The term “red tagged” comes from the color of the tag affixed to the furnace to indicate it is inoperable. When your furnace has been red tagged, it means that a HVAC technician or inspector has found a critical safety issue in your heating system. The furnace must be shut down, and it cannot be restarted or operated until the problem has been fixed or the entire system replaced.

A cracked heat exchanger is usually the source of red-tagging. This internal component transfers heat to the air that circulates through your house. Heat exchangers are fragile, and over time they can develop cracks and damage even from normal use.

A cracked heat exchanger is a danger because it can let carbon monoxide, an odorless, colorless, tasteless gas created when fuel is burned to produce heat, leak from your furnace and into your home. Exposure to the gas can be deadly; most carbon monoxide deaths occur when it leaks into people’s homes and they inhale it in their sleep.

Replacing a heat exchange can sometimes cost almost as much as an entirely new furnace; to reach it, a technician will have to completely disassemble the system. When deciding what to do with your defective furnace, keep in mind that replacing the furnace may the better choice:

• If the unit is under 10 years old
• If the exchanger is still under warranty
• If the repair costs less than 25 percent of total replacement cost

Since 1934, T. F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating has provided top-quality HVAC sales, equipment, and service to customers all around Long Island. Contact us today for expert advice on what to do with a red-tagged furnace, and for help finding a replacement furnace that will safely and effectively keep your home warm for many winters to come.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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Condensation occurs in attics when the warm, humid air from inside the house leaks into the unfinished space above. Without proper ventilation, this moisture cannot escape and will eventually condense on the cold surfaces found in the attic. When the temperature is below freezing, this condensation becomes easy to spot because it appears as frost on the rafters and wall joists, but remember: Damp insulation is also a clue. Over time, condensation can cause serious damage to wood surfaces and can result in mold-growth throughout the attic.

Ice dams are another issue that plague homeowners during the winter. These dams occur when the air inside the attic rises above 32 degrees, due to a lack of insulation or insufficient attic ventilation. Under these conditions, the warmer air inside the attic will heat the roof, cause any snow to melt and run off towards the edge of the roofline where it can refreeze. If more water collects behind this ice dam, it can leak into the attic or living spaces below, causing extensive damage throughout the home.

To prevent these and other moisture problems in your attic, be sure to do the following:

• Seal any openings that might introduce warm air into the attic, including around light fixtures and pull-down stairs.
• Make sure the insulation in your attic is sufficient—but avoid blocking the airflow along the eaves.
• Install additional roof vents if needed to keep air flowing freely.
• Ensure that household fans are venting outside, not into the attic.

T. F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating has been serving Long Island customers since 1934. We know the problems our customers face during the long winter months, and we have the tools and expertise to fix them. Don’t let water or condensation damage your home—contact us today!

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Attic image via Shutterstock.

The mini-split system has two parts: the air handlers, which are installed inside, and an air pump, or condenser, which is set up on the outside of the home. The two components are connected by a central conduit line and monitored by a remote control unit.

These types of systems are particularly useful for an add-on room, or for existing rooms without a heating or cooling system. And they provide the ultimate in control over energy savings, allowing you to use the air handlers to deliver precise heating and cooling.

Ductless mini-splits offer several unique heating and cooling advantages:

1. They allow you to cool, or heat, one room at a time. Each air handler is set up to handle one or two rooms in the house. Therefore, you can cool or heat only the room you are using, allowing for energy savings.
2. They do not require ductwork. If you are installing a mini-split system in an addition to your home, installing ductwork can be a big, expensive job. Ducted systems tend be less efficient, with energy losses through cracks and leaks commonplace. Mint-splits don’t use ductwork to distribute conditioned air, so they operate more efficiently and are a less expensive investment.
3. You can monitor your home’s temperature with the system’s remote control. Precision temperature control means you can make your home just as cool, or warm, as you like.
4. The mini-split system is powered by a heat pump, which uses energy efficiently. In fact, heat pumps tend to operate at 400 percent efficiency, meaning they can return four dollars worth of heat for every one dollar spent on energy.
5. Ductless systems operate quietly. Compared to a window unit or forced-air system, this is a great advantage.

If you have any questions about ductless mini-splits, please don’t hesitate to call T.F. O’Brien Heating & Cooling. We are Long Island’s heating and cooling experts, serving homeowners in the area for over 75 years.

Checklist image via Shutterstock.

