Mini Split Air Conditioners: More Feasible Than Central Air In Some Situations

Mini split air conditioners are sometimes more feasible to install than central air conditioning units. These air conditioners work great for a variety of different spaces such as apartments, offices, and more because these air conditioners work without any type of duct system. In other words, minis are ductless, making installation easier.

The advantages of mini-split a/c units are not only their small size but also their flexibility. These air conditioners can be installed to target a certain space such as individual rooms or for zoning purposes. These systems operate off of both an outdoor system and an indoor system; however, the hook up between the two systems is easy as it only requires a 3 inch hole in order to connect the two systems together through conduit. The outside unit can be placed up to 50 ft away from the connecting unit on the inside as most manufacturers offer different lengths of conduit to connect the units. One system can have up to four individual air handling units on the inside that can be used to cool individual rooms.

With mini split air conditioners and the fact that no ducts are required, it helps to save on energy through energy loss. Forced air systems, like that of central air units require ducts and loose connections of holes in the ducts can cause loss of cool air which will result in higher energy costs for the owner in order to cool off the space required. Mini split air conditioners are more efficient in this sense and are also for better for "green" living.

On the inside of the structure where the mini split air conditioners are placed, a person has more options because these systems are flexible in terms of mounting. They can be suspended from the ceiling, positioned high on a wall, etc. The options are endless when it comes to mounting the inside air handling units for the mini split air conditioners. Besides the ease of mounting and the flexibility that these systems provide, they also provide a higher level of safety for the owner of the structure where they will be installed versus that of window air conditioning units or through the wall a/c units. How? Mounting air conditioning units in a window or through the wall provide easy access for intruders. Since the mini split air conditioners only require a 3 inch hole in order to run the conduit through to connect to the outside system, there is no chance of an intruder breaking in to the structure through this means.

On the other hand, the main disadvantage can be their cost. They range from anywhere between $1500-$2000 per ton, which is higher than other air conditioning systems such as window units, through the wall units, etc, and are actually about 30% higher in terms of cost as compared to central air conditioning units. Another disadvantage to these units is that the inside part of the mini split air conditioners can be a bit unsightly as because of the way that they are typically mounted, they do not appear to be "built in" to the rooms or blend with the d矇cor. Even though they can be suspended from the ceiling or mounted high on a wall, there must also be a drain available for the condensate to drain through, which can be another unsightly object in the room.

Although split a/c units may cost more than other cooling systems they are better for energy savings and can provide the owner with lower energy costs. Many times though, installers of air conditioning systems may not recommended these ductless mini split air conditioners because they have the training and expertise on duct systems and get paid accordingly; however, most of the time, the mini split air conditioners will only be recommended when installing ducts is not an option.

In the end, it is only up to the owner of the structure on what type of system they should install, even though they will probably take recommendations of contractors/installers. If you are leaning towards or are even curious about mini split air conditioners, contact a manufacturer of these systems and ask questions and learn about the many advantages and disadvantages of the systems besides the ones that are listed within this article. Informing yourself with the information needed will help you to make a wise decision on whether mini split air conditioners are right for you, or not.

Commercial Air Conditioning Service Is Essential

One of the essential items any business will need, especially during the summer months, will be commercial air conditioning. The reason is that if customers are kept comfortable in your store, they are more likely to spend more time in your location, which could lead to more sales. Of course, if your system goes out, it could result in lost sales. It is because of this, that you will need to keep up with your commercial air conditioning service,

To ensure that your system is running at peak performance, it will be important that you do have a technician come out at least twice a year. During this time, they will inspect the system to ensure that the system is running at peak performance.

As part of the commercial air conditioning service, they will check Freon levels and ensure that belts and gears aren't wearing down and needing to be replaced. In addition to this, most companies will also take the time to clean out the unit itself to ensure it remains free of dirt and debris that can potentially cause problems for you later on in the year.

It is important to understand that any service done to your unit must be approved in advance. Before anything is added or repaired on the system, you should receive a quote from the technician that comes out.

What you will find is that by having a professional come out to repair your system can save you money in the long run. The reason is that when concerns with the unit are spotted early enough, you can have them taken care of before they become a costly repair. For example, replacing a belt with wear now will be cheaper than having to repair damage that occurred as the result of the belt breaking.

When choosing any company to perform service on your commercial air conditioning service, you do need to ensure that they have been authorized to perform work on your unit. The reason is that some manufacturers will void a warranty if regular service is not provided by a trained professional. If you have a newer system, it will be essential that you verify that any company you call is authorized to perform service on your unit. This can be done by making contact with the service provider, or you can check with the manufacturer of the system you are using.

There is no denying that it will be essential for you to find a company that offers a detailed inspection of your commercial unit. Take the time to look at reviews for some of the local companies and find someone who can properly care for your system. A good place to start is to find companies that utilize the newer computer technology that allows them to handle digital systems, while focusing on old fashioned costumer service. After all, customer service is going to have an impact on the overall experience you end up having.

Air Conditioning Repair For Refrigerant Leaks

One of the most commonly sought after air conditioning repair needs is due to a leak of refrigerant. This can happen to older systems more commonly than new, though it can happen to any system. The problem is, this is the type of repair best left to the professionals. It will likely require several steps to get the repair underway. However many individuals find that getting these repairs is far easier when they turn to a technician who can handle the repairs quickly.

What Is It?

In this type of air conditioning repair, the system runs low on refrigerant. This product within the system circulates and keeps the cool air coming. In some cases, the initial device installed into the system was undercharged. This means that not enough of the product was in place at the time of installation. In other cases, though, it can leak.

In situations where the leak does occur, simply refilling the product does not solve the problem. Rather, the professional will need to inspect the system, determine where the leak is, determine the best steps for repairing it and get the system back up and running. In short, the leak must be found and repaired before any additional refrigerant is added to it. Otherwise, the leak will simply continue to happen.

In order to keep your system running at its optimum level, especially for energy efficiency, the refrigerant level needs to be full or at the recommended levels from the manufacturer. If it is overcharged, the problem is just as troublesome as if it was undercharged. This is why it is essential to allow a professional to handle this process.

Keep in mind the refrigerant leaks can be worrisome to the environment as well. Because this product is not safe for everyone to touch, allow a technician to inspect the system and to determine if there is a leak.

Common Signs of Leaks

Individuals who are unsure if they have a refrigerant leak need only to look at the way their system is running. The system likely runs well, which indicates it is not the motor. If it turns on and off, this indicates it is not usually the thermostat. The underlying problem, then, may be the refrigerant.

To find out for sure, call a technician for air conditioning repair. The technician will be able to tell you right away if this is the problem. Refilling the unit is not expensive, but it is essential to repair the leak, too. The cost of this type of service will ultimately depend on the scope of the problem. However, most professionals can offer a clear quote for the service if you request it before getting started.

DIY Air Conditioning - The Basics

After the installation of your DIY Air Conditioning Units you must make sure that you maintain them correctly. Failure to do so could actually result in them failing in the future and so not providing sufficient cool air during the summer months that will mean sleeping at night becomes a problem.

When it comes to maintaining your air conditioning units it is important that you regularly check the units. Also these checks should be carried out prior to the units being used and following them being used and prior to the units being shut down for the winter.

The parts that will need to be checked to ensure that they are functioning properly include the circuit breaker and the thermostat. Plus also your will need to check the air filter, the return air plenum, the supply plenum, the blower fan and of course both the cooling and heating coils.

Should these all be in working order but your DIY air conditioning units don't seem to be producing enough cool air in a room then this is the time to look carefully at the air ducts. It is important that not only do you inspect the supply air ducts but also the return air ducts. If these become clogged then of course the amount of air that is being passed through the system will be significantly reduced and as a result won't be able to keep the temperature down to one that feels comfortable.

