Taking Care of Your Investments

No, this is not an article on financial planning, but this is certainly an issue that could affect your financial well-being.

Your home comfort system is a big investment, no question about it. If you take care of this investment, it will take care of you - over a longer equipment life that is spent operating efficiently, saving you energy dollars and keeping you comfortable. Not a bad result for routine maintenance.

Yes, maintenance matters. But what does it involve? If you’d like to learn more, take a look at our free report, “A Quick and Simple Home Investment.”

Better Breathing

There’s something about spring... it’s sort of a “best of times, worst of times” season of the year. The crisp cool air can be quite nice after wintry mixes are done, and you feel that need to spend more time outdoors.

And yet, that nice, fresh air is also picking up a few particles from the lawn and garden that can make breathing a chore.

Inside, you’re not exactly safe either if the quality of your indoor air is affected by contaminants. High humidity, for example, can create a breeding ground for mold and dust mites that produce an unhealthy breathing ground for you and your family.

If you’d like to learn more about these issues, take a look at our free report, “Is the Air in Your Home Making Spring Allergies Worse?”

Is Your Air Conditioner Trying to Hit the Snooze Button?

After a long hibernation, most of us would wake up slowly. Your air conditioning system could be feeling the same way. In fact, it could sputter in protest at the first sign of a warm day. But basically, all it’s probably trying to tell you is that it just needs a little care after all those months of neglect.

These “wake up” calls are the most important services we provide to customers - because that’s how we get you ready and prepared for those warm summer days. If your air conditioner could say “thank you” for the service, it probably would, but you’ll just have to feel the gratitude in the smooth cooling it provides.

In the meantime, if you’ve been wondering what’s on your air conditioner’s mind, this brief, helpful letter could make it pretty clear.

How to Shine a Little Light on a Dark Night

Spring storms aren’t always predictable. You don’t exactly know when you’ll lose power and not be able to cook, keep your refrigerator working, stay comfortable or find your way in the dark. That’s why a lot of homeowners create a backup plan. They make the fairly small investment in a home generator to save themselves a lot of trouble later on.

Have you wondered about getting a generator for your home? If so, how do you decide which one is right for you? And how do you safely operate a generator? These are big questions, and we can help you get started on the answers.

If you’d like to learn more about selecting and operating home generators, take a look at our free report: More Power Outages to Come?

Is Your Home Trying to Tell You Something?

Sometimes you can hear little noises that tell you your home has a concern to address. You know, something like the drip, drip, drip of a faucet that says "fix me." Or the sound of wind that's coming through a crack that should be patched.

Spring is a good time to walk through your home just to "look and listen" to the maintenance issues that cropped up over the winter months. That way you’ll know what needs tending to.

Along those same lines, be sure to add your home comfort system to your maintenance list. Routine maintenance is one of the most practical ways you can preserve the life of your system and preserve your pocketbook at the same time. Maintained systems run more efficiently, which saves you money.

What else should your maintenance tour include? For ideas, take a look at our free report, "Give Your Home a Spring Checkup," available on our Facebook Page for a limited time!

Does Cold Weather Cause Colds?

I used to think so. (Hey, the name fits!) But even though fall and winter are the “prime time” for colds, researchers say that sniffles and air temperature aren’t necessarily related.

The seasonal occurrence may be due to spending more time indoors. And when indoor groups spend a lot of time together - such as in classrooms - the odds increase that germs will be spread.

Relative humidity may also be a factor. In colder months, humidity is low, and that gives cold-causing viruses a better chance for survival. Also, in cold weather, nasal passages’ lining become drier and more vulnerable to viral infection.

