing customers to make convenient savings on their boiler and central heating repair bills.
EasyPay Boiler Cover and EasyPay Central Heating Cover offer reliable protection when it's needed, at an attractive price. Customers pay a low annual fee to keep their boiler or central heating insured -- if a repair is needed they then simply pay a set fee of £50 to have a qualified heating engineer on hand. In other words, customers get cover protection for less money by paying for repairs only when they need them.
As people become increasingly concerned about cowboy tradesmen and the difficulty of finding an affordable emergency repair, Easypay products also have the benefit of giving customers access to reliable professionals in their area at a no-hidden-cost fee. Homeserve use only CORGI registered engineers who are legally qualified to carry out gas repairs, so customers can be sure about their safety.
EasyPay Boiler Cover gives protection against gas boiler problems for just £5.99 a month, and EasyPay Central Heating Cover protects the home's gas central heating (including boiler pumps, hot water supply, faulty thermostats and radiator leaks) for £7.99. These products also allow customers to make an unlimited number of claims during their policy period.
Paul Ramsey, Marketing Manager of Homeserve Plc, said: "Our EasyPay products give customers tempting cover in terms of price. Everyone these days is interested in ways to save on home insurance - we wanted to make sure our customers don't loose out."
Homeserve have a full range of home insurance policies, including heating insurance that comes with an Annual Boiler Service to prevent problems before they start. From a consumer point of view, the more options the better, since different people have different needs for their home. EasyPay is the latest offering from Homeserve for those customers who want a small fixed premium that allows them to pay for repairs as they go.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Air Conditioning Repair Made Easy
People run into these kind of problems everyday and we like to help, see if this helps you.
I swear I have torn through all of the posting. The only one that seemed to come close was this one. The problem I have is identical but it didn't seem to come to a conclusion.
http://forum.doityourself.com/showthread.php?t=236546
I have a Amana/Goodman VCA30C2C AC unit and an American Standard Freedom 90 UX1B080A9421A furnace. My house is also zoned (2) with a Honeywell EMM-3 MiniZone panel.
The quick summary, since it is identical to the other post, is that the condenser AND fan run constantly. If I set either of the thermostats to COOL the blower comes on and cool air comes out. The house cools, the blower shuts off, but the condenser and condenser fan keep running. The only way I can shut it off is if I via the breaker.
From the other posts I've checked the contactor on the AC unit and it is working. I tested it by leaving the cover off, turned the power back on, and the contactor was "contacted". Also the zoning panel system LED shows when there are calls for heat and cool. There are no indicators on the panel that there is a problem. I do have two transformers. One is in the furnace and one is near the breaker box. I've tested the connections with a voltmeter and each are putting out power.
Here's the twist. I noticed this problem with the AC running all the time AFTER I replaced a pressure switch in the furnace. I can't tell you if the AC had this problem before or after I replaced the pressure switch. I'm wondering if while I was replace the pressure switch I touched a wire the wrong way and blew a relay or something similiar? I do know that I turned the power off at the breaker when I was working on the furnace.
I have pics of the unit and wiring but can't seem to add them to the posting. I'd be happy to email them to anyone who would like to take a look. Here is the link for the zone panel and my furnace. I have not been able to locate the manual for the AC.
***Funace***
http://www.americanstandardair.com/H...es_AUC_ADC.pdf
***Zone Panel***
http://customer.honeywell.com/techli...it/68-0237.pdf
I can't begin to say thank you for those who read, attempt, and maybe even solve my issue. It will be a great relief to get this fixed.
Thank you ! ! !
mike n
Too much AC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The control wires to the condensing unit as you have realized are being fed 24v constantly as you have identified the problem starting when you worked on the furnace let's start there follow the two control wires in to the furnace and see if the stripped back area on one of them is up against the control wire going to the R terminal, if this is not the issue or just to simplify in cooling the Y terminal on your furnaces control board is just a place to tie the wires together you can take the wire off Y that comes from the condensing unit and the wire coming from your Y terminal on your thermostat/EMM and tie them directly together then if the problem continues you know that it has nothing to do with your furnace work but when something like this happens with control wiring always try to seperate the possibilities into smaller "bite size" chunks you have already determined the problem is not outside what I have told you will tell whether or not the problem is in the furnace, if not go to thermostat and take off the wire on the Y terminal if it still persists that leaves only the EMM
Ghost wire understood
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
O.K. now...
I was just able to see your hand-made schematic (the one on graph paper) I can now see where this ghost cable comes from...it comes from the condensing unit outdoors. These two wires end up on the contactor coil terminals of the condensing unit outside the house. They have to be fed 24V on a call for cooling from the furnace's terminal board. Who makes that call? terminals Y and C on the furnace's terminal board.
Well then, the red wire in this ghost cable gets connected to the C terminal on the furnace terminal board, while the white wire from the ghost cable gets connected to the Y terminal on the terminal board.
this should take care of your problem...I hope
__________________
Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done and why. Then do it!
Wiring Scheme
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maybe this will help. If not atleast it help me get my head around the wiring. I'm thinking the next thing I need to do is put a multimeter on the connections while the system is in cool, heat, and maybe even in the off position. I can also put the meter on the AC Unit in each of the scenarios.
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You may disconnect that very same wire, which feeds one of the two terminals of the contactor coil, before turning the circuit breaker back to the ON position. Then, switch the breaker to ON...the motors should remain OFF. This would eliminate that contactor as the source of trouble.
Finally, with power still ON, touch the terminal of this yellow wire to the point from which it was disconnected. I expect the contacts of the contactor will pull in. You're handling here only 24V, nothing to be worried about.
My feeling is that you have a problem either at the furnace's board or the EMM zone controller, but want to put the condensing unit's contactor out of the way as the source of trouble.
Done and it did exactly as you said. The contactor clicked shut when I touched the wire back to the tab.
BTW, I had to ask: you have a top notch, 92.1% efficient,condensing-direct vent furnace indoors, matched to a seer-10 condensing unit outside, which is as low as it gets. How come?
It came with the place
I think you are right as I have the same feeling that it is something simple somewhere. I'll be honest and say I also have the nagging feeling it is something I did. Something simple that I didn't think much about when I did it and thus forgot I did it. Last night I couldn't help myself so I disconnected the Rh and Rc wires at the panel just to double check the connections. I found out that I was incorrect when I said I had two transformers. I was unscrewing it and since it is in a bad place that I can't see all that well a jumper fell out. Thus it is all connected to one transformer in the furnace.
Not sure if this helps but I left the jumper off and turned the power back on and sure enough, with the AC unit's breaker ON the fan(s) were NOT running. As soon as I put the jumper back in the fan started running constantly again.
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cassidy72
I want to double check before I disconnect the yellow wire. You want me to disconnect it while it's running? I just want to make sure I disconnect the right one.
You may disconnect that very same wire, which feeds one of the two terminals of the contactor coil, before turning the circuit breaker back to the ON position. Then, switch the breaker to ON...the motors should remain OFF. This would eliminate that contactor as the source of trouble.
Finally, with power still ON, touch the terminal of this yellow wire to the point from which it was disconnected. I expect the contacts of the contactor will pull in. You're handling here only 24V, nothing to be worried about.
My feeling is that you have a problem either at the furnace's board or the EMM zone controller, but want to put the condensing unit's contactor out of the way as the source of trouble.
Nice pics.
BTW, I had to ask: you have a top notch, 92.1% efficient,condensing-direct vent furnace indoors, matched to a seer-10 condensing unit outside, which is as low as it gets. How come?
__________________
Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done and why. Then do it!
Trying to be proactive
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thought I would post these just in case they are helpful.