It is a good idea that before you start using your air conditioning units in the summer that you clean them thoroughly. If you notice that any of the filters are damaged or getting rid of particles trapped in them is proving difficult then you should replace them. Also do the same for any fans or other blower parts.

For the external parts of your DIY air conditioning units make sure that you don't cover over the unit completely. However place some sort of covering over the top of the unit to stop any snow from building up on it or in it. Plus such a cover similar to the porch cover you put over your front door will prevent water from getting into the unit when it rains.

What you should never do is cover the unit over completely. This will allow moisture to build up inside and as a result various parts are likely to rust. This can then lead to some expensive repairs costs as you may need to replace these parts completely in order for your DIY air conditioning unit to work effectively.

Virtual Wholesaling of Houses is the a Latest Trend

Virtual wholesaling of real estate is a highly lucrative business proposition which can be successfully operated without leaving the comfortable environment of your home office.

You can explore the ever increasing market of property by using the power of internet, by contracting the major management tasks to a fully expert virtual assistant. At the same time you can also hire a virtual closing coordinator, and now your wholesaling business in property would not just spin on the edge of technology but would soar to towering heights.

Once you develop cordial working relations with a virtual agent, as a next step you must search and employ a virtual closing agent. This is very necessary in order to save your investments from the legal issues in flipping the properties.

You should indulge in efficient online search to spot immense opportunities available for your business. As a real estate wholesaler you must first search and then make efforts to promote these properties to the buyers.

Many powerful search engines on the internet will power your ambitions to start running your business of real estate wholesaling. You must key in only those properties which you feel will attract buyers and would become your prospective gold mines.

The expert virtual closing agent would order different types of inspections at home, make repair estimates and also conduct surveys. He will also conduct a paper work which is very necessary to ensure that whatever you do is timely, profitable and legal.

By following the above mentioned steps in an expert manner, your virtual real estate wholesale business will spin on its way to be a arge and profit giving venture.

Air Conditioning and Heating Maintenance

Air conditioners undergo tremendous pressure due to the heat experienced during the summer. We know after the long, hard winter the last thing you are thinking about is the hot summer but now is a great time to consider having your air conditioner system checked.

We live in a busy world, so most people don't give their AC systems a thought until they fail to work properly. Even simple maintenance procedures like cleaning and replacing filters often go undone. The short-term effects of such neglect can be poor performance. The long-term effects, however, can be a significantly shortened life for your air conditioning unit.

An air conditioner is a very tough piece of equipment. It is engineered to withstand all sorts of abuse and keep on running. This is great in most respects, but it can lead to complacency about maintenance. Like a car, air conditioners need regular tune-ups to run properly.

Without regular maintenance an air conditioner looses about 5% of its original efficiency for each year of operation. This means that the 12 SEER unit that you bought just a few years ago may be functioning like a 9 SEER unit today! The good news is that you can recover most of that lost efficiency through regular maintenance. Studies show that with regular tune-ups a unit will maintain up to 95% of its original efficiency. This means that the cost of an annual tune-up is recovered very quickly in savings on your monthly electric bill and reduced repair costs. A properly serviced air conditioner will also do a better job of dehumidifying your home.

Air conditioning manufacturers recommends annual air conditioning check-ups in the spring and furnace check-ups every fall. Although regular checkups will not absolutely guarantee that a unit will continue to work perfectly throughout the season, they will reveal most small problems that can lead to major, far more expensive problems if left unattended.

Here are some basic tips:
1. Run your air conditioner for a few minutes now, before you need it. If you wait until the first hot day to discover is isn't working, you'll find yourself on a waiting list, sweltering sometimes for days before an air conditioning specialist can come to fix it.

2. Change the filters regularly. Dirty filters restrict air flow, reducing efficiency and worse case, can cause the evaporator to ice up. Disposable fiberglass filters should replaced. Electrostatic or electronic filters need to be washed regularly.

3. Be sure all access panels are secure, with all the screws in place.

4. Clean obvious obstructions such as newspaper, leaves, etc. from around the exterior of the unit.

5. Be sure the thermostat is set in the cooling mode. Just setting the dial below room temperature will not activate the air conditioning if it is set in the heat mode.

6. Additional maintenance items should be left to the trained licensed professionals of Air Comfort Solutions.

Few routine chores will pay off more handsomely, both in comfort and in dollars saved, than a simple air-conditioner cleaning. The payoff: Summertime comfort and lower cooling bills. You'll also prolong the life of your air conditioner.

Why it is Important to Pick a Quality Air Conditioning Repair Service

It is never pleasant to have to go without air conditioning when the weather is too warm and humid, particularly during the summer in Atlanta. When the air conditioner goes out, it is tempting to call in response to the first ad you see . However, even if this gets your air conditioner repaired temporarily, it is no guarantee of a satisfactory experience overall. There are a few important items to consider when selecting someone to repair your air conditioner, which will help you to get quality service you need.

When they decide to break down, air conditioners don't really care what day of the week, or what time of the day or night it is. You will want to call a service company that can respond to your need 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Such a company will have a dispatcher or answering service which can get in touch with a technician for you after hours or on weekends, though you might have to wait for a call back. But hey, that is much better than waiting until the next business day, particularly if your air conditioning goes out at 5 p.m. on a Friday before a holiday weekend!

You don't want somebody's cousin-that-just-needed-a-job showing up to do the work because nobody else was available. The thing to look for when choosing a service company is NATE certification for all their technicians. NATE stands for "North American Technician Excellence," and is an independent certification body for Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC) technicians. You also want to make sure that the service company is bonded and insured before they start any kind of work. Please also be sure the company runs background checks on their employees, and that they operate a drug-free workplace.

When the technicians arrive you want to be comfortable having them in your home or business, so they should be uniformed and able to provide identification. They should also arrive ready to go to work, with well stocked trucks so they don't have to waste time going back to the shop or running to get parts and supplies. Some companies only service air conditioners from a particular manufacturer, so it's a good idea to double-check to be sure the service company is able to work with all the different brands.

There is a saying that, "The only thing guaranteed in life is death and taxes," but you will find that it is also possible to have guaranteed satisfaction for your air conditioning repair. In the highly competitive environment of HVAC installation and service, there is no reason to go without this guarantee. The service company that repairs your air conditioner should offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

You can absolutely find a company that will be able to provide you with all this, and you will be glad that you took a little time to do some investigation. It would actually be a good idea to do some research now and call on a likely candidate to come to do a checkup on your air conditioner before it gets too hot. This way, you will already know who to call if you have a problem. By taking these steps to identify a quality service contractor.

Exemplary Air Conditioning Service

Customer service is almost a thing of the past these days, but not with this company. They believe in customer service whole-heartedly. The guarantees that are in writing for customers to see for themselves are incredible. The highest standards of integrity are held in place for the entire staff. They believe in developing and working on close and long term relationships with their customers. The highly motivated and fabulously skilled staffs are polite and professional anytime they come to a home or business. Timely delivery, the best prices and quality materials are all things that a good aircon company uses on a daily basis.

An aircon company specializes in supplying and installing all different sorts of air conditioning units for not just businesses, but also private residences and industrial buildings. They are always ready to service or repair any unit or brand name unit on the market today. They fulfill every requirement with total commitment to getting the job done right the first time. It doesn't matter if the unit is window, casement, wall-mounted or a ceiling duct this company will work to make sure that the air breathed is cleaner and fresher than it was before they arrived. They know that clean air is essential to life, and make it possible with their services.

An air conditioning company also provides preventative servicing. Preventative maintenance will improve cooling performance, prolong the life span of the unit and save a customer money. The technicians are knowledgeable about what they do and answer any questions, concerns or issues that the customer may have. They take the time to explain to a customer the different components of an air conditioner and its refrigeration system. There are also specific discounts that are listed and named in a contract for the customer should they decide to take that option.

