Author: T.F. O'Brien Cooling & Heating

Happy Spring from T.F. O’Brien

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Make Ready for Longer and Warmer Days on Long Island

Welcome to April’s Letter from Kerry. Spring has finally arrived, and it’s certainly welcome after the long, cold winter we’ve experienced this year. Before you know it, the trees will be budding and the flowers will be in full bloom. And while we can’t wait for the beautiful blossoms, we also know that means allergy season! Are you prepared?

With the arrival of spring comes the promise of warmer weather, and that means it’ll soon be time to turn on your air conditioning system. That’s why now is a great time to give us a call to get your annual maintenance scheduled. That way you can ensure that once the warm weather finally arrives, you – and your AC unit – will be ready!

If you’re considering repairing or replacing your AC system, check out our website to learn more about how we can help you. If you find yourself thinking about replacing, we’ll also share with you our special offer on select Carrier equipment – you can save a total of $2650 this spring on select units.

Hope your April is amazing!

Kerry

We’re Lucky to Have Such Great Customers!

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Enjoy Shamrock Savings!

Welcome to March’s Letter from Kerry! If you’re like us, you’re looking forward to the arrival of spring this month, as well as one of our personal favorite holidays, St. Patrick’s Day! We love this holiday so much that we show it by passing huge savings on to you with our annual Shamrock Savings event, which is happening right now. But you have to act soon – just like that elusive pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, once St. Patrick’s Day is gone, so is Shamrock Savings!

With the promise of spring heading our way, that also means it’s time to think about your air conditioners. It’s been a harsh winter, and turning on your AC is probably the last thing on your mind right now, but there’s no better time than the present to give us a call to get your annual maintenance scheduled. That way you can ensure that once the warm weather finally arrives, you – and your AC unit – will be prepared!

On our website, read about WiFi thermostats – what makes them so great, anyway? And, when spring is in full bloom, so are allergies! Find out online how you can improve your indoor air quality room-by-room, too.

In the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, from the bottom of our hearts we’d like to share with you a favorite Irish saying:

May good luck be with you
Wherever you go,
And your blessing outnumber
The shamrocks that grow.

Have a wonderful March!

Kerry

At T.F. O’Brien, We Love Our Customers!

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With Valentine’s Day on it’s way, in this month’s Letter to Kerry we’d like to let our customers know how much we appreciate you, and care about your home comfort. In fact, we’re always trying to make life more comfortable for our customers. We appreciate your business, and we hope you’re pleased with the service you get from us! For example, in January, we moved to a new location to better serve you. You may want to note that our address is now: 100 Denton Ave., New Hyde Park, NY 11040. For your convenience, our phone and fax numbers will remain the same. Thanks for taking note!

We hope that the cold weather hasn’t gotten you down too much this winter – it really seems like there’s no escaping it! One cold snap after another means that your heating equipment is putting in a lot of overtime this year. We sincerely hope you give us a call if you have any questions or concerns about your system. And, if you’re worried about losing power, as sometimes happens during extreme cold, consider installing a home generator with us. That way, you’ll be able to stay comfortable even if the power goes out!

Are you looking for a perfect gift for the Valentine who has everything except optimal comfort? Then you might want to consider giving the gift that keeps on giving – a ductless split system. Also, check out our website to learn the importance of tuning up your furnace – especially in this cold weather – as well as whether gas or oil heating is the right choice for your home.

Keep cozy, and enjoy your February. Thanks for visiting!

Kerry

Happy New Year from T.F. O’Brien

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Happy New Year from all of us at T.F. O’Brien. We hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and that 2014 is off to a great start for you. We know one thing is for sure – it definitely has been a cold start! The Polar Vortex made our area of the world feel a little more like Antarctica than New York for a few days!

At T.F. O’Brien, we want you to know we can help you no matter what the weather outside. When temperatures dip below zero, you need to depend on your home’s heating system – if you experience any kind of breakdown, we’re here to help. We’ll get your heating system back up and running so you and your family can stay comfortable and safe. And, we offer generators as well, so if for any reason the power goes out during a cold snap, you won’t have to risk going without heat. Just give us a call and we’ll help you with your winter HVAC needs.

This month is going to be busy for us here at T.F. O’Brien – we’re going to be moving to a new location to better serve you. You may want to note that effective January 27, our new address will be: 100 Denton Ave., New Hyde Park, NY 11040. For your convenience, our phone and fax numbers will remain the same. Thanks for taking note!