Zone Panel
Furnace Wiring
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
Reply
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for the quick reply. I attempted to answer your questions the best that I could below.
First things first: when you say the condenser and the condenser fan motor keep running I take it that you mean the "compressor" and the condenser fan motors...in other words, the two motors that are part of the unit that is installed outdoors. Please confirm
My bad. Yes the two motors in the unit outdoors runs constantly. I've left the breaker in the off position so the unit hasn't been running.
Try the following first:
From the thermostat, turn the system switch to OFF (the one that reads COOL-OFF-HEAT) and the fan switch to AUTO (the one that reads AUTO-ON).
Under normal circumstances, this should turn everything OFF, both, outdoors and inside the house.
If the outdoor motors (compressor and fan) are still ON, remove the cover, look for the contactor coil and pull/disconnect the YELLOW thermostat wire. This should de-energize the contactor coil, forcing its contacts to open and turn both motors OFF. Please confirm.
I set the thermostat to Off and Auto and yes the compressor and fan motors on the outside unit are still running. I want to double check before I disconnect the yellow wire. You want me to disconnect it while it's running? I have done numerous electrical projects (not much with air cond. and 220 lines) and I try my best to do the safety first thing. Is it required that I do it while it's running? I've included a pic. I circled the two yellow wires that I see. I just want to make sure I disconnect the right one.
A most weird problem.
First things first: when you say the condenser and the condenser fan motor keep running I take it that you mean the "compressor" and the condenser fan motors...in other words, the two motors that are part of the unit that is installed outdoors. Please confirm
If this is the scenario you have there, it is a wonder and a miracle that you have not lost your compressor motor yet.
Try the following first:
From the thermostat, turn the system switch to OFF (the one that reads COOL-OFF-HEAT) and the fan switch to AUTO (the one that reads AUTO-ON).
Under normal circumstances, this should turn everything OFF, both, outdoors and inside the house.
If the outdoor motors (compressor and fan) are still ON, remove the cover, look for the contactor coil and pull/disconnect the YELLOW thermostat wire. This should de-energize the contactor coil, forcing its contacts to open and turn both motors OFF. Please confirm.
I'll be looking forward to your feedback.
Yet another "AC fan runs constantly" post
I swear I have torn through all of the posting. The only one that seemed to come close was this one. The problem I have is identical but it didn't seem to come to a conclusion.
http://forum.doityourself.com/showthread.php?t=236546
I have a Amana/Goodman VCA30C2C AC unit and an American Standard Freedom 90 UX1B080A9421A furnace. My house is also zoned (2) with a Honeywell EMM-3 MiniZone panel.
The quick summary, since it is identical to the other post, is that the condenser AND fan run constantly. If I set either of the thermostats to COOL the blower comes on and cool air comes out. The house cools, the blower shuts off, but the condenser and condenser fan keep running. The only way I can shut it off is if I via the breaker.
From the other posts I've checked the contactor on the AC unit and it is working. I tested it by leaving the cover off, turned the power back on, and the contactor was "contacted". Also the zoning panel system LED shows when there are calls for heat and cool. There are no indicators on the panel that there is a problem. I do have two transformers. One is in the furnace and one is near the breaker box. I've tested the connections with a voltmeter and each are putting out power.
Here's the twist. I noticed this problem with the AC running all the time AFTER I replaced a pressure switch in the furnace. I can't tell you if the AC had this problem before or after I replaced the pressure switch. I'm wondering if while I was replace the pressure switch I touched a wire the wrong way and blew a relay or something similiar? I do know that I turned the power off at the breaker when I was working on the furnace.
I have pics of the unit and wiring but can't seem to add them to the posting. I'd be happy to email them to anyone who would like to take a look. Here is the link for the zone panel and my furnace. I have not been able to locate the manual for the AC.
***Funace***
http://www.americanstandardair.com/H...es_AUC_ADC.pdf
***Zone Panel***
http://customer.honeywell.com/techli...it/68-0237.pdf
I can't begin to say thank you for those who read, attempt, and maybe even solve my issue. It will be a great relief to get this fixed.
Thank you ! ! !
mike n
Too much AC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The control wires to the condensing unit as you have realized are being fed 24v constantly as you have identified the problem starting when you worked on the furnace let's start there follow the two control wires in to the furnace and see if the stripped back area on one of them is up against the control wire going to the R terminal, if this is not the issue or just to simplify in cooling the Y terminal on your furnaces control board is just a place to tie the wires together you can take the wire off Y that comes from the condensing unit and the wire coming from your Y terminal on your thermostat/EMM and tie them directly together then if the problem continues you know that it has nothing to do with your furnace work but when something like this happens with control wiring always try to seperate the possibilities into smaller "bite size" chunks you have already determined the problem is not outside what I have told you will tell whether or not the problem is in the furnace, if not go to thermostat and take off the wire on the Y terminal if it still persists that leaves only the EMM
Ghost wire understood
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
O.K. now...
I was just able to see your hand-made schematic (the one on graph paper) I can now see where this ghost cable comes from...it comes from the condensing unit outdoors. These two wires end up on the contactor coil terminals of the condensing unit outside the house. They have to be fed 24V on a call for cooling from the furnace's terminal board. Who makes that call? terminals Y and C on the furnace's terminal board.
Well then, the red wire in this ghost cable gets connected to the C terminal on the furnace terminal board, while the white wire from the ghost cable gets connected to the Y terminal on the terminal board.
this should take care of your problem...I hope
__________________
Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done and why. Then do it!
Wiring Scheme
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maybe this will help. If not atleast it help me get my head around the wiring. I'm thinking the next thing I need to do is put a multimeter on the connections while the system is in cool, heat, and maybe even in the off position. I can also put the meter on the AC Unit in each of the scenarios.
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You may disconnect that very same wire, which feeds one of the two terminals of the contactor coil, before turning the circuit breaker back to the ON position. Then, switch the breaker to ON...the motors should remain OFF. This would eliminate that contactor as the source of trouble.
Finally, with power still ON, touch the terminal of this yellow wire to the point from which it was disconnected. I expect the contacts of the contactor will pull in. You're handling here only 24V, nothing to be worried about.
My feeling is that you have a problem either at the furnace's board or the EMM zone controller, but want to put the condensing unit's contactor out of the way as the source of trouble.
Done and it did exactly as you said. The contactor clicked shut when I touched the wire back to the tab.
BTW, I had to ask: you have a top notch, 92.1% efficient,condensing-direct vent furnace indoors, matched to a seer-10 condensing unit outside, which is as low as it gets. How come?
It came with the place
I think you are right as I have the same feeling that it is something simple somewhere. I'll be honest and say I also have the nagging feeling it is something I did. Something simple that I didn't think much about when I did it and thus forgot I did it. Last night I couldn't help myself so I disconnected the Rh and Rc wires at the panel just to double check the connections. I found out that I was incorrect when I said I had two transformers. I was unscrewing it and since it is in a bad place that I can't see all that well a jumper fell out. Thus it is all connected to one transformer in the furnace.
Not sure if this helps but I left the jumper off and turned the power back on and sure enough, with the AC unit's breaker ON the fan(s) were NOT running. As soon as I put the jumper back in the fan started running constantly again.
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cassidy72
I want to double check before I disconnect the yellow wire. You want me to disconnect it while it's running? I just want to make sure I disconnect the right one.
You may disconnect that very same wire, which feeds one of the two terminals of the contactor coil, before turning the circuit breaker back to the ON position. Then, switch the breaker to ON...the motors should remain OFF. This would eliminate that contactor as the source of trouble.
Finally, with power still ON, touch the terminal of this yellow wire to the point from which it was disconnected. I expect the contacts of the contactor will pull in. You're handling here only 24V, nothing to be worried about.
