Tag: cooling system

Crawl Spaces Can Be Laden With Heat — Use These Tips To Trap Heat Before It Enters Your Home

Posted on by tfobrien

Heat Gets Trapped in Your Crawl Space and Will Leak into Your Home

Crawl spaces have a big impact on home performance. When the summer sets in around Long Island, heat can collect in your crawl space, rising up through the floor into your living space. This means your cooling system has to work harder to make up for the extra heat pouring into your home.  Installing insulation  beneath your floor can help prevent this heat transfer. Continue reading “Crawl Spaces Can Be Laden With Heat — Use These Tips To Trap Heat Before It Enters Your Home” →

Wondering If Your A/C Will Last The Summer? Here’s Our Advice

Posted on by tfobrien

Give Your Air Conditioning a Quick Review Before It Gets Too Hot

Summer will be here before you know it, and you may be wondering if your air conditioning will last through one more season, especially if it is getting up in age. Continue reading “Wondering If Your A/C Will Last The Summer? Here’s Our Advice” →

Comfort Plus Control with Zoning Systems

Posted on by T.F. O'Brien Cooling & Heating

Different Rooms Have Different Uses and Temperatures

An option for your heating and cooling system that allows better comfort, greater control and the potential to reduce energy costs sounds good, doesn’t it? The use of zoning systems gives homeowners that type of increased comfort and control in our homes.

Zoning systems added to a home’s existing heating and cooling systems results in a more consistent temperature level. The home is divided into zones that have their own thermostat. The different thermostats tie into a central control allowing the homeowner to have a consistent comfort level in all the home living spaces. This eliminates problem rooms or areas that are too cool in winter or too hot in summer. The flow of conditioned air is more accurately balanced without getting one room too hot or cool in order to warm up or cool off another room. More air is delivered where it is needed, less air where it is not.

The air distribution can be controlled and the comfort level in each zone is more easily maintained. Rooms or areas that are rarely used can be dealt with separately. Keep those areas at a winter level of 65 degrees and a summer level of 78. While the other living spaces maintain a 72-degree level, you are saving energy costs by reducing the heating and cooling of rooms that are seldom, if ever, used. Put the warm and cool air where it is needed, not where it is wasted.

Zoning systems can give you that kind of control. If you and your family have noticed “hot spots” or “cold spots”inside the home, zoning may be a solution. If you would like an assessment of your home to see if zoning systems can give you greater comfort and control, contact us at  T.F. O’Brien. We’re always happy to help with answers and options for your home comfort concerns.

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

What to Look for in a Preventive Maintenance Agreement

Posted on by T.F. O'Brien Cooling & Heating

Regular HVAC Maintenance Will Save You Money on Repairs and Energy

Many homeowners fail to purchase a preventive maintenance agreement on their heating and cooling system because of cost issues.  The truth is, not purchasing an annual maintenance agreement can end up costing you even more in the long run.

A system that is well maintained on a timely basis ensures that your unit is running at peak performance – which means energy savings, and a lower utility bill for the homeowner.  Breakdowns and even small repairs can add up to a substantial amount of money. Because you never know when something unexpected may happen, these things can disrupt your life as well.  Imagine a major breakdown in the middle of winter on Long Island.  Through annual maintenance, the chances of something like this occurring are greatly reduced.

What should you look for in a preventive maintenance agreement?

  • Check to make sure that the various elements of your system get a “tune-up”.  This may include adjusting bypass dampers, operating pressures and thermostat calibration.
  • Flues, heat exchangers, evaporator coils, fan blades, start and run capacitors and delays and combustion air should be checked on each inspection.
  • Other components need regular cleaning, such as the combustion chamber, burners, condenser coils, evaporator drains and filters.
  • Amperage draw, gas input, voltage variances and temperature differences should be measured to ensure that all are working properly.

The benefits of an annual maintenance agreement are many.  A heat and air system is a big investment, one that you want to last for many years.  Having a preventive maintenance agreement to keep your unit in good working order means that you will save money, improve the efficiency of your system, save on repairs that are needed, and be able to depend on having heat and air when you need it most.

T.F. O’Brien services the Long Island, New York area.

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