Other than installation and servicing, the technical team of the company also takes care of a number of problems that an aircon system may have. Those problems could include the fan-coil or a problem with condensation. An indoor or outdoor unit makes no difference, they can work on either. A list of the services are available for a customer but includes cleaning the filters and evaporator coil, checking the condenser unit, checking for noise and all electrical problems that might arise with an aircon unit.

Air Conditioning - Advantages of a Heat Pump

What is a Heat pump?

A heat pump is a home appliance (similar to a fridge freezer) that heats and cools the atmosphere in the home. It offers home owners comfort that is normally reserved for high-rise office buildings, five-star hotels and executive apartments. It heats, cools, dehumidifies and continuously filters the air of dust and other impurities. It also circulates the air - without heating or cooling - to eliminate stuffiness. A typical heat pump is two units - an indoor unit, and an outdoor unit. For this reason, they are often called "split systems". Many have remote controls for maximum convenience.

How does it work?

A fridge transfers heat from its food compartment to the coil at the back. Like a fridge, it can be reversed so that the heat flow goes the other way. Heat pumps transfer heat from outside air into the home in winter, and transfers heat from inside the home to outside air in summer.

But how can it heat the home and winter when it is freezing outside?

A home freezer can take the temperature of its food compartment below 0°, in fact as low as -6°C. If it can remove heat from inside a freezer to below 0°, the same process - used in the heat pumps - can extract enough heat from cold outside air to warm the home. Although our body's feel cold at these low temperatures, there is still a lot of heat energy in the outside air at 0°C.

What size will I need for my home?

Every home is as individual as its owner. The key to selecting the right size heat pump for your home is an accurate estimate of the heat that will need to be transferred into your home in winter for heating, and out of your home in summer for cooling. This needs to be carried out by an experienced and qualified specialist like Excel Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Ltd.

What factors will affect the size of heat pump I need?

The amount of heating needed will depend on the heat loss through walls, windows and roofs. To minimise heat loss and before you invest in the heat pump, it is always a good idea to properly insulate walls and roofs first. In particularly cold climates double glazing windows will insulate them and keep heat loss to a minimum. By insulating first, the size of heat pump selected will generally be smaller and therefore be cheaper to install and run.

The northern aspect of the home is also an important factor. North facing rooms will catch the sun better and more generally need less heating. Conversely, South facing rooms tend to be colder and will need more heating.

Do heat pumps take up a lot of room?

No. Heat pumps are designed to be unobtrusive in size, neutral decor and low noise levels. There are also different types of heat pumps, from a stylish through the wall packaged unit to different varieties of split systems. The least obtrusive is a ducted split system. This can be hidden in the ceiling or under floor and only the grilles for distributing the air are visible.

How much does cost to buy and install a pump?

As stated before, every home is as unique as its owner. The installed cost of the heat pump will therefore be unique for each home and will depend on the size and type of heat pump installed. As an example, a standard three-bedroom 100 m2 timber framed New Zealand home may use a 5.5 KW hi-wall split system heat pump to warm the lounge, dining and kitchen as one open plan area. This type of installation would currently cost just over $3000 plus gst to install. A very broad guide to heat pump installed cost is $60-$100/m2 plus gst of served area. Served area is the area being heated and excludes laundries, garages, toilets and other utility areas in the home.

How much does cost to heat my home with a heat pump?

To answer this question the amount of heating that is currently necessary will need to be known. For the purpose of explanation, assume 5KW of heating is needed. Electrical heating appliances are normally 100% efficient so for 5 KW of heating one will need to pay for 5 KW of electric energy. Gas heating appliances are less than 100% efficient. For discussion, let's assume that they are 90% efficient. This means, to gain 5KW of heating, one has to pay for 5.6 KW of gas energy. Although gas may be cheaper per KW, one has to use more of it to produce the same heating effect. Heat pumps transfer heat from outside air and in this way produces two to three times more heat. Its efficiency - if it can be called that - is 200% to 300%. This means for 5 KW of heating, one will only pay for around 2 KW of electric energy. Heat pump heating is roughly a third of the cost of electric heating and about half the cost of gas heating.

How can a heat pump be cheaper to run when it has more moving parts?

A heat pump uses electricity to transfer heat. Electric heaters convert electric energy to heat energy and are thereby limited by the amount of electricity used. A heat pump has no such limitation and can transfer twice to three times the heat from outside air than can be converted from the electricity at uses.

Are heat pumps noisy?

No, they are generally not noisy. The source of the noise in a typical heat pump is air impinging on the grille as it is forced out of the unit. Air noise is marginally higher than ambient background noise and is usually not distracting.

Do they dry the air: like on an airplane?

Heating or cooling air changes its characteristics. Heating air increases its ability to carry moisture and suspension by reducing its relative humidity content. This is the same process used in clothes dryers. Cooling air causes the moisture in the air to condense out of suspension. This reduces the absolute humidity content of the air and is the process used in the humidifiers. Either way, reducing moisture in the home is beneficial by discouraging mould and mildew by producing a healthier living environment.

Are they reliable?

Yes. Heat pumps are reliable. They use the same process as the home fridge or freezer and have the same level of dependability and useful life expectancy.

How easy are they to repair?

Provided the service person is experienced and qualified, repairing heat pumps is as straightforward as repairing the fridge or freezer. For repairs, talk to Excel and Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Ltd.

Do they need servicing?

Like cars, heat pumps should be regularly serviced for optimum operation. This involves cleaning the air filter and perhaps checking that the refrigeration charge is correct. It would be a good idea to service the pumps just before the beginning of each extreme season i.e before winter and again before summer.

How are heat pumps better than other forms of heating?

Apart from being cheaper to run, heat pumps offer other benefits that heating only systems cannot.

1) Heat pumps don't burn oxygen or create stuffiness like open fires do. They are designed for all year round comfort, not just for four months during winter.

2) They produce low-density heat which is safer for children and elderly, unlike fires, oil filled or electric fan heaters.

3) They are unmatched for convenience and ease-of-use.

4) They do not pollute their atmosphere with the products of combustion, and they use ozone friendly refrigerant.

All in all, heat pumps offer the best investment in home heating and comfort.
Taranaki Airconditioning Heatpumps

A Furnace, Heat Pump, Or Central Air Conditioning - Which is Better in Colder Climates

HVAC systems may seem like technology from another world in that most individuals do not have a halfway decent understanding of how these systems work.  For the most part, the principles behind a heat pump are the same with a central air conditioner.  Furnaces work a little differently.

One common setup is to have a heat pump. Depending upon the region and climate, a home may have a separate furnace and air conditioner instead.  Having separate dedicated heating and cooling units are common in harsher colder climates such as Minnesota. Having just a traditional heat pump system would likely allow you to freeze while the heat pump continues to waste electricity trying achieve a warmer interior temperature.

Heat pumps are simply an exchanger or transferer of warm air.  In summer time, the refrigerant in the interior coils absorb warm air from inside the home and transfers it to the coils in the outside condenser unit. After the heat dissipates from the warmed refrigerant, the now cooled refrigerant travels back to the interior coils to absorb more interior heat. What is left inside the home is cooler air.  The advantage of a heat pump is that it is able to reverse this process without burning fuel, translating to fewer energy costs.  A heat pump works best in moderate temperature climates.  In a little harsher climate and region, some heat pumps are outfitted with auxiliary heating which is in essence a screen of wires in which current passes through thereby generating heat much like a kitchen toaster. A fan then blows this additional warmer air into the home's interior.

There are newer heat pumps on the market that are designed for heating in near zero temperatures, but are not as common and are more costly. These newer heat pumps called Cold Climate heat pumps and All Climate heat pumps perform better in colder climates than traditional heat pumps, but can lack sufficient ability to comfortably cool a home's interior in summer time.

