Your Home’s Top Story Needs Some Help to Stay Cool
During warmer months, Long Island homeowners rely on their air conditioning system to reduce the rising temperatures. Unfortunately, many people run into a problem trying to keep the upstairs cool since heat rises. Continue reading “How to Keep the Second Story of Your Long Island Home Comfortably Cool”
If only heat in attic spaces stayed up there, it wouldn’t be a problem. But when solar energy radiating through the roof raises attic temperatures up to 150 degrees in summer, it becomes an issue for the whole house, not just the attic. Continue reading “The Heat Lurking in Your Attic: Is It Creeping Into Your Home?”
Each Room of Your Home Presents Different Air Quality Problems
As a homeowner, it’s your responsibility to ensure that the indoor air quality is clean and safe for all the occupants in the house. The different rooms attract a variety of pathogens that reduce the overall indoor air quality. Knowing what the contaminants in each room are allows you to address them and the risks they pose. Continue reading “Boosting Your Indoor Air Quality, From Basement to Bedroom”
How Air Moves Through Your Home Helps Determine ComfortNowadays, efficient home are known to be airtight. Most all of the heating and cooling remains where it’s needed and intended, while saving hundreds of dollars on your electric bill throughout the year. However, if you’re lucky enough to have an airtight Long Island home, you may not realize you could benefit from a proper ventilating system to refresh the air you are breathing. Continue reading “Your Airtight Home Needs a Ventilating System, and Here’s Why”
Learn How to Use Your Attic as a Cap on Your Home’s Conditioned Air
Attic insulation and attic ventilation are two things that work together to keep your Long Island home comfortable. They require neither fuel nor electricity, and they use no energy. The two go hand-in-hand to help you maintain a comfortable, balanced indoor environment. The combination of insulation and ventilation performs two critical functions: it works to reduce moisture and control temperature. Continue reading “Attic Ventilation Is Dependent On Your Insulation”
New York weather is extreme. The winters can be frigid. The summers can bring unexpected heat waves. Because New Yorkers face a wide range of temperatures, our homes must be ready for anything. One important aspect to a comfortable, energy-efficient home is having a good attic ventilation system in place. Continue reading “Attic Ventilation Increases Efficiency And Comfort”
Given the lay of our land, it is not surprising that excess moisture is a common problem in Long Island homes. High humidity — especially in July and August — can make your home uncomfortable, leading to mold, the proliferation of dust mites, and an increase in allergens. Have you noticed: Continue reading “Long Island Residents: Get More Comfort With Dehumidifiers”
People tend to think of air pollution as an outdoor problem. However, quite often the air inside our homes is more polluted than the air outside (according to the EPA, substantially more polluted). Allergy, asthma and immunology experts have estimated that half of all illnesses are aggravated by, or even caused by, indoor air pollution, and the terms “sick building syndrome” and “building related illness” have come into use to describe instances where people become sick from simply being indoors. Continue reading “Electronic Air Cleaner Options”
A whole-house humidifier can make dry, indoor heat feel so much more comfortable. The humidity level in a home also helps keep the thermostat set a degree or two lower which helps on energy costs. Although the humidifier demands relatively little attention, there are a few things that the homeowner should occasionally check to make sure everything is in good working order. Continue reading “Humidifier Cleaning and Maintenance Tips”
Heat recovery ventilators (HRVs) are among the most energy-efficient ventilation systems available. They pull fresh air inside, filtering it while expelling stale air. They also essentially “recapture” the energy of the outgoing, stale air and “give” it to the incoming air. Typical heat recovery ventilators can recycle about 85 percent of this warm or cool energy, taking strain off your HVAC system. There are a plenty of HRV models that attach to pre-existing ductwork.
Heat recovery ventilators accomplish the heat exchange inside the heat exchanger core, where the currents of incoming fresh air and outgoing stale air both pass. This is where the energy is collected and saved. The two different air flows, however, do not cross.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the American Lung Association recommend HRVs as some of the best ventilation systems on the market to improve indoor air quality and health. If you achieve energy savings with a tightly sealed home, your indoor air is probably not well circulated, leading to indoor pollution.
Heat recovery ventilators reduce indoor pollution from common factors including:
Fresh, filtered air can lead to vast improvements for many individuals plagued by recurring issues such as respiratory problems, headaches, allergies, lethargy and more.
Pre-installed ventilation systems in houses such as bathroom fans and stovetop fans can only go so far. These expel some heat, humidity and fumes, but also pull in pollutants from outside, dust particles from the attic, humidity, and radon, the second cause of lung cancer in the US after cigarettes. Opening windows won’t filter the air or maintain your indoor temperature, but will strain your HVAC system
In the ongoing quest for energy efficiency, heat recovery ventilators are good investments, and can extend the life span of your HVAC system. If you’re thinking about improving your indoor air quality and want expert advice, feel free to call the professionals at T. F. O’Brien. We’re happy to help.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about heat recovery ventilators and other HVAC topics, click here to download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