To prevent colds:

• Wash your hands. Hand washing is the simplest and most effective way to avoid colds, especially after making hand contact with others.
• Don’t touch your nose and eyes. Sneeze or cough into a facial tissue and throw it away. Be aware that others with colds put you at risk. Avoid close, prolonged exposure.
• Check into a humidifier. These keep the moisture in your home at the ideal level for your comfort and can reduce your chances of getting a cold. (Plus, they can keep your furniture from swelling or cracking and doors from sticking!) Call us and we will give you more info on these health and comfort marvels! They really work.
• Cold germs can live up to 3 hours on objects and skin. Cleaning surfaces with a virus-killing disinfectant also helps prevent spread of infection.

To learn more about preventing colds this season, read this report on our Facebook Page, available for a limited time!

Don't Invite an Invisible Killer to Your Home

You can’t see it, touch it, smell it or taste it, but it kills hundreds each year. Poisoning by carbon monoxide is a real risk of modern life. A professional inspection of fuel-burning appliances – including furnaces, stoves, fireplaces, clothes dryers and space heaters – could prove to be a lifesaver. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recommends that the yearly, professional inspection include:

• Checking chimneys, flues and vents for leakage and blockage by creosote and debris.
• Checking all vents to furnaces, water heaters, boilers and other fuel-burning appliances to make sure they are not loose or disconnected.
• Inspecting vent pipes on heating systems.
• Inspecting appliances for adequate ventilation. A supply of fresh air is important to help carry pollutants up the chimney, stovepipe or flue, and is necessary for the complete combustion of any fuel.
• Making sure ventilation air openings aren’t blocked.

You can read more here to see how to protect your family from this dangerous, potentially lethal gas.

5 Things You Can Do to Get Ready for Winter

By the time the cold winds start to blow, it is too late to worry about whether or not your home is ready for the cold winter ahead. What’s done is done, and what’s not done – well, it could cost you hundreds of dollars in home repair.  Luckily there’s no time like the present to make sure you’re prepared before your hindsight kicks in…

1. Have your heating system cleaned and tuned.  A pre-season tune-up is a good investment – it reduces the chances of breakdowns in the middle of winter, improves safety, and pays for itself through more energy efficient operation.
2. Test your system for hazardous carbon monoxide, which can be produced by a dirty or malfunctioning furnace or water heater. We can also install a low level carbon monoxide alarm. 
3. Have your duct system tested for air leaks. According to recent research by the U.S. Department of Energy, the typical duct system loses 25 to 40 percent of the energy put out by the central furnace, heater or air conditioner. 
4. Get your home’s air checked to find out if the air you breathe is unhealthy. Your indoor air can be much more polluted than what is outside, and with all the time spent indoors during the winter, you’ll want to ensure your family’s health, safety and comfort. 
5. Consider replacing your old furnace or heat pump. Just like a car, heating equipment doesn’t last forever. If your system is more than 12 years-old, and you are planning to stay in your home more than a few years, it is wise to consider replacing it before it fails permanently. A new system is safer, more dependable, and can pay for itself through energy savings as it is up to twice as energy efficient.

Click here for a special discount on an Energy Squeezer Tune-Up! (Good through February 15, 2012)

Winter Heating Bills Go Sky-high This Year

While some of the situation is out of our hands – the price of crude oil, for instance – there are many things we can do to keep a rein on our winter heating bills.

Your heating system is the one element that should get the closest look before the cold, costly winter sets in. Now is a great time to have a service tech give your system a thorough evaluation to make sure it’s running properly.

Additionally, the federal government’s ENERGY STAR program makes several recommendations about how you can heat your home smartly this winter, including:

• Replace the air filter in your furnace regularly. Dirty filters reduce air flow, which makes getting the warm air to the registers a lot tougher.
• Install a programmable thermostat. Why heat the home while you’re away? Setting back the temperature in your household when you’re asleep or at work is another opportunity for energy savings – as much as $100 each year on energy costs.
• Seal up your home. Sealing holes, cracks and openings and then adding insulation is one of the most cost-effective means of improving comfort and reducing energy use. Cracks in windows and doors can be plugged through weather-stripping and caulking.