Stay warm, and enjoy the rest of your month. Thanks for visiting!

Kerry

It’s a Time for Growth

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Kerry O’Brien Takes on Job of NARI President

by Denis Sheahan, Builder & Remodeler Magazine, Vol. 32 No. 5

A lifetime ago, T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating, a full service HVAC company, was started in Queens. Thomas Francis O’Brien and the grandfather of Kerry O’Brien, who is now the president, started it in 1934 in the Great Depression.

Now located in New Hyde Park, today the company has 27 employees, a fleet of 15 vehicles servicing all of Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties and revenues of $5 million, according to Kerry who is also the newly elected president of the New York City/Long Island chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

A member of NARI since 1991, O’Brien, 52 years old, views his job as NARI president as a time for growth.

“We are going to be the resource for the contractor,” he said referring to NARI. “We are going to have better strategic alliances and grow with politicians and charities.”

According to O’Brien, the industry will continue to grow using the website to get the message out, reworking the marketing campaign and using home shows and trade shows.

“I’m excited about the future on Long Island and the future of remodeling,” he said.

O’Brien cited the Ronald McDonald House in New Hyde Park where NARI is redoing 18 rooms for children as an example of the kind of charity work the chapter is involved in.

“We all can get better and I believe in that,” he said. “It’s going to be better for everyone.”

O’Brien holds a bachelors of science in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and is a N.Y. State licensed and registered professional engineer. He is the past president of the American Institute of Plant Engineers, the past chairman of the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce Environmental Committee, and currently serves on the board of directors for the North Shore Service Group. He has also taught classes in HVAC to home inspectors at Long Island University for more than 20 years.

Kerry co-owns the company with two brothers, Chris and Tom. A third brother is an attorney. Kerry is married and has three children and lives in Huntington.

O’Brien believes that the longevity of his family’s business is due in large part to the fact he and his brothers have never compromised on quality. “We’ve been selling Carrier® equipment since 1955 because we’ve always believed in providing our customers with the best quality products,” Kerry said. “We offered Puron air conditioners long before the push was on for environmentally safer coolant, and we continuously look for new, innovative product offerings.”

T.F. O’Brien has been the proud recipient of the Carrier President’s Award in both 2011 and 2013, honors that the business does not take lightly.

T.F. O’Brien Featured on HouseSmarts

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T.F. O’Brien owner Kerry O’Brien recently appeared on the 30-minute home improvement program, HouseSmarts with Lou Manfredini. The home improvement show provides “useful home improvement knowledge and an entertaining look into the projects of real homeowners,” according to their website. T.F. O’Brien appeared on the show’s “Locally Owned and Operated” segment, which features correspondent Jean Chatzky explores local small businesses and interviews their owners.

During Kerry’s segment, he showed Chatzky the T.F. O’Brien showroom and explained how the business has evolved over the last several decades, from the time it was started by his grandfather, Thomas Francis O’Brien. He discussed how the company is focused on customer relationships above all else, and how the company has stayed in business for so long because of this. He also talked about the trend toward ductless mini-split systems and how T.F. O’Brien stays abreast of latest trends like ductless in order to maximize customer satisfaction.

The segment aired in October, and can be viewed in the above video. To learn more about HouseSmarts with Lou Manfredini, visit them online at www.housesmartstv.com.

T.F. O’Brien Proudly Offers Wall-Hung Boilers

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At T.F. O’Brien, we take pride in the fact that we offer the latest innovations in home comfort. From state-of-the-art high-efficiency cooling and heating systems to smart thermostats that you can operate right from your phone or computer, we stay focused on new comfort solutions because we strive to offer our customers the very best. That’s why we’re pleased to announce that we’re offering wall-hung boiler systems.

What makes a wall-hung boiler system an optimal choice for your home? Well, for the first benefit, the name says it all. Wall-hung boiler systems bring the boiler up off the floor – providing a safety net from such occurrences as basement floor moisture and flooding. As we’ve learned from the hurricanes we’ve experienced over the past couple of years, home flooding spells disaster when it comes to your HVAC equipment. Mounting your boiler on the wall can help keep it clear should a flood occur.