My feeling is that you have a problem either at the furnace's board or the EMM zone controller, but want to put the condensing unit's contactor out of the way as the source of trouble.
Nice pics.
BTW, I had to ask: you have a top notch, 92.1% efficient,condensing-direct vent furnace indoors, matched to a seer-10 condensing unit outside, which is as low as it gets. How come?
__________________
Always listen to experts. They’ll tell you what can’t be done and why. Then do it!
Trying to be proactive
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thought I would post these just in case they are helpful.
Zone Panel
Furnace Wiring
__________________
I don't fix things myself to save money as it usually winds up costing more. I do it because I just want to know.
Reply
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for the quick reply. I attempted to answer your questions the best that I could below.
First things first: when you say the condenser and the condenser fan motor keep running I take it that you mean the "compressor" and the condenser fan motors...in other words, the two motors that are part of the unit that is installed outdoors. Please confirm
My bad. Yes the two motors in the unit outdoors runs constantly. I've left the breaker in the off position so the unit hasn't been running.
Try the following first:
From the thermostat, turn the system switch to OFF (the one that reads COOL-OFF-HEAT) and the fan switch to AUTO (the one that reads AUTO-ON).
Under normal circumstances, this should turn everything OFF, both, outdoors and inside the house.
If the outdoor motors (compressor and fan) are still ON, remove the cover, look for the contactor coil and pull/disconnect the YELLOW thermostat wire. This should de-energize the contactor coil, forcing its contacts to open and turn both motors OFF. Please confirm.
I set the thermostat to Off and Auto and yes the compressor and fan motors on the outside unit are still running. I want to double check before I disconnect the yellow wire. You want me to disconnect it while it's running? I have done numerous electrical projects (not much with air cond. and 220 lines) and I try my best to do the safety first thing. Is it required that I do it while it's running? I've included a pic. I circled the two yellow wires that I see. I just want to make sure I disconnect the right one.
A most weird problem.
First things first: when you say the condenser and the condenser fan motor keep running I take it that you mean the "compressor" and the condenser fan motors...in other words, the two motors that are part of the unit that is installed outdoors. Please confirm
If this is the scenario you have there, it is a wonder and a miracle that you have not lost your compressor motor yet.
Try the following first:
From the thermostat, turn the system switch to OFF (the one that reads COOL-OFF-HEAT) and the fan switch to AUTO (the one that reads AUTO-ON).
Under normal circumstances, this should turn everything OFF, both, outdoors and inside the house.
If the outdoor motors (compressor and fan) are still ON, remove the cover, look for the contactor coil and pull/disconnect the YELLOW thermostat wire. This should de-energize the contactor coil, forcing its contacts to open and turn both motors OFF. Please confirm.
I'll be looking forward to your feedback.
Yet another "AC fan runs constantly" post
Thursday, March 6, 2008
How to Green Up your Home the most effective way
As I always say Dollar for Dollar there is no more effective way to impact your Carbon Footprint than to properly upgrade your Home or Business HVAC System, here are some tips.
Greener Living: Small Steps, Big Savings
KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ Your contractor just outfitted your house with an array of solar panels, and soon the windmill will be up and running out back. Hey, you'll be off-grid by summer.
Not your story?
Then you're like most of us in terms of energy use, living in a regular house without any highfalutin green amenities.
Still, like most people, you'd rather not spend more money than you must on utility bills _ or suck up more energy resources than makes good sense.
Start by reducing home energy use.
Spring is a fine time to start making changes, during an energy-use lull between winter's chill and summer's swelter.
An estimated 25 percent of the United States' enormous energy bill is attributable to households. That's a big chunk, so even small changes by a lot of people result in significant overall reductions.
Individually, those small changes often amount to only small dollar savings. But if homeowners make gradual improvements, energy experts say, eventually they could cut their energy bills by as much as 50 percent.
So, start small, plan bigger.
"Do the simplest, low-cost things up front, and get those out of the way," said Jennifer Thorne Amann, co-author of "Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings."
Then put yourself in an energy-savings frame of mind as the bigger decisions come along, from appliance purchases and beyond, Amann said.
AUDIT ME
Assessing the situation at your house is Job 1. That could mean an audit by a professional, but this is not like an IRS audit. There are no fines, and nobody's going to jail. Doing an online self-audit is another good way to start.
A professional house audit will take a few hours to perform and cost several hundred dollars. Get ready to hear about the "building envelope." (See glossary.)
Sharla Riead and her company, Hathmore Technologies in Blue Springs, Mo., conducts residential energy audits. A professional can reliably identify the highest priority improvements that will save the most in energy costs, she said.
There might be leaks in your house's ductwork, for instance. About 20 percent of a home's heating and cooling inefficiencies are related to the ductwork. Or the auditor might determine your attic insulation is fine but insulation is lacking in the basement.
And safety is a concern, Riead said. While you want to plug up a leaky house, you also want to be certain it's properly ventilated.
Homeowners can get help choosing a residential energy auditor through the Metropolitan Energy Center. Call the Home Energy Information Line at 816-835-7593. Also ask about a new program available to Missouri customers of KCP&L. Homeowners can get a rebate for audit costs provided they make an improvement recommended in the audit.
PLUG HOLES
Ever thought of all the places your house leaks air? A fireplace, for example, is a big hole in your house, and dampers don't always seal tightly.
At a recent remodeling show, Kristin Riott of Bridging the Gap, a Kansas City environmental organization, had on display what looked like a big black plastic pillow. It was a fireplace plug.
Susan Brown of the Energy Savings Store in Prairie Village, Kan., said the stoppers cost less than $60, an inexpensive way to reduce air leakage when not using the fireplace.
Amann said people often jump quickly to the conclusion that fixing a leaky house requires new windows. Actually, she said, because replacing a house full of windows is so expensive, it's tough to recoup the money in energy savings.
But if new windows are in the budget, she said, spend the extra money it takes to get high-efficiency windows that have earned the Energy Star label.
Amann, who has a 140-year-old row house in Baltimore, said she has newer windows but they weren't installed well. Her solution was a trip to the hardware store for caulk and weather-stripping.
"We did that ourselves," she said. "That and installing door sweeps are really simple things."
Now, think smaller holes, such as places where pipes, wires and cables enter the house. Often those spots aren't insulated well.
When Jason Jones, KCP&L's energy solutions manager, tended to his drafty house, he used spray foam insulation in such small holes and gaps. The foam expands and fills the crevices.
George Phillips, KCP&L's energy efficiency manager, took aim at his electrical outlets, which are also leaky. He unscrewed the wall plates, placed thin foam pads from the hardware store around the outlets and replaced the plates.
POWER OFF, FOR REAL
If you still think on is on and off is off, you're living in another era, back when TVs warmed up. And most people owned just one.
Nowadays, our "plug-in loads," as the experts say, are way up: multiple televisions, video game equipment, several computers with associated contraptions, chargers for personal gadgetry and so on.
One problem is that we don't turn them off, although it might seem like we do, Amann said with a laugh.
"I'm laughing because I'm looking around my home office, and it's a mass of wires and cords and little gadgets everywhere," she said. "I try to tame the little lights, to make them go away."
Those "little lights" and remote controls are signs that the machines stay on, if only a little bit. And plugged-in chargers, even if not attached to a piece of equipment at the other end, still draw power.
The solution is to either unplug stuff at the wall or, more practically, plug electronic equipment into power strips and switch off the strip when the equipment isn't in use.
"You actually can save on your electric bill by turning off all those things when you're not using them," said Dustin Jensen with the Metropolitan Energy Center.
USE IT BETTER
With a change of habits, most people can use the equipment they have more efficiently.