In colder regions such as Minnesota, furnaces are still a necessity and are one of the more affordably efficient means to heat a home in the winter months. A traditional furnace coupled with a traditional heat pump would be much more efficient combination than that of having a central air conditioning system.

Commercial Air Conditioning - Cooling Solutions For Work Spaces

If your work space is full of heat generating electrical and electronics, then you definitely need some heat removal system to save yourself and your equipments. Air conditioning is one way of doing it. In an industrial set up, proper heating, ventilation or air conditioning (HVAC) is essential to ensure that the work environment is safe for other employees and workers.

Which places need commercial or industrial air conditioning?

Places where large number of people and heat generating equipments are employed need air conditioning to remove heat and circulate fresh air and remove the stuffy gases out.

Example: Hospitals, IT companies, manufacturing factories, hotels, etc.

Types of Commercial & Industrial Air Conditioning

Modern systems use ductless or split air conditioning. The cooling unit and condenser are located far away from the room on roof tops usually. The cooling is thermostat controlled. Ducted cooling system is not used these days due to inefficiency.

Apart from that many different cooling technologies are available, such as air cooling, water cooling, glycol cooling and chilled water cooling.

Air cooled systems

• Widely used for its convenient ductless set up and easy maintenance.


• There is a condenser unit outside which helps in exchanging the fresh air and removing the hot air inside.


• But the cooling pipes cannot run very long distances. Hence, the height between the work space and the roof or outside environment can be a constraint.

Glycol cooled systems

• This is a much sophisticated cooling system in which temperatures below 50繙F (10繙C) can be achieved.


• Glycol is the coolant used. These can run for long distances and can provide cooling for multiple work spaces with a single condenser unit.


• But, quality and quantity of glycol should be optimum and hence need more maintenance.

Water cooled system

• Water is cooled inside a cooling tower which in turn is relayed back to the heat exchanger placed in the work environment.


• Multiple work spaces can be cooled with a single cooling tower.


• But, maintenance of cooling tower and optimum quality of water required can pose economic set back.

Chilled water system

• This has a greater heat removing capacity.


• One chiller plant is required and it can cool an entire building.


• Can be used for larger areas with greatest efficiency.


• But installation charges are sky high and the system removes lots of moisture from the air which might cause problems for employees.

Depending upon your requirements, you can choose among these discussed cooling systems to cool and ventilate your work space. Some of them can be worked in combination with each other as a single system doesn't work in all environments. Choose wisely and make your work space employee friendly.

Amana Air Conditioning Units

Amana Company was developed in the year of 1934 by George Forester. This company is famous in producing high class heating and air conditioning system. This company has constructed the walk-in air cooler for US military and for that the honor of the company has got Army-Navy's Cherished E award due to their excellent performance and construction.

They are both portable and fixable. However; this company is famous for its portable air conditioners. These portable air conditioners can be easily fitted in any house and can furnish the needs for the cooling. There are several Amana units which are furnished with a remote control mechanism. The remote control system possesses several functions which can be modified easily. Therefore; you can operate your unit according to your will. The speed of fan and thermostat settings is alterable and hence the Amana units are full of comfort and ease.

There are mainly three types of air conditioners which are manufactured by Amana. Like the central air conditioning units, the window and the portable air conditioners. Another good opportunity for the costumers is that there are several online shops which sell these units. You can find these air conditioners on eBay at much discounted rates. The portable air conditioners manufactured by them can be moved easily from one place to another since they possess wheels. Even these units can make the whole house cooled, if their position is changed at regular interval. These units expel out dampness from the house by their powerful exhaust fans. However; in case of increased humidity, their property of expelling out dampness could be reduced. In such cases, when there is increased humidity, the manual cleaning of the tank could be required.

Amana air conditioners are power and cost-effective. This company has generated several fantastic models which are superior to other brands and which are famous due to their good performance and Excellencies. The central units made by Amana are preferred on other types and brands since the quality of these units is marvelous. They can be run for considerable long time without any defect. The company also furnishes warranty via which any type of problem could be tackled effectively. In conclusion, they are liked by the costumers due to their reliability and good performance. The company furnishes excellent models along with backup service for trouble shooting.

Air Conditioner Parts

The three main parts of an air conditioner unit are the compressor, the condenser and the evaporator. The compressor and condenser are located on the outside of the air conditioner and the evaporator is located on the inside.

The basic functioning of the air conditioner is based on the principle of successive heating and cooling of a highly volatile liquid, such as a Freon. The liquid first enters the compressor, where it is compressed into a gas. This releases heat and makes the liquid cooler. The dissipated heat is radiated outwards with the help of a fan. The liquid then enters the condenser, where it absorbs heat from the surroundings to reconvert into a gas. Hence, the surroundings become cool. The entire process continues cyclically and this causes cooling of the room.

Besides the three fundamental Air Conditioner Parts, an air conditioner also has a hot coil on the outside to dissipate heat, a cool coil on the inside to absorb heat, two fans (one outside and one inside) and a control circuit to modify the temperature. This is done by changing the rotation speeds of the fans using a potentiometer.

The most important and expensive Air Conditioner Part is the compressor. Companies provide warranties on the compressor and a good quality compressor can function efficiently for several years. New compressors can be bought and installed into the air conditioner if the original one develops faults. It is ideal to have a compressor made by the same company as the rest of the air conditioner. However, it is also necessary to mention that only a few companies manufacture their own compressors; the rest just buy them and install in their units.

Condensers and evaporators can also be replaced. The same case is applicable for the cooling and heating coils. Problems in the coils lead to faulty dissipation of heat, thus causing unsatisfactory results. Fans are the easiest components of the air conditioner units to replace. They are simply fitted by screws on the outer part of the air conditioner and with wires to the air conditioner circuit board.

One more component of the air conditioner is its outer cover. The cover has no other function except to lend an aesthetic appeal to the air conditioner. It is generally made of molded plastic and is available in a wide range of colors and designs. The same can be said about buttons and knobs. A water-carrying duct is essential if the air conditioner faces the road on the outside.

How to Fix a Leaking Air Conditioner

Central Heating and Air Conditioning is composed of two separate components, the outside Condenser (with the fan) and an air handler in your ceiling or in your garage. Your air conditioner not only cools your home, but also removes humidity from the air. This water condenses on metal coils inside your air handler and drips down into a drain pan. The AC condensate drain line lets water flow from the drain pan to somewhere outside close to the ground typically right near your outside unit. Over time this drain line gets clogged with algae and other muck. Once clogged the drain pan can overflow leaking water onto your ceiling and potentially cause thousands of dollars in damage.

Your course of action as a Homeowner? Unclog that drain line!!!

Options:

1. Drag a garden hose over to your drain line. Turn on the water and hold the hose tightly to the end of the drain. Hold the end of the hose to the opening of the drain as tightly as you can for about ten seconds. Then watch the water that drains out. Was it clear, or was there chunks of pink/brown/green slime? If it was clear, you haven't popped the clog loose and need to repeat. You will generally be soaked from head to toe by the time you release the clog using this method. You can prevent clogs by doing this once a month as preventive maintenance.

2. Find a Shop-Vac. Make sure to plug it into a GFI outlet because we will be dealing with water of course. Somehow get the hose of the vacuum to make a nice tight seal on the end of the drain line, if it's not air tight, you won't be sucking anything out.Turn on the vacuum and... wait. If you hear any gurgling or water moving, turn the vacuum off and look inside, did you get any gunk out? No? Repeat.

3. The Drain Pump. Implemented by an Air Conditioning technician with 23 years of experience that was fed up with those two other options. No garden hose, no extension cords, no electricity. It's as simple as pumping up a bike tire. It comes with all the fittings to make a nice tight seal on any size drain line, and is so easy to pump that a four-year-old can do it. Check out our videos, we can prove it.

