We are entering mid-July.  The cooling season is in full swing.  It seems like a good time to remind people of a few tips to keep their air conditioners running efficiently.  And, to prevent the air conditioner from breakdowns and costly ac repairs. 

The number one tip is to replace or clean your indoor air filter according to manufacturer's recommendations.  This typically means every 1 to 3 months for filters that are 1" in thickness and every 6 to 12 months for filters that are 4" to 5" in thickness.  Dirty filters cause a reduction in indoor air flow which puts undue strain on the indoor fan motor and may lead to it's failure.  This reduction in air flow can also damage the outdoor compressor by not allowing for complete evaporation of the refrigerant through the indoor evaporator coil.  Dirty filters also lead to a reduction in efficiency.  Filters will pay for themselves through increased efficiency of the air conditioner and fewer ac repairs. 

One thing that can help reduce the cost of running your ac which some people do not address is solar radiation through your windows.  You should always close curtains and blinds where direct sunlight is filtering through.  This can reduce the ac run time by blocking unwanted heat gain.

Also, having your air conditioner serviced annually by a licensed HVAC contractor can increase efficiency and decrease breakdown likelihood.  I have found that most air conditioners need to have the outdoor condensing coil cleaned annually.  This improves the efficiency and decreases the likelihood of the compressor and/or outdoor fan motor failing.  Other things that the HVAC tech checks during the maintenance inspection includes :  refrigerant level, compressor and motor amp draws, high and low voltage levels, contactor relay for charring and pitting, and capacitors for proper capacitance.  Checking that all of these things are satisfactory insures that the air conditioner is running efficiently and reduces the likelihood of breakdown and costly ac repairs.

I hope these tips are helpful!

Have a nice day!

-Jim Harless

Is your gas furnace old?  Is your gas bill high?  Does your furnace break down frequently?  If you answered yes to any of these questions, then it may be worth it to consider a new high efficiency gas furnace.  An old furnace will generally be less effcient due to age, dirt, and corrosion.  Which may lead to a higher than necessary gas utility bill.  Let's explore some of the ways that a new furnace can save you money.

Federal energy tax credits are one way to lower the initial cost of a new furnace.  The current energy tax credits are set to expire December 31st, 2013.  So time is just about up to take advantage of the energy tax credits.  A new gas furnace with an A.F.U.E. (annual fuel utilization efficiency) of 95% or higher qualifies for a $150.00 tax credit.  If you purchase a furnace with a variable speed blower motor ( a.k.a. an advanced main circulatory fan) then you can qualify for an additional $50.00 tax credit.  In addition, if you purchase a new air conditioner ( SEER 16 or higher) or a new heat pump ( SEER 15 or higher), then you can qualify for an additional $300.00 energy tax credit.  For example, let's say you purchase a 96.7% efficient 2-stage variable speed gas furnace and 16 SEER air conditioner, you would qualify for a $ 500.00 energy tax credit.  Remember, these energy tax credits are set to expire in a few weeks, so time is critical.

To learn more about the federal energy tax credits, click here :                  http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index  

Certain utility providers also have rebate programs available to help offset the cost of high efficiency HVAC equipment.  AEP has a program that offers a $50.00 rebate for a programmable thermostat (with heat pumps), $150.00 for new indoors unit with a variable speed blower, $100.00 for air conditioner SEER 14.5 or higher, $350.00 for a heat pump of SEER 14.5 or higher (both ac and heat pump would need to replace a unit that was 13 SEER or less to qualify), and a complete system bonus of $150.00.  The maximum rebate would be around $700.00 for a complete new system.

To learn more about AEP rebates, click here :        http://dsireusa.org/incentives/incentive.cfm?Incentive_Code=OH97F

One of the biggest ways to save money with a new furnace is the efficiency savings over the life of the furnace.  I have a good real life example of this.  10 years ago, I replaced my mother's furnace for her.  Her old furnace was 30 years old, over-sized, and dirty.  I replaced it with a standard 80% A.F.U.E. gas furnace that was right-sized.  I did not use a high efficiency model furnace (90%+) because her house is small (only about 750 sq feet).  I replaced the furnace the first week of December that season.  The following spring (about mid-April), my step-father called to inform me that their gas utility provider had lowered their monthly budget  by $40.00.  Since, they are on the budget program, that means they saved $480.00 a year and $4,800.00 over the last 10 years (not counting utility increases over that time which would make their savings even higher).  The furnace cost a lot less than $4,800.00 which means they not only have totally recouped their inital cost of installing the furnace, but they are saving big money now.  The other upside to this story is that furnace has another 10 to 20 years of life left in it.  It doesn't take much to see the benefits of replacing an old inefficient furnace.

energystar.gov has a tool on their site that allows you to calculate your savings of one model furnace over another.  Click here :    http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=find_a_product.showProductGroup&pgw_code=FU

And then, underneath "furnace resources" on the right side of the page, click on "savings calculator".