But first, experts say, get rid of appliances you don't really need. Refrigerators are one of the biggest energy consumers in typical houses, Riott said, so plugged-in but unused or little-used fridges and freezers should be the first to go.
Stove tops and ovens, like anything that heats up quickly, are also energy-intensive, much more so than a microwave oven. One hour of cooking time in an electric oven, for instance, can cost about 19 cents, while 15 minutes in a microwave costs only 3 cents.
"I try to use my microwave as much as I can for cooking," Riott said.
On the cleanup side, studies show a fully loaded dishwasher uses less energy than washing the same amount by hand. Use the dishwasher's light cycle and air-dry setting to improve efficiency.
When picking out new appliances, electronics and other equipment, buy those that are Energy Star rated, which means they are certified by a government program to be as much as 50 percent more efficient than standard products.
Heating and cooling are a home's biggest energy expense, so every opportunity should be taken to manipulate the thermostat.
Ceiling fans are a good deal in the summer, allowing homeowners to raise the thermostat by as much as 4 degrees, which saves a bundle on air conditioning.
But don't forget to turn them off when you're not in the room, Amann said. The air movement cools the skin but doesn't actually cool the room, so leaving fans on in an empty room is a waste.
As for thermostats, programmable ones reduce energy use.
"The advantage with the `programmable' is that when you get back from work or wake up in the morning, it's already bringing the temperature back to your comfort point," Jensen said. "Plus, you don't have to think about it."
Jones of KCP&L said programmable thermostats offer savings of up to 20 percent in heating and cooling costs. KCP&L will install a free one, a value of about $300, for customers who allow the company to alter their air conditioners' cycle time during peak demand periods.
Most people know by now that compact fluorescent lamps are much cheaper to operate than incandescent bulbs. How much?
On average, 75 percent more efficient, said Jensen of the Metropolitan Energy Center. About 90 percent of the electricity consumed by an incandescent bulb is given off as heat and only about 10 percent as light. Compact fluorescents are the reverse, he said. They also last much longer, five years on average.
A couple of caveats: For lights on dimmers and in three-way lamps, look for CFLs that say they will work for those applications. And remember that fluorescents have a tiny amount of mercury in them and so must be taken to a recycling center rather than thrown away.
SOLAR, GEOTHERMAL
The beginning of this story notwithstanding, quite a few folks are investing in what might be called highfalutin, high-tech energy solutions.
Riott of Bridging the Gap installed a geothermal heat pump system at her Prairie Village home. Such systems use the constant temperature of the Earth to operate and are pricey to install, typically $16,000 to $25,000. But Riott expects to cut her heating and cooling costs by two-thirds.
And Brown of the Energy Savings Store, which has expertise in solar installations, noted that people who can't afford expensive solar panels are drawn to a relatively inexpensive device, the SolarSheat, to help warm their homes in the winter. The panels are placed on an exterior, south-facing wall and cost about $2,500. Brown has one and likes it.
"It keeps your furnace from having to turn on so much," she said. "It's for people looking for something just a little more exciting than the usual efficiency tips."
___
RESOURCES
Air Conditioning and Heating Repair Made Easy $59.97
http://www.howtorepairairconditioners.com/
"Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings" by Jennifer Thorne Amann, Alex Wilson and Katie Ackerly, $16.95.
Conduct a free, Home Energy Saver do-it-yourself audit: hes.lbl.gov.
Metropolitan Energy Center has information on residential energy auditors and area energy programs (816-531-7283, kcenergy.org).
KCP&L's "Energy Optimizer" free programmable thermostat program (1-866-882-4429); the "Cool Homes" program for air-conditioner inspection and rebates (1-866-276-9303); and the "Energy Analyzer" online home energy survey (kcpl.com).
Rocky Mountain Institute's "Home Energy Briefs": rmi.org.
American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's "Home Energy Checklist for Action": aceee.org.
"A Consumer's Guide to Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy" by the U.S. Department of Energy: eere.energy.gov.
___
GLOSSARY
Blower door: A procedure used in home energy audits. A powerful fan is attached to an exterior door, and air is pulled from the house. An energy auditor rates the house's leakage or "infiltration" and identifies specific trouble spots.
Building envelope: The house's roof, walls, windows and foundation, the parts that separate the inside from the outside.
Duct blaster: A test of a home's ductwork for leakage. An instrument detects leaks as air is forced into the duct system.
Energy Star: A product rating program by the EPA and the Energy Department. An Energy Star designation means the product uses 10 percent to 50 percent less energy and water than standard products. Some builders are constructing Energy Star houses.
Infiltration: Accidental air leakage from your house. The Energy Department estimates the sources of leaks this way: 31 percent from floors, walls and ceilings, 15 percent from ductwork, 14 percent from the fireplace, 13 percent from plumbing penetrations, 11 percent from doors, 10 percent from windows, 4 percent from fans, 2 percent from electrical outlets.
Phantom power: The electricity used to power light displays and instant-on features of otherwise turned-off computers, TVs and other electronic equipment. It also refers to the lost power when chargers are plugged into an outlet but aren't charging.
R-value: A measure of a material's resistance to the transfer of heat through it. R-values describe building insulation. The higher the number, the better the insulation. For instance, a professional might recommend R-49 in ceilings and R-26 in walls.
___
DUCTS AND INSULATION
Leaky houses waste energy. A home energy audit will check ductwork and insulation in walls, ceilings and basements.
WINDOWS
Replace them? Depends. New windows are expensive, and it's difficult to recoup the cost in energy savings. Other improvements might be a priority.
REFRIGERATOR
Get rid of that plugged-in but often unused one in the garage or basement. Look for Energy Star appliances and electronics when buying new.
WATER HEATER
A blanket on an old one could help. As for tankless or demand water heaters, they save energy because they don't store water. But flow might not be adequate in busy households doing multiple hot-water tasks at the same time.
ELECTRONICS
Computers, stereos, TVs and other devices only look like they're turned off. Most are on, at least a little bit, all the time. Use power strips to shut them down completely.
LIGHT BULBS
Compact fluorescents, of course, but get to know Kelvin. The K value on the package tells you the color temperature. For instance, about 2800 K is "soft white," similar to a 60W incandescent bulb.
CEILING FANS
They will help in the coming air-conditioning season, allowing you to raise the thermostat several degrees. They work by cooling you, not the room, so turn them off when you leave.
FURNACE AND AC
Together they're the energy-suckers in your house _ 40 percent or more of a home's energy use. The myth is the bigger the AC unit the better. Oversized units don't cool correctly and cost more to operate.
Greener Living: Small Steps, Big Savings
KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ Your contractor just outfitted your house with an array of solar panels, and soon the windmill will be up and running out back. Hey, you'll be off-grid by summer.
Not your story?
Then you're like most of us in terms of energy use, living in a regular house without any highfalutin green amenities.
Still, like most people, you'd rather not spend more money than you must on utility bills _ or suck up more energy resources than makes good sense.
Start by reducing home energy use.
Spring is a fine time to start making changes, during an energy-use lull between winter's chill and summer's swelter.
An estimated 25 percent of the United States' enormous energy bill is attributable to households. That's a big chunk, so even small changes by a lot of people result in significant overall reductions.
Individually, those small changes often amount to only small dollar savings. But if homeowners make gradual improvements, energy experts say, eventually they could cut their energy bills by as much as 50 percent.
So, start small, plan bigger.
"Do the simplest, low-cost things up front, and get those out of the way," said Jennifer Thorne Amann, co-author of "Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings."
Then put yourself in an energy-savings frame of mind as the bigger decisions come along, from appliance purchases and beyond, Amann said.