Let Your Air Conditioning Repair Specialist Perform Routine Check-Ups

Some people wait until the very last minute to solicit the help of an air conditioning repair service. Now, of course, if someone weren't experiencing any problems with the home cooling unit, it probably wouldn't make too much sense for them to ask for professional help. However, taking preventative measures is the best thing someone can do in this case.

Scheduling routine check-ups at least once a year, for instance, can greatly help with the upkeep and maintenance of an A/C unit. These checkups can help to ensure that people aren't left to deal with the sometimes unbearably hot summers without some type of relief. Having to deal with the aforementioned situation is probably one of the most miserable things someone can go through. This is especially true for those who live in areas where temperatures can reach over 100 degrees.

Just imagine being at home, in the middle of the summertime, and you are sitting inside watching television and your kids are sitting on the floor playing board games. You look outside your window and notice that the sun is beaming down, and you're thinking about how lucky you are to have cool air blowing in your home.

A few minutes later, the phone suddenly rings, and you get up to answer it. Once your conversation is complete, you walk back to the sofa, and you suddenly notice that it's starting to get extremely hot. You go and check the cooling system to see what the temperature is on. You go to press the button in order to decrease the temperature, but you notice that nothing is working. You eventually come to the conclusion that the entire unit is broken.

Since you just came off of summer vacation, you don't have the extra money that it's going to take to get the unit fixed immediately. So, your first inclination is to go and buy a bunch of fans until you can either get a window unit or get the unit fixed.

Once you finally bring the fans home, it feels as if all they are doing is blowing hot air. That's because your home is actually acting like an oven. With the unit being broken, your house is just retaining the heat. It's actually housing the heat and working like an incubator, so all of that hot air is just being blown around by the fans.

This entire scenario could have been avoided if you had called upon an air conditioning repair service to do some routine maintenance on your unit beforehand. Therefore, getting routine checkups by an air conditioning repair service is very beneficial.

Why You Need an Air Conditioning Maintenance Schedule

If you've got air conditioning in your building, then you'll want to make sure that it's running properly at all times, and that it's giving you the heating and ventilation that you need.

Here's why an air con maintenance schedule is essential.

1. Like many electrical and mechanical items, your heating and ventilation system needs regular service to ensure that it's running at its best. Having it serviced in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations will ensure that it's running properly.

2. A more efficient heating and ventilation system is likely to more effective and cheaper to run too. This means that you can get the right temperature without having to pay more for it. It's also less likely to break down too.

3. An air conditioning maintenance schedule will give you peace of mind. Your business might not be able to cope if it had to close for several days due to a lack of heating and ventilation.

4. Having the right level of air con will create a better environment for staff to work in, and for customers to buy in. If your staff are productive, or your customers are not buying, then perhaps it; due to the temperature. With an air conditioning maintenance plan, you can call an engineer any time you like.

5. As prevention is better than cure, you'll want to make sure that if there are any issues with your heating and ventilation, that you get them looked at straight away, otherwise it could be a time consuming and costly mistake.

6. You'll want to choose a reputable and experienced firm to carry out your air con maintenance. Perhaps your air conditioning installation company will be able to recommend a plan to you, so that you've covered in case of any problems with your air con.

7. If your air con hasn't been well looked after, and serviced regularly, then you don't want to risk it suddenly failing. It's much better to be safe than sorry.

8. You'll definitely save time and money in the long run by having a maintenance plan for your air con. In addition, you won't have to wait days for an engineer, or have your business interrupted.

9. Different brands and air con systems will need different maintenance schedules, so one air con system may need servicing more often than another.

10. By having a maintenance plan for your heating and ventilation, you can have any necessary work carried out at your convenience, rather than when it fails. This means that you can plan the work so that your business and customers are not disrupted.

Now you know why it's so essential, have you got an air conditioning maintenance contract?

Air Conditioning Units - Preventive Maintenance in 3 Steps

Regular maintenance is important for the life of your air conditioning units. Preventive maintenance of units is far easier than correcting problems down the road. As, it is said, prevention is better than cure. On an average, normal life of a residential air conditioning system is around eleven to fourteen years. If maintained properly, these systems can run even more without any need to repair.

If your residential air conditioning system both cools and heats your home, you must maintain it in fall and the spring season each year. If it is only for cooling purpose you must get it checked at least once a year before the season requiring cooling begins.

For your air conditioning units, preventive maintenance can be done in just 3 simple steps to save you from sudden annoying breakdowns or improper functionality. The following 3 steps can also be referred as a checklist for carrying out the maintenance work systematically and thoroughly. I suggest using a trusted HVAC contractor to follow through with the 3 steps:

Step #1: Check the outdoor units

With the help of a technician, you can inspect the complete system for an adequate level of the refrigerant, cleaning the debris from the inside cabinet, clear the drain openings, clean the coil and check the fan blades and the motor for visible sign of wear and tear. You must also check the control box, other related accessories including wire networks and connections. It is advisable to ensure all the electrical units are functioning properly and safely. You should also check the compressor and the attached tubes for any signs of damage.

Step #2: Inspect the indoor units

Clean the blower wheels and motor, and provide lubrication to the motor if necessary. If any faulty functioning is observed, replace that part immediately. You must inspect the combustion blower for debris and clean it. Checking gas leaks from furnaces is also important to ensure a proper functioning air conditioning unit. If your system also has heating facility, you should also check the ignition system and other safety elements. You should inspect if the flue system is properly attached to the furnace, look for sign of corrosion and for any dislocated element. Then you clean the air filters and inspect the wiring connections. An overall inspection for the system is also important to find out if there is any leakage in the airflow system.

Step #3: Inspect the system while it is operating

When you switch the system on, look for its starting characteristics and notice if there is any abnormality. You can get a hint from the noise it creates when switched on. You must also look for any unusual odor that comes with switching on the system. You can then measure the temperature and adjust the airflow according to the level desired. You must check the vents or openings in your home for proper airflow. Another important inspection you should make is about the energy load it takes to perform.

With air conditioning units, preventive maintenance is vital to saving yourself from breakdowns at unexpected times, often when you need your system to be operating the most.

How To Choose The Best Furnace Repair Contractor

Though the furnace is an important part of the house we seldom give it much thought until we are in need of furnace repair. Most of the times, it is an emergency situation which could mean no heat on a cold night and you are left with no option but to settle for any contractor who is willing to take on the work at the earliest. Unfortunately a hurried choice could mean that you end up either paying more or choose a contractor with substantial work ethics. To avoid this you can ensure that your furnace is periodically checked. The other thing to do would be to do some research and select the contractor beforehand.

Ways to choose the furnace repair contractor:

Tip #1 - Study the problem - It helps to know a bit about the problem so that you cannot be taken for a ride. Spend some time to learn the basic mechanism of the furnace yourself. This way when the contractor comes in, evaluates the problem and gives you a report you will know whether he is an honest mechanic or just out dupe people.

Tip #2 - Check for licenses - A certified furnace repair contractor will come armed with the necessary state required licenses and registrations. These are produced readily if the customers ask for verification. The easiest way to ensure that you are getting an experienced and verified contractor is to choose them from the local directory or association.

Tip #3 - Get references - Once you have shortlisted the contractors ask for references of past jobs. You can make some calls to find out how good they are at their jobs and if they are fit for your budget and need. Those who have the strongest word of mouth publicity make the best and safest choices.

Tip #4 - Study the process - One way to know if you have the right guy is to see how he works. Any contractor who takes ample time to study the problem and work out a solution is a serious mechanic. Someone who is too busy and hurriedly takes a look will not just do a hurried job but will also be overpriced. In the end you will just get a few months respite before your furnace breaks out again.

