ac services – gtg
Keep grass clippings and leaves away from the outdoor unit. This keeps dirt and debris from getting into the system. It also keeps the airflow path clear.
Keep furniture and carpeting away from grills and ductwork. If you block your air conditioning system’s ability to deliver air, you rob yourself of the cooling necessary to keep your home comfortable.
Keep shades or curtains drawn on the sunny side of the house, especially during early and mid-afternoon hours. Keeping the sun out will keep your home cooler.
Run your dishwasher, washing machine and dryer in the evening hours.
Don’t overrun an exhaust fan. It pulls the air conditioning out of the home.
Leave all interior doors open at least 2 inches if the room does not have its own return air intake vent.
Clean and vacuum vents, baseboard heaters and ducts. If you have pets, you should do this frequently.
Visually inspect the outdoor coils. Make sure they are free from dirt, debris, and vegetation. It’s best to clean the coil when the unit is not running.
Use a programmable thermostat. This allows you to cool your home only when you need it.
Check your filters monthly. A dirty filter will cause excessive strain on your furnace, air conditioner or heat pump. This can result in damage or early system failure. We recommend buying a year at a time. When you use that last one give one, give our certified technicians a call and have them come out and do your annual check and/or tuning. We can even bring you another years supply of filters so you don’t even have to leave your home!
Make sure that your outdoor unit stays in a level position. If the support for your split-system outdoor unit shifts or settles and the unit is no longer level, re-level it promptly to make sure moisture drains properly out of the unit.
Caulk exterior cracks and gaps. Pay close attention to problems spots around windows, electrical outlets, doors, and plumbing.
Install weather stripping around windows and doors to make sure conditioned air is not escaping.
Seal ductwork airtight.
Turn off all lights, fans, computer monitors, etc. when a room is unoccupied.
Replace low efficiency incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.
Have your heating and cooling system thoroughly cleaned and tuned (NOT just a check up) by a reputable company with certified technicians like our company at least once a year.
Install solar screens, awnings, or plants to shade windows and walls during the summer months.
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WHY IS SERVICE / PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE SO NECESSARY FOR HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING EQUIPMENT?
Preventive maintenance or service is essential to the proper functioning of air conditioning and heating equipment. If preventive maintenance is not preformed regularly or if it is done haphazardly, the equipment will require extensive and costly repairs at a later date. “It is a case of “pay me now or pay considerably more, later,” and lose reliability while paying higher energy cost in the process.
Preventive maintance programs of air conditioning and heating equipment include regular inspections each year. During these inspections, proper operation of the equipment is checked and verified. All mechanical equipment is designed to operate within certain limits. air conditioning and heating equipment is no exception, and if not properly maintained, the equipment will exceed its design limitations with the result being equipment failure. Your best insurance against HVAC failure and cost containment is preventive maintenance.
PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE CHECKLIST & HVAC PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE
Why must we service & replace air conditioning filters? Air conditioning equipment is designed to operate with a specific quantity of air passing over its indoor coil surface. When air filters are not replaced, they clog and become coated with dirt. Similarly, the indoor coils get coated with dirt. This dirt reduces the amount of air through the unit below the design limit, leading to catastrophic failure.
In the cooling mode, if there is not enough air over the indoor coil, the coil tempature drops. When it drops below the freezing point, ice forms on the coil, which further reduces the airflow, which further reduces the coil tempature. The compressor within the unit is a pump, which is designed to pump a vapor. As the airflow through the indoor coils drops, there isn’t enough heat being removed from the air passing over the coil to vaporize the liquid refrigerant inside the coil. Thus, instead of receiving a vapor, the compressor receives liquid refrigerant. this is called “Liquid Slugging”. The effect of “liquid Slugging” is similar to the effect of pouring liquid into the cylinders of a gas engine. As liquids are not compressible, cylinder pressure exceeds the design limits, of the cylinder, and the valves, connecting rods, pistons, or other internal components are destroyed. The air conditioning unit starts out requiring that its filters be replaced. Now it needs a new compressor. Preventive maintenance or a new compressor? Ultimately, its your choice.