One final thing, Minutemen Heating and Cooling is offering a $100.00 discount towards a new furnace installation (no other discounts apply) or $200.00 discount towards the installation a new complete system (both furnace and ac).  This offer expires with the energy tax credits on December 31, 2013.  Just mention that you read this blog to qualify for the discount. 

I hope this has been informative.  Call Minutemen Heating and Cooling today for a free estimate to install a new HVAC system in your home.  You can reach us at Phone 614-837-5062.

Thanks!

Jim Harless

It's that time of year.  Temperatures are dropping and you crank up the heat only to find that it's not working.  Your furnace is old and inefficient.  And the last time that it ran, it was  noisy.  You decide that it is time to replace your furnace.  So now what? 

First of all, you need to find a HVAC contractor that is licensed, bonded and insured.  Using a non-licensed individual to assess your hvac needs and to replace your existing furnace is a recipe for disaster.  You really do not want a person who is non-licensed and without insurance/bonds installing a gas appliance in your home.  A good place to start looking for a licensed professional to replace your furnace is your friends and family.  If any of your friends and family have had a furnace replacement recently, they may be able to recommend a contractor for you.  If you have no luck with your friends and family, then you can also get referrals from the "BBB" and "Angie's List."  The "Better Business Bureau" and "Angie's List" can also grade the contractors for you.  Other factors to consider would be "how long has the contractor been in business?", and "does the contractor use sub-contractors or his/her own employees?"  There is no guarantee that a contractor who has been in business for 20+ years that uses his/her own employees will do a better job for you, but the chances are better that that will be the case.  Also, is the contractor a small family run operation?  If so, the installers (if part of the family) will have a vested interest in doing a quality job.  One last criteria which is also important is the brand of equipment that the contractor uses.  Most contractors that have high grades on referal services such as the "Better Business Bureau" and "Angie's List" usually use quality equipment as well.  But, it helps to ask which brand that they prefer to use and then check out the brand using a consumer product grading service such as "Consumer Reports." 

Now that you have found a quality contractor, it is time to have them come to your home to assess your HVAC needs and recommend the right furnace replacement for your home.  Sometimes, just replacing your furnace with a similiar model is all you need.  But, you should discuss all of your HVAC concerns with your contractor.  He/she may be able to help with more than just the replacement of your furnace and/or ac.  You may want to consider a 2-stage furnace with a variable speed fan motor for increased comfort and efficiency.  You may also want to install a humidifer to help with low humidity levels during the winter months.  You may want to install a high efficiency air cleaner to help remove dirt and allergens from the air and to help keep your new system clean through it's lifetime.  You may want to install an insulated return drop to cut down on fan motor noise.  You may need to modify your existing duct system as well to improve air flow through out your home.  These are things to address when you are replacing your furnace and/or ac. 

In summary, find a HVAC contractor that grades out well from your referral source.  Use friends, family, BBB, and Angie's List as referrals.  A contractor that has been in business for only a short time may do great work, but length of time in business is worth considering.  Also, a small family business with a member of the family doing the work is more likely to give you a tight high quality installation over a sub-contractor for a large business.  And remember, in addition to just replacing your furnace, you may want to address efficiency, air quality, humidity control, and noise issues as well.

I hope this information helps you with your furnace replacement process.

Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,

Jim Harless

Minutemen Heating & Cooling, Inc.

614-837-5062

R-22 refrigerant known as Freon is due to be phased out by 2020.  The primary focus of this article will be the impact that the phasing out of Freon will have on consumers.  I will leave the technical aspects of Freon vs. Puron for another blog (maybe).

First, a brief history of why R-22 Freon is being phased out.  In 1987, the United States signed the "Montreal Protocol."  Which is a worldwide agreement to phase out all ozone-depleting Chloro-Fluoro-Carbons by 1996.  And, the protocol was amended in 1992 to included HCFCs, Hydro-Chloro-Fluoro-Carbons (which are less destructive to the ozone layer), and to begin the phase out of HCFCs by 2010.  Not counting dry charge units, all new air conditioners have been using "Puron" (R-410a) since Jan 1, 2010.  We are currently 3.5 years into the 10 year phase out of Freon. 

Consumers are beginning to feel the economic impact of the transistion from R-22 (Freon) to R-410a.  The 10 year phase out of Freon includes a reduction in production levels from one year to the next.  In the first 3 years, we have seen Freon prices increase by as much as 3 to 4 times as much as they were 3 years ago.  But, the biggest reduction has yet to happen.  At the midway point (2015) production levels will be dropped by 90%.  Freon will be very difficult to get by 2015 and if you can get it, it will be pricey.  Also, Puron is the replacement for Freon, and it does NOT work in R-22 systems. So, if you have an air conditioner with a Freon leak, you will be forced to seriously consider replacing your entire ac system with a new environmentally friendly R-410a system.  Repairing R-22 systems from 2015 on beyond will be costly.  Just some food for thought and a friendly FYI if you have an older R-22 ac system.