This article on our Facebook Page explains more and offers a great deal that we're offering through January 20, 2012! Take a look!

Natural Remedies for Fall Allergy Sufferers

This time of year makes for beautiful weather, but also for a huge rise in allergy suffering. Some over-the-counter medicines may work fine, but can have bad side effects. Some cause nasal bleeding, others have “rebound effects” (where the patient must keep using the product to stay clear).

Natural remedies have been coming on strong in recent years for several reasons. They’re deemed as good as or more effective than prescriptions; they cost less, and many Americans are needlessly becoming resistant to chemicals.

Here are some natural ways to help reduce your Fall allergy effects:

• Quercitin: This natural antihistamine is a component in fruits and vegetables. You can find it at health stores. Most people take 300mg twice a day from early Fall until the first frost.
• Stinging Nettle: This oddly named plant extract is also a natural antihistamine used with great results. The dosage would be slightly higher than Quercitin.
• Vitamin C: Can be taken in higher doses (1000mg) during allergy season, but reduced significantly or eliminated during the off-season.
• Saline nasal spray: Using 1/2 teaspoon of salt dissolved per 1/2 cup of water just before bedtime as a nasal wash can significantly reduce your “morning stuffiness”.
• HEPA filtration is the most efficient form of heating and air conditioning filtration that still allows good airflow. (Call us to get one in your size). You can also get them for your vacuum cleaner.
• Avoid overuse of moth cakes, scented candles. These can release a high degree of chemicals known to trigger allergies.
• Radon is still highly dangerous. Many people thought the “scam” of Radon negated the need for detection. Radon fears have plummeted, however, Radon is carcinogenic (causes cancer) and quite prevalent. You may have it checked by a home professional very easily. Web help: www.epa.org.
• Weird Science: Emptying the dishwasher can trigger allergies. It can release chemicals through volatilization. If you find yourself sensitive to this, run your stove fan while emptying (or make your spouse do it!)
• Duct Sealing or Cleaning is about the most natural thing you can do! Simply having clean air in your home can rid you of the source of your aggravation. Call us or fill out the form below to help you or to get more information on this service. (You may not need any medication)!

Contact us for an Indoor Air Quality Review. We’ll review your entire air delivery system. Plus, we’ll also electronically test for Carbon Monoxide (CO) to spot this odorless, colorless killer. (This test alone is worth calling us now.)

Is Your Furnace Keeping Secrets?

With winter setting in soon, this is the time to make sure your family will be able to stay warm and comfortable in the months ahead.

First order of business: get your furnace ready for service. Sure, it’s had a good long rest over the warmer months, but that also means it’s had a chance to collect dust, rust and gunk. None of that will help on a cold winter’s night.

The number one reason for your system failing isn’t age, brand, lightning or that you play with your thermostat too much – it’s dirt. That’s right, a furnace that isn’t regularly cleaned and tuned will most likely be the reason the heat doesn’t come one night.

There are a lot of other reasons seasonal maintenance is a good idea – like saving energy dollars, increasing the life of your system and protecting yourself from dangerous problems like carbon monoxide poisoning. This quick video explains more, so please take a look!

Which Direction to Turn

You could say, seasons never change alone. When summer rolls over to fall, we also start reshuffling a lot of the things we do. For example, we change what we wear. Head back to school. Spend more time inside – or outside. Follow a different sport. Watch a new TV season.

Yes, a shift in season shifts a lot of the things we do. You could say, it feels a little like a change in direction. If you want to stay comfortable in your home, there’s something else that calls for a change in direction too.

The rotation of your ceiling fan helps you stay cool during the summer. We all know this, of course, but what many are surprised to learn is that ceiling fans can also help keep you comfortable in winter – once you change the direction of their rotation.

So, the change in season doesn’t mean you have to put your ceiling fan into hibernation. Simply reverse the rotation of the blades, and it’ll help you stay warm. Confused? Don’t be. We’ve got a video that tells more about it. Please take a look!