AUDIT ME
Assessing the situation at your house is Job 1. That could mean an audit by a professional, but this is not like an IRS audit. There are no fines, and nobody's going to jail. Doing an online self-audit is another good way to start.
A professional house audit will take a few hours to perform and cost several hundred dollars. Get ready to hear about the "building envelope." (See glossary.)
Sharla Riead and her company, Hathmore Technologies in Blue Springs, Mo., conducts residential energy audits. A professional can reliably identify the highest priority improvements that will save the most in energy costs, she said.
There might be leaks in your house's ductwork, for instance. About 20 percent of a home's heating and cooling inefficiencies are related to the ductwork. Or the auditor might determine your attic insulation is fine but insulation is lacking in the basement.
And safety is a concern, Riead said. While you want to plug up a leaky house, you also want to be certain it's properly ventilated.
Homeowners can get help choosing a residential energy auditor through the Metropolitan Energy Center. Call the Home Energy Information Line at 816-835-7593. Also ask about a new program available to Missouri customers of KCP&L. Homeowners can get a rebate for audit costs provided they make an improvement recommended in the audit.
PLUG HOLES
Ever thought of all the places your house leaks air? A fireplace, for example, is a big hole in your house, and dampers don't always seal tightly.
At a recent remodeling show, Kristin Riott of Bridging the Gap, a Kansas City environmental organization, had on display what looked like a big black plastic pillow. It was a fireplace plug.
Susan Brown of the Energy Savings Store in Prairie Village, Kan., said the stoppers cost less than $60, an inexpensive way to reduce air leakage when not using the fireplace.
Amann said people often jump quickly to the conclusion that fixing a leaky house requires new windows. Actually, she said, because replacing a house full of windows is so expensive, it's tough to recoup the money in energy savings.
But if new windows are in the budget, she said, spend the extra money it takes to get high-efficiency windows that have earned the Energy Star label.
Amann, who has a 140-year-old row house in Baltimore, said she has newer windows but they weren't installed well. Her solution was a trip to the hardware store for caulk and weather-stripping.
"We did that ourselves," she said. "That and installing door sweeps are really simple things."
Now, think smaller holes, such as places where pipes, wires and cables enter the house. Often those spots aren't insulated well.
When Jason Jones, KCP&L's energy solutions manager, tended to his drafty house, he used spray foam insulation in such small holes and gaps. The foam expands and fills the crevices.
George Phillips, KCP&L's energy efficiency manager, took aim at his electrical outlets, which are also leaky. He unscrewed the wall plates, placed thin foam pads from the hardware store around the outlets and replaced the plates.
POWER OFF, FOR REAL
If you still think on is on and off is off, you're living in another era, back when TVs warmed up. And most people owned just one.
Nowadays, our "plug-in loads," as the experts say, are way up: multiple televisions, video game equipment, several computers with associated contraptions, chargers for personal gadgetry and so on.
One problem is that we don't turn them off, although it might seem like we do, Amann said with a laugh.
"I'm laughing because I'm looking around my home office, and it's a mass of wires and cords and little gadgets everywhere," she said. "I try to tame the little lights, to make them go away."
Those "little lights" and remote controls are signs that the machines stay on, if only a little bit. And plugged-in chargers, even if not attached to a piece of equipment at the other end, still draw power.
The solution is to either unplug stuff at the wall or, more practically, plug electronic equipment into power strips and switch off the strip when the equipment isn't in use.
"You actually can save on your electric bill by turning off all those things when you're not using them," said Dustin Jensen with the Metropolitan Energy Center.
USE IT BETTER
With a change of habits, most people can use the equipment they have more efficiently.
But first, experts say, get rid of appliances you don't really need. Refrigerators are one of the biggest energy consumers in typical houses, Riott said, so plugged-in but unused or little-used fridges and freezers should be the first to go.
Stove tops and ovens, like anything that heats up quickly, are also energy-intensive, much more so than a microwave oven. One hour of cooking time in an electric oven, for instance, can cost about 19 cents, while 15 minutes in a microwave costs only 3 cents.
"I try to use my microwave as much as I can for cooking," Riott said.
On the cleanup side, studies show a fully loaded dishwasher uses less energy than washing the same amount by hand. Use the dishwasher's light cycle and air-dry setting to improve efficiency.
When picking out new appliances, electronics and other equipment, buy those that are Energy Star rated, which means they are certified by a government program to be as much as 50 percent more efficient than standard products.
Heating and cooling are a home's biggest energy expense, so every opportunity should be taken to manipulate the thermostat.
Ceiling fans are a good deal in the summer, allowing homeowners to raise the thermostat by as much as 4 degrees, which saves a bundle on air conditioning.
But don't forget to turn them off when you're not in the room, Amann said. The air movement cools the skin but doesn't actually cool the room, so leaving fans on in an empty room is a waste.
As for thermostats, programmable ones reduce energy use.
"The advantage with the `programmable' is that when you get back from work or wake up in the morning, it's already bringing the temperature back to your comfort point," Jensen said. "Plus, you don't have to think about it."
Jones of KCP&L said programmable thermostats offer savings of up to 20 percent in heating and cooling costs. KCP&L will install a free one, a value of about $300, for customers who allow the company to alter their air conditioners' cycle time during peak demand periods.
Most people know by now that compact fluorescent lamps are much cheaper to operate than incandescent bulbs. How much?
On average, 75 percent more efficient, said Jensen of the Metropolitan Energy Center. About 90 percent of the electricity consumed by an incandescent bulb is given off as heat and only about 10 percent as light. Compact fluorescents are the reverse, he said. They also last much longer, five years on average.
A couple of caveats: For lights on dimmers and in three-way lamps, look for CFLs that say they will work for those applications. And remember that fluorescents have a tiny amount of mercury in them and so must be taken to a recycling center rather than thrown away.
SOLAR, GEOTHERMAL
The beginning of this story notwithstanding, quite a few folks are investing in what might be called highfalutin, high-tech energy solutions.
Riott of Bridging the Gap installed a geothermal heat pump system at her Prairie Village home. Such systems use the constant temperature of the Earth to operate and are pricey to install, typically $16,000 to $25,000. But Riott expects to cut her heating and cooling costs by two-thirds.
And Brown of the Energy Savings Store, which has expertise in solar installations, noted that people who can't afford expensive solar panels are drawn to a relatively inexpensive device, the SolarSheat, to help warm their homes in the winter. The panels are placed on an exterior, south-facing wall and cost about $2,500. Brown has one and likes it.
"It keeps your furnace from having to turn on so much," she said. "It's for people looking for something just a little more exciting than the usual efficiency tips."
___
RESOURCES
Air Conditioning and Heating Repair Made Easy $59.97
http://www.howtorepairairconditioners.com/
"Consumer Guide to Home Energy Savings" by Jennifer Thorne Amann, Alex Wilson and Katie Ackerly, $16.95.
Conduct a free, Home Energy Saver do-it-yourself audit: hes.lbl.gov.
Metropolitan Energy Center has information on residential energy auditors and area energy programs (816-531-7283, kcenergy.org).
KCP&L's "Energy Optimizer" free programmable thermostat program (1-866-882-4429); the "Cool Homes" program for air-conditioner inspection and rebates (1-866-276-9303); and the "Energy Analyzer" online home energy survey (kcpl.com).
Rocky Mountain Institute's "Home Energy Briefs": rmi.org.
American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's "Home Energy Checklist for Action": aceee.org.
"A Consumer's Guide to Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy" by the U.S. Department of Energy: eere.energy.gov.
___
GLOSSARY
Blower door: A procedure used in home energy audits. A powerful fan is attached to an exterior door, and air is pulled from the house. An energy auditor rates the house's leakage or "infiltration" and identifies specific trouble spots.