In the heating mode, low airflow causes the heat exchanger to overheat. Heat exchangers are designed to operate at temperatures between 102 degrees Fahrenheit and 200 degrees Fahrenheit. At higher temperatures, the heat exchangers oxidizes, its life-span is reduced, or it cracks and breaks. In either case, It makes far more sense to replace air filters regularly than to replace a heat exchanger costing far more.
WHY MUST WE CLEAN CONDENSER COILS?
Air conditioning equipment is designed to operate between certain outdoor tempature limits. Cooling and condensing of the refrigerant vapor is designed to occur with a particular volume of air flowing through the condenser at a maximum outdoor ambient tempature. (Usually 115F) If the finned surfaces of the outdoor coils are fouled with dirt, the ability of these coils to transfer heat is reduced and the airflow through the condenser coil is reduced (blocked by dirt and dust) When the ability to transfer heat is reduced, the operating temperatures and pressures of the air conditioning unit increase. A unit, designed to operate at ambient temperatures of 115 degrees Fahrenheit or more, may stop operating at an outdoor temperature of 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Due to the reduced heat transfer capability, the operating temperatures and pressures within the unit exceed the manufactures safe limit and the unit shuts down. If the unit does not exceed the manufacturer’s limits by enough to shut down, it will continue to run at reduced capacity and efficiency, and at an increased rate of wear and energy consumption due to the increased work load. A strong reason for preventive maintenance reducing wear, costs and catastrophic failure.
WHY INSPECT AIR CONDITIONING RELAYS AND CONTRACTORS?
Electrical relays are designed to open and close a certain number of times with a particular current load, before the contact points are damaged and relay requires replacement. If more than the design current is passed through this relay due to a motor working too hard, or low voltage conditions, the contact points overheat and become damaged. If the electrical contacts in a contractor (large relay) begin to get pitted, and the contractor is not replaced, eventually the air conditioners compressor motor or the fan motor controlled by the contractor will burn up and require replacement. Once again, if we exceed the design limitations of the device, or its anticipated life span, additional damage is caused. It is cheap to replace a relay or contractor during a preventive maintenance when compared with a motor or compressor replacement.
WHY MUST WE LUBRICATE BEARINGS AND ROTATING COMPONENTS?
Bearings and other rotating parts are designed to have a useful life span of hundreds of thousands of hours, provided they are lubricated at appropriate intervals and are not overloaded due to vibration from defective drive belts or dirty blower wheels. If bearings are not lubricated regularly, they will overheat and eventually seize. When this occurs the bearings fall apart, and the blower wheel, shaft and housing are destroyed. This is a prime example of a situation where inexpensive preventive maintence was neglected with catastrophic results.
WHY MUST WE CHECK THE AIR CONDITIONERS REFRIGERANT CHARGE ON A REGULAR BASIS?
A unit operating with an insufficient refrigerant charge can ruin its compressor via two scenarios. The unit icing up due to a low-pressure condition causes the compressor to fail due to liquid slugging, as described before. The second type of failure is due to the fact that the compressor requires a certain quantity of cool refrigerant vapor to cool its motor windings. If the refrigerant charge is not sufficient, the motor within the compressor will overheat and burn up. A preventive maintenance program would spot this condition and save you money.
The scenarios described all causes damage to occur slowly over time, usually without being noticed until catastrophic failure has occurred. Regularly scheduled service / preventive maintenance on any HVAC or heating and air conditioning system lowers overall air conditioning and heating service costs. It reduces emergency calls due to catastrophic failures, it results in lower energy costs and lower replacement costs. It reduces repair costs.
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Portable Air Conditioner – When Does It Make Sense To Buy One?
There are many reasons why you may want to consider buying a portable air conditioner to keep you cool during the hot and humid days of summer – or year round if live in one of the hot states like Texas, Nevada, or Arizona. One of the biggest reasons is if you or your kids usually stay in one room of the house you can use the portable air conditioner and cool off that room and turn off the central air conditioner and reduce electric bills. There’s no reason to cool off the whole house when you only need one room cool. Now let’s take a look at some of the best-selling portable air conditioners on the market today.
First up we have the SPT WA-9000E 9,000-BTU Portable Air Conditioner with Remote from Sunpentown. This unit can work as an air conditioner, dehumidifier, or three speed fan. It comes with a digital thermostat control and LCD display plus a remote control which makes it easy to operate. It is lightweight and is easily rolled from room to room wherever you need to keep cool. You can cool a room up to 250 square feet in size. You can pick up one or two of these units on Amazon for around $300 and take advantage of free shipping.