But are wall-hung boilers as effective and efficient as traditional boiler systems? Here’s where you might be surprised. For its smaller, more compact size, most wall-hung units are more than 90 percent efficient, and provide ample output for a standard home’s heating and hot water supply. Additionally, they provide quiet operation and can cut fuel consumption and gas emissions in comparison to conventional heating systems.

Wall-hung boilers are also space-savers. That’s because most of these systems are “packaged”, meaning that all of the features (such as sensors, microcomputer, condensing unit, etc.) that might be outside on a traditional system are completely built-in. Their compact size means that they can be installed in areas where larger boilers might not fit.

So when it comes time to replace your boiler system, consider a wall-hung boiler from T.F. O’Brien. We’ll show you your options, and provide you with the best in quality products and installation. Just give us a call at 516.488.1800 and we will be happy to assist you.

At T.F. O’Brien, We Believe in Being Green!

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Conserving Energy is Everybody’s Business

T.F. O’Brien Cooling & Heating is a full service HVAC company located in New Hyde Park, N.Y. We have been meeting the heating and cooling needs of Long Island residents since 1934. Our company offers a wide range of products and services, including: heating and air conditioning installations, repair and maintenance service; generator installation, maintenance and repair; indoor air quality products; and ductless systems. Our professional affiliations include NARI, ACCA and the Chamber of Commerce.

As part of the Green Committee, T.F. O’Brien strives toward green practices, both for our business and for our clients. We believe it is important to work toward preserving the environment in the most proactive way possible, which is why we’ve put several measures in place that we feel have helped our business evolve toward environmental responsibility.

At work, we have made efforts to become as paperless as possible. One of the primary ways we’ve done so is by equipping our technicians with iPads. That way, when they go out on calls they are able to use the iPad to update client records, which eliminates the need for a paper report.

In addition, we’ve made efforts toward sending e-bills to any client who wishes to receive them. Also, for the last two years we have been sending e-newsletters to clients on a monthly basis as opposed to a paper newsletter, which we know saves valuable resources, both with the paper for printing and the fuel for transporting.

Also, as a business we regularly partake in recycling, from the plastic and paper used around the office, to old equipment we remove from customers’ homes, to the e-cycling of used computers and electronics. We also participate in and support the Green Committee’s annual Shredding Day, where local businesses and individuals are able to have private documents shredded and taken to a recycling facility.

What’s more, T.F. O’Brien encourages our customers to engage in green practices as well. According to ENERGY STAR, as much as 50 percent of the energy used in a home goes to heating and cooling. As an HVAC company, we feel it is beholden on us to educate our customers on the ways they can improve the performance of their homes’ comfort equipment. We endeavor to help our customers become greener by offering them high-efficiency heating and cooling equipment.

Additionally, we explain to our customers other ways they can improve the efficiency of their comfort equipment. For instance, we can offer them a ductless system, which provides a much more energy-efficient alternative than a window air conditioning unit. We also show them how using a programmable thermostat can help them save on their energy usage – some of today’s thermostats can even be controlled remotely, allowing people to maintain efficiency even when they’re away from home.

At T.F. O’Brien, we also educate our customers on programs that are available to help them afford high efficiency equipment. There are numerous government, utility and manufacturer rebate programs that can help defray some of the costs of equipment, and we stay current on the latest in offerings so that we can help our customers purchase the greenest home comfort solution possible.

All of us at T.F. O’Brien believe that we as business owners have a responsibility to our customers, our planet, and the generations to follow us to help preserve the environment. We strive toward conducting green business practices, offering environmentally sound products, and recycling as often as possible. We believe that the work we do today will impact the world tomorrow, so it is our mission to do so in an Earth-friendly manner.

National Coverage

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T. F. O’Brien Featured in National Publication

Back in May 2010, T. F. O’Brien was selected to be featured as a Dealer Spotlight in the Carrier® “Beyond Repair” monthly publication. The publication included a retro theme which was perfect for T. F. O’Brien. We were the first Carrier dealer on Long Island, and today we are the company people turn to for advice and solutions to their HVAC needs.

View the PDF.

TFOBrien featured in Totaline

Sealing Air Ducts for Savings

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Air Ducts Can Leak Valuable Heat or Cool Air

You may have the newest, most energy efficient heating and air equipment, or maybe your system getting on in years but still performing well. Whichever is your situation, a sure way to get the most out of either is to check your air ducts.
Continue reading “Sealing Air Ducts for Savings” →