Building envelope: The house's roof, walls, windows and foundation, the parts that separate the inside from the outside.
Duct blaster: A test of a home's ductwork for leakage. An instrument detects leaks as air is forced into the duct system.
Energy Star: A product rating program by the EPA and the Energy Department. An Energy Star designation means the product uses 10 percent to 50 percent less energy and water than standard products. Some builders are constructing Energy Star houses.
Infiltration: Accidental air leakage from your house. The Energy Department estimates the sources of leaks this way: 31 percent from floors, walls and ceilings, 15 percent from ductwork, 14 percent from the fireplace, 13 percent from plumbing penetrations, 11 percent from doors, 10 percent from windows, 4 percent from fans, 2 percent from electrical outlets.
Phantom power: The electricity used to power light displays and instant-on features of otherwise turned-off computers, TVs and other electronic equipment. It also refers to the lost power when chargers are plugged into an outlet but aren't charging.
R-value: A measure of a material's resistance to the transfer of heat through it. R-values describe building insulation. The higher the number, the better the insulation. For instance, a professional might recommend R-49 in ceilings and R-26 in walls.
___
DUCTS AND INSULATION
Leaky houses waste energy. A home energy audit will check ductwork and insulation in walls, ceilings and basements.
WINDOWS
Replace them? Depends. New windows are expensive, and it's difficult to recoup the cost in energy savings. Other improvements might be a priority.
REFRIGERATOR
Get rid of that plugged-in but often unused one in the garage or basement. Look for Energy Star appliances and electronics when buying new.
WATER HEATER
A blanket on an old one could help. As for tankless or demand water heaters, they save energy because they don't store water. But flow might not be adequate in busy households doing multiple hot-water tasks at the same time.
ELECTRONICS
Computers, stereos, TVs and other devices only look like they're turned off. Most are on, at least a little bit, all the time. Use power strips to shut them down completely.
LIGHT BULBS
Compact fluorescents, of course, but get to know Kelvin. The K value on the package tells you the color temperature. For instance, about 2800 K is "soft white," similar to a 60W incandescent bulb.
CEILING FANS
They will help in the coming air-conditioning season, allowing you to raise the thermostat several degrees. They work by cooling you, not the room, so turn them off when you leave.
FURNACE AND AC
Together they're the energy-suckers in your house _ 40 percent or more of a home's energy use. The myth is the bigger the AC unit the better. Oversized units don't cool correctly and cost more to operate.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Find out where Your Utility Money Goes
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the huge difference between my electric bill and a neighbor's despite our similar lifestyles and apartments.
I subsequently arranged an onsite home audit, a free service FPL offers to its customers. The energy specialists examine your home, analyze your bill and target areas where you can save.
Here's what happened: Raudel Valdes and Gabriel Palacios, FPL energy management specialists, arrived at my home carrying a laptop and printer. The central air conditioning unit immediately caught their attention.
After a thorough examination and a series of tests, the team offered these conclusions:
Beware of dust: Particles near the thermostat, on the AC pipes and near the air ducts seriously compromise the unit's efficiency and accuracy.
Repair damaged coils: Disfigured coils on the main AC unit caused the air conditioner to run longer to reach the desired temperature.
Fill the gaps: Space around the air conditioning pipes and the gap between the ceiling and the air duct force the AC unit to eat up energy.
Insulate the water heater: To save space, our water heater is directly below the air conditioning unit. The heat from the water heater forces the air conditioner to work harder. The FPL team recommended insulating the main copper pipe that leads to the water heater. This step will contain heat coming out of the water heater and improve cooling system's efficiency.
Shop for a replacement: Our aging air conditioner is an energy hog. We could save a fortune by asking the landlord to replace the model. ''With age, every appliance starts using more power,'' Valdes said. FPL offers rebates to consumers installing approved AC systems at http://fpl.com/residential/savings/index.shtml.
On the warm winter day the FPL team visited, the specialists calculated we had an hourly electric bill of 50 cents, including 40 cents to power the air conditioner.
I subsequently arranged an onsite home audit, a free service FPL offers to its customers. The energy specialists examine your home, analyze your bill and target areas where you can save.
Here's what happened: Raudel Valdes and Gabriel Palacios, FPL energy management specialists, arrived at my home carrying a laptop and printer. The central air conditioning unit immediately caught their attention.
After a thorough examination and a series of tests, the team offered these conclusions:
Beware of dust: Particles near the thermostat, on the AC pipes and near the air ducts seriously compromise the unit's efficiency and accuracy.
Repair damaged coils: Disfigured coils on the main AC unit caused the air conditioner to run longer to reach the desired temperature.
Fill the gaps: Space around the air conditioning pipes and the gap between the ceiling and the air duct force the AC unit to eat up energy.
Insulate the water heater: To save space, our water heater is directly below the air conditioning unit. The heat from the water heater forces the air conditioner to work harder. The FPL team recommended insulating the main copper pipe that leads to the water heater. This step will contain heat coming out of the water heater and improve cooling system's efficiency.
Shop for a replacement: Our aging air conditioner is an energy hog. We could save a fortune by asking the landlord to replace the model. ''With age, every appliance starts using more power,'' Valdes said. FPL offers rebates to consumers installing approved AC systems at http://fpl.com/residential/savings/index.shtml.
On the warm winter day the FPL team visited, the specialists calculated we had an hourly electric bill of 50 cents, including 40 cents to power the air conditioner.
Summer Heat predicted by scientific source, sorta
Let's see what the Almanacs say about the Summer Heat and then you can go shopping for your bikini and avoid the rush.
Now that the Monadnock Region looks suspiciously like Siberia, local residents might raise an eyebrow at The Old Farmer’s Almanac’s prediction that 2008 would be the most sizzling year in a century.
But to all those thinking the almanac’s fictional weather guru Abe Weatherwise may have taken a hiatus into forecasting-failure, Editor Janice Stillman has a message: Not so fast.
“When we have so much snow, with such frequency, the perception is that, ‘Gee. This has been a long, cold winter, and in fact, it really hasn’t been,” she said. “The temperature has been, on average, above normal for most of the winter period.”
Before The 2008 Old Farmer’s Almanac event hit newsstands in September, Publisher John Pierce said, in a press release, that this year would be “Very warm, overall,” predicting the warming trend of the recent past would continue.
But in the Northeast, the 216 year-old Dublin publication also predicted, on average, “slightly above normal snowfall” — proven correct, if understated, in New Hampshire by Concord’s record amounts.
Still, despite the frosty weather, the almanac forecasted that in the Northeast, this winter would be “about a degree milder than normal.”
This has held true in both Concord and in Portland, Maine, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist James F. Brown, who said December through February temperatures in the two cities have been an average of about 1.1 and 1.6 degrees, respectively, above the norm.
Rival publication the Maine-based Farmers’ Almanac — a comparatively junior publication at about 190 years old, which uses the forecasts of the fictional Caleb Weatherbee — similarly predicted the white weather in the Northeast.
“(W)e do feel that overall Mother Nature is showing no mercy to the East,” Editor Peter E. Geiger said in a press release, which predicted this year’s winter would average as much as 3 degrees cooler down the Eastern Seaboard.
So how do these almanacs come up with their forecasts?
Both examine sunspots — flare-ups on the sun’s surface — among a host of other factors, according to Stillman and Geiger. Both publications also use secret, centuries’ old formulas to make weather predictions they claim to be, on average, at least 80 percent accurate. (The Farmers’ Almanac ups the ante with a claim of 80 to 85 percent, trumping The Old Farmer’s Almanac’s 80 percent, according to their Web sites).