Tip #5 - Compare prices - One very important criterion is the price. Instead of opting for the first furnace repair contractor who makes his bid, accept bids form several and compare their prices as well as service offerings. This does not mean that you choose the cheapest option. Weigh the price against their service record and references before you decide on one.

Tip #6 - Sign a contract - Never go ahead with a job without first signing a contract. This way both parties are liable to abide by their words. In case a problem arises in the job - whether it is bad service or late payments, no action can be taken without a signed contract.

Tip #7 - Comfort factor - Strange as it sounds, it pays to choose a furnace repair contractor you feel most comfortable with. Of course, he needs to be a thorough professional and do a good job. But you are letting a stranger into your home so you have every right to choose someone who feels safe and trustworthy.

Feeling at Home With Your Service Providers - Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Plumbing

Reliability and trust in a service provider is a lot like the wheels of a car: without them you're not going to get anywhere. Be it air conditioning, plumbing, or landscaping, there are dozens of companies (some good, many bad) who are out there right now hoping that they can convince you that they have what you need. You should consider you choice of maintenance provider the same way you would consider your choice of a new car with respect to its coat of paint: while the coat of paint is nice to look at it typically does not say a whole lot about the engine underneath. It's this "pages, not the cover" approach to choosing a service provider that will have you ready to read their attitude like a book.

Service Through the Internet: One of your best tools in the fight to win good service is the World Wide Web. There are currently dozens of websites that evaluate and keep stock of various maintenance providers and hundreds of blogs and message boards that will give you "straight from the horse's mouth" takes on the different companies in your area. While it would be tempting to say that the posts that you read on online blogs and on different sounding boards are full of insightful and objective information, much of the time the people who post on these websites are simply looking for an excuse to sound clever through aggressive and cynical comments. Don't be sold by just one or two negative comments that completely trash the company. If it appears that a particular user has had an especially bad experience with an air conditioning service provider or a plumber, for instance, consider sending them an e-mail to get more information about how the service affected them. If they are unwilling to answer your response, it may be a good sign that they weren't all together too serious about helping their neighbors to begin with.

(Respectable) Word of Mouth: The advice of trusted friends and family is invaluable when considering a new service supplier. These people are the type of resource that you can really mine without worrying about what they think of you. Because your close friends and family have already formed opinions about you to begin with you can feel free to ask them the silly, naïve questions that you would have otherwise kept to yourself. There is no question that is too dumb to ask.

Phone Interviews: Once you have established a short list of suppliers that you may consider patronizing, give their offices a preliminary phone call to create a relationship outside of your specific situation. Talk to their manager about a broad range of topics, from the price of individual services, to the company's history, to the type of attitude he takes to his job. So long as you keep this interview within five to eight minutes (which you absolutely should do out of respect to their time) they should be more than happy to indulge any questions you have about their products. Again, if they are reluctant to provide answers, this information may be the most valuable of all as it is a sign that this particular maintenance provider is not interested in your satisfaction.

While it may not seem like a terribly important topic to consider, having a good labor provider (and acknowledging the steps it takes to get one) can be an invaluable resource to have at your disposal. Many people cite a lack of trust with their provider as a significant impetus to their ability to fix the problems in their home. Ensure the foundations for real trust by establishing relationships with service providers with whom you feel at home.

Troubleshooting Common Air Conditioning Problems

If you own an HVAC system with air conditioning, chances are you either have or are going to run into problems. HVAC systems and air conditioning units malfunction all the time, but knowing how to troubleshoot the problem will get it going again so your home can be cool and comfortable on those hot summer days.

Some troubleshooting requires a familiarity with electrical wiring; so if you are not comfortable with either high or low voltage electrical wiring, do not attempt these techniques. Instead, enlist the help of a professional HVAC service technician.

When your air conditioner stops working, the first thing you should do is check the most obvious problems, starting with the power. Go to the electrical panel and find the breaker for the air conditioning unit. Turn it to the OFF position, and then reset it back to the ON position. Your breaker may have been tripped but not automatically switched to the OFF position. Resetting it in this manner will get the power running again. However, if when you turn reset the power the breaker sparks, pops or trips to the OFF position, there is a more severe electrical problem. Only a professional HVAC contractor will be able to adequately remedy the problem. Leave the power in the OFF position and call in the pros.

If there is nothing wrong with the electrical, move on to the next step in troubleshooting your air conditioning system. Check the outdoor air conditioning unit and inspect the secondary breaker inside. This breaker may need to be reset. There may be a red reset button on the exterior of the outdoor unit. If the unit has power, try pushing this button. You may need replacement fuses, depending on the model of air conditioner you own. If the problem doesn't lie in either of these electrical instances, move on to the next step.

If the outdoor unit has power, and the power is running correctly from the electrical panel, there may be a problem with the low voltage circuit. Check to make sure the outdoor unit's wires are in good shape and have not been chewed by insects or animals. A transformer either located at the outdoor unit or at the indoor air handler powers the low voltage circuit. Again, it is important that a certified and licensed HVAC service technician perform tasks that have to do with electricity and wiring, especially if the homeowner has no experience or knowledge in that area. The transformer will have to be inspected for continuity using a volt-ohms meter.

If you are still having trouble with your air conditioning unit after performing all of these tasks related to the electrical wiring, you should contact an HVAC service professional. There will need to be tests done on the refrigerant levels and the circuitry of the unit that an average homeowner can no do on their own. If your air filters are clean and your electrical service is normal, the issue can only be resolved by having a qualified HVAC specialist inspect and repair the air conditioner.

Ongoing Air Conditioning Maintenance Assures You a Long Life of Cooling

One of the most important things that a person can do for their A/C system is to get a precision tune up. This is also known as a full cleaning and inspection of your air conditioner.

Every home owner should have their A/C systems cleaned once a year to help prevent parts from breaking and to help maintain the efficiency of their system. In warmer clients the air conditioner is running almost all day and everyday during the summertime, particularly if the temperature is 90簞 or hotter.

Changing the oil in a car is just as important as having maintenance on your unit. Not having your A/C units cleaned once a year is exactly like not having the oil in a car changed for 166,000 miles. This may sound extreme but just think about how long the ac runs during the summer months in the blazing heat of Florida.

So what should this process involve and how do you know that it was done correctly.

Maintenance on the air conditioner should include the cleaning of the condenser coil (outside unit) and the air handler evaporator coil (inside unit), checking the pressures, flushing the drain line, inspecting the connections and a basic cleaning of the units (wiping off dirt and dust).

By getting maintenance done every year the technician will be able to notify the homeowner if they notice an initial problem beginning with the air conditioner. The older the system is, the more important it is to get maintenance done yearly in order to avoid costly repairs.

A properly maintained A/C unit can also help you avoid the effects of air pollution in your home

It's a proven fact that the air in your house is dirtier than the air outside. Keeping the air clean in a house is often one of the toughest things for a consumer to maintain. There are many different effects of air pollution on humans that can easily be prevented.

Some of these include headaches, nausea, and allergic reactions. Worst case scenarios can result in upper respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia.

There are a several things a person can do to help keep the air in their house clean. Simply opening the windows in your house will help bring in fresh air and move the pollutants out. Having a reliable air filter for your air conditioner system and changing it as often as necessary will also help control the dust in your home.

Having a good air filter that cleans the air before it goes through the A/C system and re-enters the house is also essential. Trane offers a product called CleanEffects. The Trane CleanEffects utilizes patented, breakthrough air cleaning technology to remove up to an astounding 99.98% of airborne allergens and pollutants from the air that passes through the filter. Having the air ducts throughout your house sanitized can also help kill any mold, prevent it from growing, and keep the air in your home as fresh as possible.

Remember, if you keep your A/C unit properly maintained annually and do some basic things to keep the air in your home clean, you can expect a long life of fresh air and great cooling from your Air Conditioning unit.

Wood Burning Stoves - Do You Have The Tools Needed To Be Using One In Your Home?