Next up is the NewAir AC-10000E 10,000 BTU Portable Air Conditioner With AutoEvaporative Technology. This 10,000 BTU Air conditioner will blow you away. Its compact design will take up little room but you will surely notice how cold it can make your bedroom, small office, garage, apartment, or any other personal space. It features an easy to read LCD screen with push button controls for easy use and you can set it to a comfortable temperature for you. Find out how this portable AC unit can be perfect for your needs for around $350 with free shipping on Amazon.
Last up is another portable air conditioner from NewAir, the NewAir AC-12000E 12,000 BTU Portable Air Conditioner With R410A Refrigerant. You can call it the previous ones big brother as the 12,000 BTUs will surely have you running for a blanket because of how cold it gets your room. It also features new eco-friendly R-410A refrigerant which results in lower energy consumption and therefore lower energy bills. This portable AC unit will keep it cold only where it’s most needed. And its compact design will keep you happy with how much space you have left in your room. Discover why this unit has over 30 four and five star positive reviews on Amazon. You can get your own for around $400 and get free shipping as well.
That’s a quick review of some of the best-selling portable air conditioners on the market. You can use one to keep one area of your house, office, garage or apartment cool while cutting down your energy bills in the process.
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I just had my air conditioner serviced. It was keeping the house semi cool but not at a comfortable level. They came out and cleaned the unit (it needed it pretty bad) and he put 3.5 lbs of freon in it. It felt the same… so now 2 days later its 91 degrees inside my house. he cleaned the unit, put in new filters, put in 3.5 lbs of freon, he swept the duct? out (we have central heat & air) he said he checked for leaks and there isn’t any, the copper wires are fine inside & outside the house, the condensation is dripping properly from the hose leading to the outside of the house….so now he just says “its just hot outside and it will take awhile”
ARE YOU SERIOUS????? IT’S 91 degrees inside my house! It’s cooler outside than inside! I went to the store and bought 3 standing oscilating fans & 1 floor fan… this is ridiculous. I was out $300 and his excuse to why my house is not cooling at all now is “its just hot outside”
I have my window raised and the kitchen raised (the only ones with screen). I’m about to go crazy and I cant afford to have someone else come out here right now.
Any ideas/advice?
Review:
*3.5 lbs freon & CHARGED the unit
*New filters
*No leaks
*cleaned out the duct & outside unit
*Copper wires are fine
*leaking condensation fine
What else is there?
All your information is helpful. Thanks a million.
Ok, I just found a block of ice on the coil thats right beside the radiator looking thing. I defrosted it but its too early to tell if this is my problem. What causes a block of ice to form like that?
Your condensate drain is clogged for sure. The drain leaking from the house is a secondary drain. SO, your main drain is clogged. However, that’s secondary issue.
3.5 pounds of refrigerant, (freon), is a lot. Your unit is overcharged. This can slug your compressor and ruin the valves.
If the indoor fan, outdoor fan, and compressor are all coming on, AND somebody just dumped 3.5 pounds of refrigerant in your system, you have a “freon” problem!
Shut system off NOW and call a more reputable company tomorrow. Get your money back from the first guys.
A dirty indoor coil or dirty filter or a bad indoor fan can cause an indoor coil to ice over. BUT we have already been over those issues. THOSE ISSUES SHOULD ALL HAVE BEEN CHECKED! The indoor coil is getting too cold and humidity is freezing on it.
Turn the unit to off and to fan mode and defrost the indoor coil. Then just leave it alone until somebody else can come look at it. Your unit is over/under charged. Or you have a dirty indoor coil or a bad air filter.
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Long story short, we bought a new-construction house 9 years ago and have never lived in a house before with items that are unfamiliar to me. The condenser unit outside has a piece broken that is impossible to fix according to a tech from a reputable HVAC company in the area because of where it broken off. The gas furnace works fine.
How do you go about shopping for central air? It’s been hard finding reviews online. I know its always best to find an honest company to help you out, but how do you even do that? I’ve asked around for some names, but in all honesty most people only buy this once in their lifetime, how would they know if they were treated fairly?