And neither one takes into account the major monkey wrench in modern weather: Global warming.
“We don’t predict global warming. We predict the weather,” said Stillman, who explained that weather will, in turn, be affected by fossil fuels and other damage by the hand of man.
“For me, it’s not a factor,” Geiger said of global warming. “It’s an unknown, quite frankly.”
In the meantime, Stillman said regardless of reports of warming weather, solar cycles indicate the world may actually start to see cooler temperatures.
“This is the beginning of a cycle that could lead to a very long-term cool period,” she said, describing an easing of the solar activity she said leads to warmer weather.
Similarly, Geiger said “I think they’re probably correct that, in fact, there’s going to be some cooling. ... It goes counter to the global warming theory.”
Meanwhile, although the National Weather Service also makes long-range predictions — in the form of 30-, 60-, 90-day forecasts — James Brown said he doesn’t hold much stock in them
“We have trouble with three or four days, never mind 30, 60 or 90 days.” Brown said. “It’s weather. ... Things can go wrong and the forecast doesn’t come out right.”
Now that the Monadnock Region looks suspiciously like Siberia, local residents might raise an eyebrow at The Old Farmer’s Almanac’s prediction that 2008 would be the most sizzling year in a century.
But to all those thinking the almanac’s fictional weather guru Abe Weatherwise may have taken a hiatus into forecasting-failure, Editor Janice Stillman has a message: Not so fast.
“When we have so much snow, with such frequency, the perception is that, ‘Gee. This has been a long, cold winter, and in fact, it really hasn’t been,” she said. “The temperature has been, on average, above normal for most of the winter period.”
Before The 2008 Old Farmer’s Almanac event hit newsstands in September, Publisher John Pierce said, in a press release, that this year would be “Very warm, overall,” predicting the warming trend of the recent past would continue.
But in the Northeast, the 216 year-old Dublin publication also predicted, on average, “slightly above normal snowfall” — proven correct, if understated, in New Hampshire by Concord’s record amounts.
Still, despite the frosty weather, the almanac forecasted that in the Northeast, this winter would be “about a degree milder than normal.”
This has held true in both Concord and in Portland, Maine, according to National Weather Service Meteorologist James F. Brown, who said December through February temperatures in the two cities have been an average of about 1.1 and 1.6 degrees, respectively, above the norm.
Rival publication the Maine-based Farmers’ Almanac — a comparatively junior publication at about 190 years old, which uses the forecasts of the fictional Caleb Weatherbee — similarly predicted the white weather in the Northeast.
“(W)e do feel that overall Mother Nature is showing no mercy to the East,” Editor Peter E. Geiger said in a press release, which predicted this year’s winter would average as much as 3 degrees cooler down the Eastern Seaboard.
So how do these almanacs come up with their forecasts?
Both examine sunspots — flare-ups on the sun’s surface — among a host of other factors, according to Stillman and Geiger. Both publications also use secret, centuries’ old formulas to make weather predictions they claim to be, on average, at least 80 percent accurate. (The Farmers’ Almanac ups the ante with a claim of 80 to 85 percent, trumping The Old Farmer’s Almanac’s 80 percent, according to their Web sites).
And neither one takes into account the major monkey wrench in modern weather: Global warming.
“We don’t predict global warming. We predict the weather,” said Stillman, who explained that weather will, in turn, be affected by fossil fuels and other damage by the hand of man.
“For me, it’s not a factor,” Geiger said of global warming. “It’s an unknown, quite frankly.”
In the meantime, Stillman said regardless of reports of warming weather, solar cycles indicate the world may actually start to see cooler temperatures.
“This is the beginning of a cycle that could lead to a very long-term cool period,” she said, describing an easing of the solar activity she said leads to warmer weather.
Similarly, Geiger said “I think they’re probably correct that, in fact, there’s going to be some cooling. ... It goes counter to the global warming theory.”
Meanwhile, although the National Weather Service also makes long-range predictions — in the form of 30-, 60-, 90-day forecasts — James Brown said he doesn’t hold much stock in them
“We have trouble with three or four days, never mind 30, 60 or 90 days.” Brown said. “It’s weather. ... Things can go wrong and the forecast doesn’t come out right.”
Monday, March 3, 2008
When your HVAC unit fails what do you do
When that old, dependable household appliance sputters to a halt, you may be confronted with a classic dilemma.
INFORMATION, PLEASE!
First of all, you'll need the solid information provided by the machine's manufacturer. When you buy a home appliance, you receive—in most cases—a warranty card, an operations/use booklet, a list of repair centers, and a parts list. These should be kept on file with the sales receipt where you'll have easy access to them in the event that the appliance breaks down. (If you've inadvertently thrown away or lost your owner's manual, you can usually get another copy by writing to the manufacturer, identifying the model and serial number of your appliance.) Then, assuming the malfunctioning article's warranty has expired, start studying the owner's booklet. Find out whether the problem lies in the appliance itself or merely in the electrical circuit that provides its power. Sounds silly, but—in my experience, at least—about 10% of the time, the trouble's in the power source: A plug's loose in the outlet, or a circuit breaker has been tripped. (Or perhaps your electrical gadget has an internal switch that shuts it off in case of circuit overload. The service manual will provide instructions for restarting an appliance equipped with such a safety device.)
If this sort of thing isn't the source of the problem, take another good look at your owner's guide. Some manuals provide a checklist of "symptoms" to help you determine what the trouble is, and you may be able to fix the appliance yourself. Otherwise, this information plus a phone conversation with the repairperson can usually help you narrow down the diagnosis to one or two possibilities . . . and will give you an idea of the price range for the probable repairs.
THE BIG DECISION
You should now determine how many years of service life your machine has left. To do so, consult the accompanying table to compare the age of the appliance with its estimated life span (how long the model normally can be expected to function properly). Although the life expectancy of any appliance will vary slightly among different models and brands, the chart tells you how long an average one should last.
If, say, your room air conditioner is eight years old, it's got only four of its (estimated) 12 years remaining. But an eight-year-old sewing machine should have a lot of good years ahead of it . . . a full 16, to be exact.
In addition to the relative age and the estimated repair cost of your broken appliance, you'll need to know the cost of a new replacement for it. Then you can divide that purchase price by the machine's expected service life to find out the yearly cost of a newly bought appliance. For example, let's say that a new washing machine with the same features as your on-the-blink one would cost $290. Well, according to the table, its expected life span would be 12 years. Divide that 12 into $290, and you come out with a per annum price tag of $24.16.
The next step in your cost/benefits analysis is to prorate the estimated repair cost of your ailing machine. For instance—to continue our illustration—suppose you reported that the washing machine ran but didn't drain completely in the spin cycle, and the repairperson guessed that the water pump was to blame, giving you an estimate of $65 for parts and labor to fix it. Now, divide that repair fee into the number of years the machine probably has left. Since the average washer lasts for 12 years, and your broken one is already seven years old, it's got only five more good years left. When you divide the $65 repair bill by five, you'll find that the pro rata yearly cost of repair is $13.
Well, all you have to do now is compare the yearly cost of a new washing machine with the yearly cost of repairing your old model. In this case, the $24.16 annual cost of a new washer is considerably greater than the $13-per-year bill to have the old one fixed.
Of course, the decision you make (based on your initial cost/benefits analysis) can always be altered if the serviceperson turns in a higher repair estimate when he or she examines the appliance. Say, for instance, that the washing machine technician determines that the washer also needs a new transmission . . . so the total bill would now be $160. Even if you deduct the flat $30 service call fee (which was included in that total), you'll find that it's now more cost-effective to buy a new machine. After all, the old washer has only five functional years left and the repair bill is $130, which figures out to a yearly cost of $26 for keeping it. A new machine would cost only $24.16 a year, so buying it would save you about $2.00 a year (or over a 12-year period, approximately $24). In that case, buying a new machine is your best bet.