For more info on this, check out this EPA site here :

http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/22phaseout.html

And, here is another site with additional info about the phase out :

http://www.phaseoutfacts.org/

I hope this has been informative, Thanks.

Jim Harless

It's June.  Air conditioners will be sorely tested over the next three months.  Unfortunately, not all ac's will pass the test.  Some, will invariably, fail during this time.  If your ac stops cooling, what should you do? 

As I have mentioned in previous blogs, there are a couple of things you can try before calling to schedule an ac repair.  Check and replace your furnace filter if dirty.  Also, check both the furnace and ac electrical service breakers.  Note :  Do not continue resetting a breaker that repeatedly trips as you could cause a more serious problem to your furnace or ac.  If your ac is still not cooling there is one more thing you need to do.  This is very important....TURN IT OFF and call your HVAC service provider to assist you. 

We always tell our customers to turn off an ac that is not cooling properly.   Then we set up a service appointment to diagnose and repair the ac in question.  I can't count the times that I have shown up for an ac repair appointment only to find the ac still running (or trying to).  The logic goes something like this :  "It's cooling a little bit, so I will leave it on so that I can have a little bit of cool air".  Huge mistake!  There are a couple of problems with this.  If the system is frozen or iced up (which may not be apparent), then there is nothing we can do to diagnose and correct the problem until the ice is thawed.  Which can take an additional hour or two of our time (= higher cost of repairs), or require us to reschedule the repair for another day to give the system time to thaw out naturally.  This occurs more frequently than I care for. 

Another problem occurs when an ac with a relatively simple problem is left to run which puts stress on the ac and causes a more serious failure.  A blown capacitor is one of the most common ac repairs.  The good thing is that it is relatively simple and inexpensive ac repair.  But, if the system is left running with a defective capacitor it puts stress (and creates an high temperature overload condition) on the outdoor fan motor and compressor.  Last week, I went on an ac repair appointment with this exact problem.  After replacing the capacitor, the outdoor fan motor began to operate properly, but the compressor was not coming on due to the overheat condition.  Luckily, the compressor kicked on a few hours later after it was allowed time to cool.  Another customer had the same problem last year, but was not so lucky.  They allowed the ac to run all weekend knowing that it was not cooling properly.  It also had a defective capacitor, but the compressor was damaged by allowing the ac to operate in a disfunctional state.  That customer ended up replacing their entire air conditioner system. 

So please, turn off your ac until the repairman arrives.  If you live in columbus ohio or the surrounding neighborhoods, you can call Minutemen Heating and Cooling, Inc. at Phone 614-837-5062 to set up an appointment for an ac repair for Columbus Ohio.

Thanks,

Jim Harless

Do it yourself ac repair is a bad idea.  The same goes for furnace repair, maybe even more so due to the fact that you are dealing with combustible gases and possible carbon monoxide issues.  Sorry to start with my conclusion, but I feel strongly about this.  I can't remember how many times over the last 17 years I have been called in to correct a problem that was created by someone trying to "do-it-yourself".  Or maybe they called a non-licensed person (moonlighter) to fix their ac in an effort to try and save a few bucks.  In the end, they end up paying more by having a licensed professional do it right.  I will give some examples of this. 

When I was green behind the ears (about 1 or 2 years experience), I went on a service call.  When I arrived, I found nearly all of the furnace wiring disconnected and hanging out of the furnace.  The homeowner had tried to repair the furnace himself without success.  The furnace schematics (wiring diagram) was faded and illegible.  So, I had to start from scratch and figure out how to rewire the furnace.  And, there were quite a few wires too.  It looked like a spaghetti mess lol.  I spent about 2 hours rewiring the furnace before I could even begin to diagnose the original problem.  Once I had the furnace wiring back in place, it only took a few minutes to diagnose and correct the problem.  The homeowner paid more than he would have paid if he had called in the first place instead of trying to fix it himself.

A common DIY ac repair is the thermostat.  I will admit that people have more DIY success with thermostats than other HVAC related repairs.  That said, I have gone on quite a few service calls where someone has replaced their thermostat but still had a problem.  In some cases, people assume that the cause of the ac or furnace malfunction is the thermostat when in actuality it is the furnace or ac itself.  Which means they wasted money replacing a thermostat that did not need to be replaced.  In other cases, the homeowner incorrectly installed the thermostat and created a new problem that did not exist before.  Namely, shorting out the transformer or fuse on the furnace.  And, sometimes the new thermostat itself is damaged by the incorrect wiring.  Which ends up costing more in the long run to correct.

