Consumers shopping for a big-ticket item face a common dilemma – deciding whether to buy an inexpensive model and save money at that moment, or buy a higher-priced model and hope that the superior product will translate into a longer service life, a better experience,...
Inside a typical American home, the air is dirtier – often a good deal dirtier – than just outside the house, with many unwholesome contaminants posing a threat to family members who suffer from allergies and other respiratory issues. During allergy season, including in the...
With spring here, don’t forget to prep your home’s air conditioning system for the approaching cooling season. The difference in performance and efficiency between a well-maintained AC or heat pump and one that hasn’t been taken care of are huge. Not to mention, the chances...
When house hunting, homebuyers often neglect to consider a crucial factor – the house’s heating and cooling (HVAC) system. But the system that ensures a comfortable climate in a house, at a reasonable cost and without unnecessary energy waste, has a lot of bearing on...
Even in the most carefully maintained homes, volatile organic compounds can be found at some level in multiple places. Often referred to as VOCs, volatile organic compounds show up in a variety of household sources, from paint to furniture fabric to cosmetics. VOCs infiltrate the...
Too many homeowners forget to schedule regular professional maintenance on their residence’s heating and cooling systems. Or else they just make the mistake of concluding it’s not important. Of course, there’s no law that says you have to arrange a maintenance tune-up on your furnace...
When it comes to HVAC, the “V” is the forgotten letter. The “H” and “AC” – heating and air conditioning – get all the attention. However, “V,” for ventilation, is also a key ingredient in creating home comfort, health and energy efficiency. Without adequate ventilation,...
If you’re a diligent homeowner, you faithfully schedule semiannual maintenance checks on your home’s heating and cooling systems, typically AC or heat pump maintenance in the spring and furnace or heat pump maintenance in the fall. (If you use a heat pump for both heating...
In most homes, when the heating season arrives, family members just turn off their ceiling fans for the winter. They figure they no longer need the cooling effect of moving air that happens during hot weather. They don’t realize that a ceiling fan also can...
The most common issue that arises from defective ductwork is energy loss, of course, but another problem is liable to arise from bad ducts, one that most people aren’t aware of – an erosion in indoor air quality. There are four distinct ways that defective...