Whether you installed your wood stove yourself to reduce the cost of your heating bill, or you're utilizing the stove that came with your house when you purchased it, wood stoves can help to serve multiple purposes, including heating as well as a place for the family to gather around on those cold winter nights.

There are certain tools you should have before having a fire in your stove. Some stove tools include a poker, which can be used for stirring up the fire and moving logs around. Another tool you will need is some kind of scoop for shoveling out ashes, if your wood burning stove doesn't have any kind of ash drawer, this is a must. Another accessory you should add to your supplies arsenal, is a set of tongs for picking up logs. You may also want to purchase fire retardant gloves, so you reduce your risk of burn when working with a fire.

Blowers can be utilized in a way that is beneficial to a wide range of wood stove owners. The purpose of wood stove blowers is to redistribute the heat throughout your home. Many people don't realize the savings potential in purchasing a wood stove blower. It may be 85 degrees Fahrenheit by the stove but if the heat isn't being distributed throughout the house, other rooms in the house may only be 60 degrees or lower. The benefits in purchasing a blower are both money and peace of mind, in knowing that you are getting the most out of your wood burning stove.

Having a log holder near your wood burning stove is also a recommendation. A log holder will help to keep wood chips and saw dust consolidated all in one place. Another option is a wood carrier to help you transport your wood from wood pile to stove without losing a single chip. Log holders can be a worthy investment if you don't enjoy the mess associated with having a wood burning stove.

If you have a fireplace, you may want to consider investing in a fireplace insert. Fireplaces are not airtight structures, so most of your heat will just get sucked straight up the chimney. This is fine if you only have a fire a few times a year for special occasions, but if you are looking to use your fireplace for heating your home, you should consider purchasing a fireplace insert. A fireplace insert is basically a wood stove that fits inside your fireplace. A fireplace insert is airtight so it will burn slower and it won't suck in air sending all your heat up the chimney.

When using a wood stove or fireplace, it is very important that you get your chimney checked regularly for creosote buildup. Creosote buildup is more common with slow burning such as wood stoves and fireplace inserts, but you should still get your chimney checked if you are just burning with a fireplace. It is imperative that you check for creosote in that it can potentially cause chimney fires.

Air Conditioner Thermostats

A thermostat is an apparatus for maintaining the temperature of a system within a particular range by directly or indirectly controlling the flow of heat energy into or out of the system. All air conditioners have thermostats that can be manually operated or automatically preprogrammed to work at regulating the room temperature. There are many ways in which you can use an air conditioner thermostat effectively.

One of the most successful yet economical ways to reduce your air conditioning costs is to adjust the thermostat setting on the air conditioner. The savings are more noteworthy when you set your thermostat at 78 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. For each degree you raise the thermostat setting, you reduce seasonal cooling costs by 7 percent to 10 percent. In doing so, you can use ceiling fans in addition to the air conditioner and thus, save a lot of money.

Most centrally located air conditioner thermostats are equipped with two fan settings, 'on' and 'auto'. When the thermostat setting is set to 'on' the fan runs constantly and when it is set to 'auto' the fan runs only during cooling cycles when the air conditioner compressor is in use. When the air conditioner is in use all day, the cooling compressor only operates about 50 percent of the time, that is, for about 12 hours. The extra fan operating time that occurs when the thermostat is set to 'on' can add roughly $25 to monthly air conditioning bills. Using the 'auto' setting, alternatively, saves energy and money because the fan operates fewer hours. Besides achieving energy and cost savings, the 'auto' setting also promotes more comfort by offering better humidity control as moisture removed during the cooling cycle is re-circulated back into the home while the compressor is off.

Thus, thermostats play an important role in the cost and function of an AC.

Convenient Cooling With A Split Air Conditioner

Though ordinary vented portable air conditioners offer quite a few advantages to those with a need or desire for cooler conditions during the summer, combined with a limited budget, they still have a few disadvantages as well.

They are quite bulky, occupying a noticeable area of the floor and trailing a robust hose to the window for venting hot air. They are also fairly noisy and may disturb you while you sleep or prevent easy conversation nearby. These potential failings are solved by the split air conditioner.

Split systems are a useful application of human ingenuity to solving the problem of cooling a room, while keeping the interior uncluttered and quiet. If you are bothered by the noise of an air conditioner and the fans it uses to suck in warm air and distribute cooled air, or if you want to keep the device's physical presence in your room to a minimum, these split mechanisms offer both features.

How a split air conditioner works

A split air conditioner consists of two separate portions connected by a cable. One portion of the machine is mounted on the exterior of the wall, while the other part is placed inside the room that is to be cooled. There are both single and multiple room versions of split units, allowing you to cool either a single room, a group of rooms, or different chambers at various times.

The exterior unit of a split system is the "noise generating" unit - since it is located well away from you, on the outside of your house, you will not hear it except when you walk by outside. This part of the system houses the compressor, where refrigerant is alternately exposed to low pressure, becoming a vapor, and high pressure, where it condenses into a liquid again. The heat exchange that occurs during this process expels heat picked up by the refrigerant in the room's interior, and sends cold refrigerant back into the house again.

A cable connects the two portions of the split system, with refrigerant hoses inside it. This cable usually passes through a small hole in the wall made for this purpose. The interior unit is purely designed to collect heat and radiate cold, shunting the heated refrigerant to the exterior unit.

All air circulation and moisture condensation occurs in the exterior unit, so all fan and compressor noise is generated here. The moisture is vented or drips out of the unit, so there is no condensate tank for you to empty. The interior unit is silent, since you cannot hear the refrigerant flowing through it, and is usually quite small and unobtrusive. This neat size and silent operation makes the split system very pleasant to use in your house.

Fresh air and split systems

Though a split air conditioner is much quieter than a portable or a window unit, it does have a drawback or two to balance out this superiority of design. Since all heat exchange occurs through liquid refrigerant, there is no air exchange between the house interior and the outdoors. Therefore, the air is cooled efficiently but may become stale. Some split air conditioners allow you to add an air hose, too, to bring fresh air into the house, but not all models offer this feature.

Central Air Conditioning For Homes

So you've decided to install a central air conditioning.

Around seventy percent of new house constructions in the US are installing the central ac units. Though air conditioning was not necessary many decades ago, it is really uncomfortable these days without it. The people with old homes can also install air conditioners.

If you are in search of best central ac, then you must keep few points in mind. You must get your air conditioning equipment installed by the qualified experts.

When talking of saving on air conditioner energy bills, topic of SEER usually comes to mind. SEER (seasonal energy efficiency ratio) is used to rate the central air conditioning unit. You are in for a big savings if you replace your old worn out air conditioners with the brand new SEER rated units.

Make it a point to consult some good engineering firm who will inform you about the proper central air conditioning system required in your house.

Selecting Your Unit and Installer

There are many reasons for you to go for the central air conditioner unit. It is most efficient way to cool a house as it directly supplies cool air to the rooms whether doors within the house are closed or open.

The house backyard is the most suitable place to install the condenser unit of AC. This is where you would require an expert guidance. You must make sure that they properly inspect your house and each room where you would like to have diffusers (ceiling outlets) in. The electric load of your house will be increased greatly as the central air conditioning system is an electricity guzzler. Many mains will not be able to accommodate this new requirement and would have to be upgraded.

Maintenance of Your AC System

Proper maintenance is a must to enable your AC unit to last long without any difficulties. Regular care like proper cleaning would make them more efficient for a longer duration. You should keep the compressor compartment (condenser) placed outside the house, as clean as is possible. The indoor return air filter should also be kept clean to improve the flow of air around the house. If you accomplish these simple things, you will get several years of unhindered service from your central air conditioning unit.