OTHER FACTORS
Although the per annum comparison explained above will give you the hard numerical data that you need in order to choose between repair and replacement, there are a few other non financial factors you'd do well to consider before making your final decision. As a result of the constant technological improvements made by appliance manufacturers, newer machines may have features that make them especially attractive to you. So if you'd like to purchase an appliance that has more operational features, uses less electricity, or is made to last longer than the old one, you'll want to take these factors into consideration when you decide whether the broken one is worth the trouble and expense of repairs.
Keeping a service record on your appliance can also help you make your decision: Up-to date records will tell you at a glance whether or not the machine has been generally reliable in the past. (Remember, the life expectancy figures in the table are only averages. Some machines do worse than that, some better.) If you haven't had good luck with a particular appliance, you may wish to replace it—possibly with another model or a different brand—even though your cost/benefits analysis suggests that repairing it would be less expensive.
Another option is exchanging a broken appliance: Some manufacturers of small appliances will give you the choice of having a broken item repaired or trading it in for a rebuilt model . . . as I found out a few months ago, when a two-year-old rechargeable calculator in my office broke.
I didn't want to replace the calculator, since the manufacturer no longer makes that particular model and some of its most attractive features aren't available on newer machines. By calling the nearest service center, however, I learned that I could either have the calculator repaired at the factory (a six-week undertaking) or buy a rebuilt model (which would be sent to me immediately). After mailing the broken machine to the service center, I received a refurbished one a week later. The total cost for the "new" machine including postage was $37.50 . . . slightly more than half of the original purchase price! Since the manufacturer provided a six-month warranty on the rebuilt machine (and since the average portable calculator lasts only a year in my office), this turned out to be a wise investment indeed.
THE ANSWER
The decision to repair or replace should not be a haphazard one . . . and it won't be when it's based on a cost/benefits analysis. Armed with this, you can quickly and easily decide whether "tis nobler" (or rather, "economical-er") to repair or to replace . . . and that is, after all, the question!
INFORMATION, PLEASE!
First of all, you'll need the solid information provided by the machine's manufacturer. When you buy a home appliance, you receive—in most cases—a warranty card, an operations/use booklet, a list of repair centers, and a parts list. These should be kept on file with the sales receipt where you'll have easy access to them in the event that the appliance breaks down. (If you've inadvertently thrown away or lost your owner's manual, you can usually get another copy by writing to the manufacturer, identifying the model and serial number of your appliance.) Then, assuming the malfunctioning article's warranty has expired, start studying the owner's booklet. Find out whether the problem lies in the appliance itself or merely in the electrical circuit that provides its power. Sounds silly, but—in my experience, at least—about 10% of the time, the trouble's in the power source: A plug's loose in the outlet, or a circuit breaker has been tripped. (Or perhaps your electrical gadget has an internal switch that shuts it off in case of circuit overload. The service manual will provide instructions for restarting an appliance equipped with such a safety device.)
If this sort of thing isn't the source of the problem, take another good look at your owner's guide. Some manuals provide a checklist of "symptoms" to help you determine what the trouble is, and you may be able to fix the appliance yourself. Otherwise, this information plus a phone conversation with the repairperson can usually help you narrow down the diagnosis to one or two possibilities . . . and will give you an idea of the price range for the probable repairs.
THE BIG DECISION
You should now determine how many years of service life your machine has left. To do so, consult the accompanying table to compare the age of the appliance with its estimated life span (how long the model normally can be expected to function properly). Although the life expectancy of any appliance will vary slightly among different models and brands, the chart tells you how long an average one should last.
If, say, your room air conditioner is eight years old, it's got only four of its (estimated) 12 years remaining. But an eight-year-old sewing machine should have a lot of good years ahead of it . . . a full 16, to be exact.
In addition to the relative age and the estimated repair cost of your broken appliance, you'll need to know the cost of a new replacement for it. Then you can divide that purchase price by the machine's expected service life to find out the yearly cost of a newly bought appliance. For example, let's say that a new washing machine with the same features as your on-the-blink one would cost $290. Well, according to the table, its expected life span would be 12 years. Divide that 12 into $290, and you come out with a per annum price tag of $24.16.
The next step in your cost/benefits analysis is to prorate the estimated repair cost of your ailing machine. For instance—to continue our illustration—suppose you reported that the washing machine ran but didn't drain completely in the spin cycle, and the repairperson guessed that the water pump was to blame, giving you an estimate of $65 for parts and labor to fix it. Now, divide that repair fee into the number of years the machine probably has left. Since the average washer lasts for 12 years, and your broken one is already seven years old, it's got only five more good years left. When you divide the $65 repair bill by five, you'll find that the pro rata yearly cost of repair is $13.
Well, all you have to do now is compare the yearly cost of a new washing machine with the yearly cost of repairing your old model. In this case, the $24.16 annual cost of a new washer is considerably greater than the $13-per-year bill to have the old one fixed.
Of course, the decision you make (based on your initial cost/benefits analysis) can always be altered if the serviceperson turns in a higher repair estimate when he or she examines the appliance. Say, for instance, that the washing machine technician determines that the washer also needs a new transmission . . . so the total bill would now be $160. Even if you deduct the flat $30 service call fee (which was included in that total), you'll find that it's now more cost-effective to buy a new machine. After all, the old washer has only five functional years left and the repair bill is $130, which figures out to a yearly cost of $26 for keeping it. A new machine would cost only $24.16 a year, so buying it would save you about $2.00 a year (or over a 12-year period, approximately $24). In that case, buying a new machine is your best bet.
OTHER FACTORS
Although the per annum comparison explained above will give you the hard numerical data that you need in order to choose between repair and replacement, there are a few other non financial factors you'd do well to consider before making your final decision. As a result of the constant technological improvements made by appliance manufacturers, newer machines may have features that make them especially attractive to you. So if you'd like to purchase an appliance that has more operational features, uses less electricity, or is made to last longer than the old one, you'll want to take these factors into consideration when you decide whether the broken one is worth the trouble and expense of repairs.
Keeping a service record on your appliance can also help you make your decision: Up-to date records will tell you at a glance whether or not the machine has been generally reliable in the past. (Remember, the life expectancy figures in the table are only averages. Some machines do worse than that, some better.) If you haven't had good luck with a particular appliance, you may wish to replace it—possibly with another model or a different brand—even though your cost/benefits analysis suggests that repairing it would be less expensive.
Another option is exchanging a broken appliance: Some manufacturers of small appliances will give you the choice of having a broken item repaired or trading it in for a rebuilt model . . . as I found out a few months ago, when a two-year-old rechargeable calculator in my office broke.
I didn't want to replace the calculator, since the manufacturer no longer makes that particular model and some of its most attractive features aren't available on newer machines. By calling the nearest service center, however, I learned that I could either have the calculator repaired at the factory (a six-week undertaking) or buy a rebuilt model (which would be sent to me immediately). After mailing the broken machine to the service center, I received a refurbished one a week later. The total cost for the "new" machine including postage was $37.50 . . . slightly more than half of the original purchase price! Since the manufacturer provided a six-month warranty on the rebuilt machine (and since the average portable calculator lasts only a year in my office), this turned out to be a wise investment indeed.
THE ANSWER
The decision to repair or replace should not be a haphazard one . . . and it won't be when it's based on a cost/benefits analysis. Armed with this, you can quickly and easily decide whether "tis nobler" (or rather, "economical-er") to repair or to replace . . . and that is, after all, the question!
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