• Dust your home twice a week using a damp microfiber cloth. The damp cloth will help prevent dust from reentering the air during the cleaning process. While dusting, start at the highest point and work your way down.
• Vacuum at least once a week with a vacuum cleaner that features a HEPA filter, as the filter will help trap the dust that the vacuum sucks up. Always run the vacuum after you have dusted a room.
• Regularly change your furnace filter. A dirty filter can no longer trap dust, and instead blows it back into your home, lowering indoor air quality. Furthermore, choose a high-quality filter, which will generally last longer and prevent more air impurities from entering your home.
• If your home has blinds, dust them weekly with the recommended cloth above. Curtains tend to trap dust in their fibers and then redistribute dust into the air whenever they’re moved, so wash them regularly.
• Consider getting rid of carpets and install hardwood floors. Carpet fibers trap allergens such as dander and dust, while hardwood floors are more hypoallergenic. In addition, hardwood floors increase the value of your home.

The best defense against dust is prevention, and you can help lower the amount of dust in your home by using one or more of the tips listed above. For more information improving indoor air quality, contact the specialists at T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating.

Dust image via Shutterstock.

The problem

Every homeowner has encountered a dead zone in their house, a particular space that just won’t properly cool or heat. Room additions or renovations may have failed to properly account for the new placement of a wall or the lack of adequate ductwork. These issues are especially problematic in older homes with poorly designed or non-existent central HVAC systems.

The solution

Fortunately, there is an attractive and affordable solution to such problems, namely, ductless mini-splits. Easily installed anywhere in your home, a low-profile mini-split system provides exactly the heating or cooling that the space requires, and thus lowers costly energy bills. Whether you are building out an attic or adding a room to the garage, these self-contained systems provide all the flexibility and comfort of a conventional system, at fraction of the cost.

The company

For 75 years,T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating has provided the finest electrical and mechanical services to the residents of Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Our experienced technicians can deal with any mechanical problem or installation design, no matter how small or how complicated.

The result

T.F. O’Brien treasures continuity, and our end goal is to keep homeowners comfortable, while ensuring maximum energy savings. We foster short-term friendships with our clients that result in long-term relationships, by putting the customer’s needs first.

For more information about how ductless mini-splits can help you solve your home’s heating and cooling needs, contact our experts at T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating today!

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Air conditioner image via Shutterstock.

Duct cleaning

One of the most important aspects of keeping warm air circulating through your home is keeping the ducts free of obstructions. This means you must clean out your ducts to prevent dirt and debris from accumulating in them. The buildup prevents air from traveling freely through your ducts and into your home. However, your furnace still works just as hard, but you don’t reap the benefit of it. In fact, it ends up costing you money in your energy bills.

Duct leaks

Another aspect of duct maintenance is checking your ductwork for leaks. A tiny crack or hole in the ducts leads to warm air leaking out, resulting in a less efficient heating system. By examining and repairing any damage, you can restore your home’s heating to the way it should be, at all times.

Cleaning duct components

Change your furnace’s air filter regularly. A dirty filter prevents the necessary airflow for effective, comfortable heating, and causes your furnace to use more energy to operate. Don’t forget to clean your registers, too, because dust and other air particles can accrue, and prevent conditioned air from circulating throughout your home.

Insulation

Duct insulation is also critical to furnace efficiency, since insulation prevents the heat that travels through the ducts from escaping, especially in instances where the ducts are located in unconditioned spaces, like a basement or attic. In this case, uninsulated ducts allow heat to transfer through the duct pipes, because heat is always drawn toward cooler spaces. And this wastes energy.

For more tips on duct maintenance or to schedule an appointment for duct service for your Long Island home, contact T.F O’Brien Cooling & Heating, today!

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about duct maintenance and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Dirty duct image via Shutterstock.

How zoning systems work

Zoning systems use multiple thermostats that are independently controlled by a series of motorized dampers, which open and close to regulate the temperature of the room(s) in each zone, providing precise management over the delivery of heating and cooling.

Energy savings and comfort

Zoning systems can control the temperature of each room, without affecting other zones. For example, when you are in the living room and no one is sleeping in the bedrooms, you can keep the heat low in the bedrooms, but higher in the living room. When it’s time to retire for the night, you can raise the temperature in the bedrooms only, and lower all the other areas. It’s an excellent way to save energy, without sacrificing comfort.