It also seems that many big HVAC companies carry only certain brands, and where I live each company carries different brands from one another. Cost is not so much of a problem, but being ripped off is.
I know it’s a bit of a silly and possibly obvious question, but any help would be appreciated!
I should have added:
1) We had the same symptoms last year and it was repaired. It was then the tech told us about the issue which he said may or may not re-occur. If it did we should get it replaced.
2) A friend of the family is a dispatcher at the firm that came out to fix the problem originally. I would hope that he told the tech not to rip us off, that was the plan anyway!
3) I found the repair order from last year. It says “Replaced terminal connections on compressor (rusted away). if problem persists compressor should be replaced. Quote $2003.00. Can just the compressor be replaced? Can you buy just the compressor? How will that affect efficiency and safety? Is that even a cost-effective way to go?
It’s actually a good question. And since I bought a new furnace and AC last year I have a little experience. I learned quite a bit so I’ll let you in on some of what I learned.
As you’ve figured out, having a top notch installer is key. I had another house nearby and had found an excellent local company that I’ve used for 20 years. I used to have relatives in your area but I couldn’t recommend anyone unfortunately. I will say the companies with the big ads and nice trucks aren’t always the best. Their customers have to pay for all that advertising.
Since I had a guy I trusted, he was the only quote I got. I told him I was looking for a fairly high efficiency unit IF it made sense for my house.
He recommended Carrier and went with some of their better equipment. As he, and my building inspector had noted, the existing unit was 24 years old, and was about 4 tons. The installer said that in those days they thought bigger was better and they put in oversize units. That ended up not being efficient. They replaced it with a 2 ton.
My inspector noted that the line from the outside unit to the house was far too long, about 3 feet. The longer it is, the more cooling loss. The new unit has a new line that’s less than a foot long outside.
The new AC is very high efficiency, 16 SEER. My usual electric bill is around $35. With all this 90-100 heat, my bill was $116. I thought that was great.
The cost for the AC was $4100. I was eligible for a tax credit and got $1230.
If you can’t find anyone to recommend an installer, try to get 4 or 5 quotes. This is my third furnace in 3 houses and the first time I didn’t know anyone and I got 5 quotes and they were all over the board. I finally went with bid number 6 that came from a friends dad.
One thing I noticed was that each company came in and only showed me the high end units. My friends father got me a lower end contractor model that was half the price of the other units.
Good luck.
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Room Air Conditioners
Before purchasing you need an understanding of what your requirements are. Is this for one room or two rooms? Look for companies that sell room air conditioners where they sell quality air conditioners and especially room air conditioners. Should you happen to live in an area that gets hot or wet in the summer months, you know that room air conditioners is essential to your comfort.
If you have never used room air conditioners before, whether movable or room ( fixed ) you want to make certain you buy the best one. You may use your room air conditioners each day during hot periods and you wish to make certain you purchase one that fits your requirements. Room air conditioners can be fixed or portable. The actual question you have to ask yourself is whether you wish to cool a selected room in your house or if you’d like to have the ease of selecting which room to chill. If you would like to air condition a specific room, a living room, bedroom or computer room as an example, then a room air conditioners is the right product for you.
There are 2 types of room air conditioners one must be installed by a professional and the other is portable both require an open window with a bucket to collect the water. If you’d like the benefit of a mobile room air conditioners then you need to get a transportable room air conditioners that may be moved to whichever room you would like.
The large advantage here is you can use it in the bedroom at night, and another room in the day, and store it away altogether when you’re not using it. Air conditioner makers stock lots of room air conditioners. There’s no doubt that ceiling fans are not a replacement for a reasonable room air conditioners since all they do is move the hot air around, but after you pick which kind of room air conditioners to buy, you’ve got to make sure you get a unit that is really capable of cooling the area you desire cooled. Too little a unit and you might as well have a ceiling fan, too big a unit and you’ll be wasting energy and money. Modern house room air conditioners are very efficient and are literally capable of cooling reasonable big areas, nevertheless it is worth checking before buying. Air conditioner capacity is measured in BTUs ( Thermal Units ). So when you’re looking for a little more comfort in your house, consider purchasing a room air conditioners which use the newest technology to cool down your house. Keep an eye open for our offers on the fastest selling room air conditioners, with costs coming down all the time, there hasn’t ever been a better time to buy one.
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