In the summer of 2011, I went on an ac repair call.  The homeowner had paid a handyman (moonlighter) to repair his ac about a month earlier.  The moonlighter replaced the outdoor fan motor which had failed again.  During the diagnosis, I found that the motor he used was not an O.E.M. motor, but an aftermarket motor.  In some cases, an aftermarket motor can work, as long as it matches the specs of the O.E.M. motor.  O.E.M. stands for "Original Equipment Manufacturer" specifications.  But, the motor that the moonlighter installed did not match O.E.M. specs.  The capacitor size was different (not an insurmountable issue), the rotation did not match the existing fan blade (which required a new fan blade), and the biggest issue was that the O.E.M. specifications require a motor enclosure that is "totally closed", but this enclosure was "open".  The picture above is from this service call.  You can see the open enclosure.  Also, he clamped and taped the capacitor to the side of the motor instead of installing the capacitor in the control box where it belongs.  Long story short, I had to replace the motor, the dual-run capacitor, and the fan blade all with O.E.M. parts to repair this.  The home owner paid more for my repair because replacing the fan blade is usually not necessary for this type of repair plus whatever he paid the handyman to repair it the first time.

Another example illustrates the necessity of having a competent professional service your furnace and/or ac.  Several years ago, I went on a furnace repair call for a tenant property.  The landlord had a "maintenance" guy try to fix it before calling us.  I found that the furnace "flame roll-out safety" had been by-passed.  Right now, all HVAC professionals reading this are gasping!  You never, ever by-pass safety controls.  They serve a vital role.....SAFETY!  A furnace running with a by-passed "flame roll-out safety" poses a fire hazzard.  When safety controls fail, it is usually when they are detecting the condition that they are designed to prevent.  Which is the worst time to by-pass the safety control.  It is critical in this situation to get at the root cause unlying the problem.   In this case, the furnace had a defective heat exchanger causing the flame roll-out condition. 

I have many more examples, plus some I'm sure I have forgotten, but I think the point has been made.  Always hire a licensed, bonded, and insured professional to service your furnace and/or ac.  It can save you time, money, headaches, and maybe your life!

Thanks,

Jim Harless

Spring is just around the corner, and before you know it those 85+ degree days will be upon us!  Now is the time to consider servicing your air conditioner for the up coming cooling season.  Air conditioner service is the last thing most of us think about until that moment that we desperately need it.  Don't wait until the outside temperature reaches 85 or 90 degrees.  By then, you may have a hard time finding a contractor as our industry gets log-jammed during that time of the year.  Once the outside temperature reaches 70+ degrees, that's the time to call and set up an appointment to have your air conditioner serviced for the cooling season. 

Why 70+ degrees?  Outdoor air temperature has a considerable effect on air conditioner performance.  At temperatures below 60 degrees it becomes difficult to determine if the freon level is correct.  A warm outdoor temperature creates a "load" that will elevate freon pressures into the correct operating range.  So, remember to call for a spring tune-up as soon as the outdoor temperature reaches 70 degrees. 

What are the benefits of servicing your air conditioner annually?  First, servicing your ac will insure that it is operating efficiently and that you are not wasting money on electricity.   And second, some (not all) failures can be prevented by having your air conditioner serviced annually.  The things our service tech inspects include :  filters, coils for dirt build up, freon level, compressor amperage draw, fan motor amperage draw, freon superheat (or sub-cooling), indoor coil temperature drop, damaged or corroded wiring, relays for charred/pitted contacts, capacitors for proper capacitance readings, and thermostat operation.  If anything is out of spec, it can be addressed before a more serious problem arises.  Thirdly, performing annual maintenance on your air conditioner will insure its longevity. 

Here is a good example illustrating point number one :

Two years ago we picked up a new customer who had not serviced her ac in quite a while.  She signed up for our Annual Maintenance Agreement.  The previous summer (2010) she had high electric bills.  During our inspection, we found several issues with her ac.  Her ac was still running and cooling (to some degree).  But, she had a dirty filter inside, a dirty condensing coil outside, a weak dual-run capacitor (outside specs), and was about 0.5 lb low on freon.  We addressed all those issues for her.  Upon returning later that fall to inspect her furnace, she let me know how happy she was that she had the air conditioner serviced.  She said that her electric bill for the summer of 2011 was about half her electric bill the previous summer.  This is a good example of the first point. 

In conclusion, performing annual maintenance and servicing your air conditioner can pay for itself in the long run by improving efficiency, preventing failures, and increasing longevity.  So what are you waiting for?  Call us now to set up an appointment this spring for an air conditioner service inspection at phone 614-837-5062.

Thanks,

Jim Harless

Minutemen Heating & Cooling, Inc.