Home design factors

A multi-level home is difficult to control with one thermostat. In winter, hot air rises to the upper floors, and the lower floors of your home stay colder. In the warm months, cool air remains in the lower floor, while the upper floor remains warm. In fact, temperature differences of as much as 6 to 10 degrees can occur between the floors of your home, without the control that zoning systems provide.

Maintaining control over the environment in your home, while saving energy and money, is possible with a zoning system. An evaluation by a qualified HVAC contractor can help you determine how using zoning systems will improve comfort and energy savings in your Long Island home. Contact T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating to begin the process. We’ll help you map out your home’s zones, according to the construction of and how you use the spaces in your home.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Thermometer image via Shutterstock.

An electronic air cleaner is like a quiet sentinel, protecting your indoor spaces from contaminated air. The air purifier uses electrostatic charges to trap particles, removing them from the air. Homeowners can choose from two available technologies: electrostatic precipitators and ionizers. While they deploy different processes, both systems accomplish the same thing.

Electronic precipitators
Electronic precipitators bring unclean air to the purifier where it is pulled through an ionizer, positively charging the particles. As the air continues through the precipitator, the positive-charged particles stick to plates inside the unit with a negative charge. This process removes the particles from the air, leaving them behind on the plates. To maximize efficiency, periodically clean the precipitator plates to provide enough surface area to continuously capture the unwanted particles.

Ionizers
An ion generator emits negatively charged ions into the air, thereby transferring negative charges to particulates, which then attract positively charged ions. They cling to elements in your home, such as drapes and walls, and fall to the floor where you then mop or vacuum them up. Some ionizers use a charged bar in the machine, so routine cleaning is required.

If you are prone to allergies, or suffer from asthma, you are susceptible to particulates that can accelerate the onset of respiratory illness and cause breathing problems. An electronic air cleaner could become a mighty force in your home for improved indoor air quality.

When you’re ready to improve your indoor air quality, give the experts at T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating a call. Serving the Long Island area, our team of trained professionals can evaluate your home and recommend just the right indoor-air solution for you. Breathe deep, and call us today.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Air cleaner image via Shutterstock.

• A review of previous utility bills to identify energy usage history.
• An inspection of all major appliances to ensure they’re using an appropriate amount of energy.
• An evaluation of HVAC systems to ensure that they run efficiently.
• A blower door test to measure your home’s overall tightness.
• The use of infrared scanning to identify specific sources of air leakage.
• Documentation and results for any tests conducted.
• Inspection of insulation

A blower door test can provide precise and especially useful information. A high-powered fan is first mounted to an outer door frame. The fan will then lower the pressure inside of your home, forcing outside air to come in. Gauges attached to the blower door will monitor pressure changes to identify sources of air leakage.

Your energy auditor should use a calibrated device for the test, which measures the amount of air it pulls out of your home, in addition to pressure changes. While uncalibrated blower doors can identify air leaks in your home, they can’t measure the overall air tightness of your home.

To get the most out of your energy audit, you should walk through your home with the energy auditor to answer relevant questions, such as your preferred thermostat setting, to get a better idea for your home’s energy usage and ways to reduce it. You should also ask the auditor questions, so that you know exactly what’s involved in the evaluation.

If you would like more information on energy evaluations, or want to know how to increase the energy efficiency in your home, contact T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating for expert HVAC advice and service. Serving the Long Island, Queens and Brooklyn since 1934.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Energy evaluation image via Shutterstock.

A geothermal system uses two main components: The first component is a heat pump that’s located inside your home, and it’s used to circulate the heat. The second component is the ground loop, or underground pipes, that connect to the heat pump and have access to the geothermal heat.

To produce heat, the ground loop circulates water that derives its heat from the ground, and moves it through the heat pump. The pump takes the heat from the water and pushes it into the home as warm air. The water is then recirculated back into the ground loop to collect more heat. This process is continually repeated to heat of the home.

To act as a cooling system, the heat pump performs in reverse. The hot air in the home is drawn into the pump and dispersed to the underground pipe system, where the heat is then exhausted into the earth. This leaves cool air to be distributed throughout your home.

Geothermal units have few moving parts, which makes them a durable system. And the few moving parts that do exist are located, and protected, inside the home. Therefore, geothermal heat-pump systems are a long-lasting and efficient system, which require little maintenance and repair.

You can schedule a geothermal heat-pump system consultation by visiting T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating, an HVAC company with a reputation for excellent service on Long Island, Queens, and Brooklyn since 1934. Our experts at happy to answer your questions.

Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Geothermal system image via Shutterstock.