What US Navy Bootcamp Was Like for Me As an Enlisted Serviceman

Before I joined the Navy, in May of 1982, my friend Jerry, introduced me to his recruiter at a public park, where they were cooking out some hot dogs, and drinking some beer. I shook his hand, and ate a hot dog, and just kicked back.

We did not really even talk about the Navy. I told him I wanted to go in, because I knew I was ready, and that there were not that many doors open to me, at the moment. I was surprised when he said I would have to take some tests, and other things like that. I said, "Fine, just tell me what to do, and where to do it at."

After going down to Detroit, to take a bunch of tests, physical exams, and tons of paperwork, there was just one more test. One of the recruiters, who was straight as an arrow, and had a rule book in his pocket, probably, asked me, "When was the last time I smoked marijuana?" I asked him, "Why?" He said that I had checked it off on one of my forms, that I had smoked marijuana before. He said, "If you have smoked it within the last 6 months, you cannot enter the Navy."

I told him, "It was 6 months ago, since I had smoked marijuana." This guy brought out a calendar, and went back six months, and asked me, "Was this the date that you smoked it?" Like I could really remember anyway. As a kid growing up in Michigan, most all the kids I hung around in junior high, and high school, had all did the same things together. Almost every weekend, there was a party, and plenty of smoking and drinking. I'm sure it was just a day or so, when I went in there.

This guy was too much, when I picked the date on the calendar, he told me I was one day shy of the 6 months. He told me that I would have to get a waiver to enter the Navy. I told him, "Fine, let me apply for the waiver." He said, You will have to meet with a psychiatrist." I met with the psychiatrist that same day. I was asked a lot of questions by the psychiatrist, and he gave me a clean bill of health, and I was able to join the Navy.

I was taking a trip from Detroit to Orlando, where I would be attending boot camp. I was kinda surprised, because the Navy had a boot camp base, at Great Lakes, IL, and it was all guys, no girls, at that boot camp base. Why they spent more money, sending me farther away, I don't know, but I liked it. The nice thing about Orlando, was it was co-ed, at least there were girls going to be there. They tried to make sure, no one could get close to each other, but they could never keep the boys away from the girls, or even the girls away from the boys.

They put all of us that were going to Orlando, Florida, for boot camp, on one plane. I was seated next to a nice pretty girl close to my own age. She was on her way back home to visit her parents. The flight was terrible, it was only the 2nd time I had flown on an airplane, and this flight from Detroit to Orlando was turning into a carnival ride, and I hate carnival rides. Up and down it was going, it was jumping around fast, and making lots of shaking and bumping noises. It was terrible, just like you would see in a movie, everyone on board was in a panic state. The lights were blinking on and off, it would just drop out of the sky fast, and pull your stomach up into your throat.

When we finally landed, we were all in our seats still, waiting to leave the plane. The pretty girl that had been sitting next to me, and waiting to meet her parents again, could not handle it, and threw up all over herself. I was behind her, when she left the plane, and it was heart breaking, to see her be greeted by her mother and father like that. They had to take her immediately to the rest room, to clean her up. I felt so bad for her.

We were met at the airport, by Navy personnel, and several white Navy buses. Other planes had come in from different parts of the country, with other people on board, just like me, long hair, long side burns, just regular Joe's off the street. The first thing they did, was have us line up, and stand in line, with no talking.

We were taken to a building, and given all kinds of directions to follow, until late into the evening. This continued until the early morning hours. "This treatment must be part of our conditioning," I thought. We were all given our haircuts the next day. We got to see most of the guys, get all of their hair cut off. It was quick and to the point.

I learned early on, not to volunteer for anything, when one of the company commanders would ask for a volunteer. Whenever they would ask for 3 volunteers, for example, eventually all those 3 volunteers, would be doing push ups, or running in circles with a rifle, eventually. I also thought, to just keep my mouth shut, and not volunteer for anything, and just get threw boot camp as low under the radar as I can.

Back then, if someone was hiding from the law, I guess it was a good idea to ditch society, and join the military. One day, we were in the barracks, and the commander told us to line up, which all of us immediately did. He told us, to, "about face", which means to turn around, and then some military police officers came in, and took one of the new guys out, in hand cuffs. He was a big black guy, that had 2 gold front teeth. Later, one of the company commanders said, he was wanted on murder charges, and tried to hide out in the Navy.

We had two company commanders in charge of our unit. One of them was a little guy, who was pretty mean to everyone. The other one was a more nicer, cooler guy. He did not go around yelling, like a lot of them did during boot camp days. On one of the days, we were all taken out to a building, and told to stand in line. The cooler company commander said that each of us is allowed a 15 minute phone call, to call our loved ones. We would have to stand in line to use the phone. He said when you are done making your phone call, you can go over to this section and relax.

I did not see any reason to stand in line for 2 hours to use the phone, since I did not need to make a phone call. I asked him if I had to stand in line, because there was nobody that I needed to call at this time. He kinda just looked at me and said I could go sit down and relax.

We went threw many inspections in boot camp. Only one time did I ever lose my temper. It was called hell week, and we were all going threw an inspection of the worst kind. About 12 other company commanders came into our barracks, and just start raising the most hell you can have... Yelling... Screaming... Cussing... Calling everyone in the room, any name you could think of, and worse. They were ripping apart bunks, throwing clothes everywhere, it looked just like a frat party gone wild.

It was crazy. Guys walking around with underwear on their heads. Other guys doing push ups, and then strange men, you never met before, just yelling right into your face. One of the guys that was getting yelled at, that was standing right next to me, could not take it anymore, and he fainted. That's when I lost it, and started yelling at the commander, "You fucking asshole," I yelled at him. "Look at what the fuck you did," I yelled at him. He just looked at me, and kinda worried about the guy next to me, that passed out. I just stood there, and did nothing else. He came to, a minute later, and that company commander just seemed to disappear from the rest of the torture.

I knew it was all a game, at least to the company commanders. To us, it seemed like hell week, and it was hell week, but we were still human, and a guy can only take so much.

At the end of boot camp, a lot of the people, have their moms and dads fly in, from all over the country, to see them graduate from boot camp. Myself, I still thought I was only gone for 2 months, and my dad would never fly to see me just only after 2 months. But some of these guys, must of been really close to their moms and dads. I would of been embarrassed to ask my dad to come watch me graduate from boot camp, to me, I was still waiting to join the Navy, and boot camp was just a test.

During boot camp, there were lots of times, for just sitting around, and shooting the shit with other guys. Some of the guys, had already been in the service before. Maybe the Army, or Air Force, and they said the service is nothing like boot camp, but they had to go threw boot camp again, because they got out for a short time, and wanted to come back in. I thought, "Wow, who would go threw boot camp twice? They must of really liked the service," I thought.

We did get to have one night, that we were all allowed to go out into town, with no one watching us, or going with us. It was pretty much all the guys from boot camp, that went out, and we had also just received our first pay checks, after spending two months in boot camp. Most all of the guys in the barracks, already knew which bars to go to. It was all strip bars, and nobody really wanted to go anywhere else.

Most of us went to this one bar, which had tons of sexy chicks dancing naked, and walking around in little sexy bikinis. We all got lots of lap dances, and it was a really rocking place. Me and three other guys, were able to go outside, and ask the cab driver, "Where do we get a chick that will do all of us?" He said he knew just the place we could go.

He drove us somewhere we did not know, and we ended up picking up this tall sexy girl with blond hair. She ended up doing each one of us, orally, right there in the cab we hired. We had only about 4 hours to be able to be away from the base, and we were able to get it all done. Most all the other guys, at the club, and around town, seemed to get lucky like that also, picking up chicks that were used to the guys getting out of boot camp after two months of no sex.

Some of the guys, were actually able, to hook up with some of the girls, from the girls side of the base. They did it by passing notes, and using sign language when we were out on the cement exercise fields they called grinders. They were able to hook up, during those 4 hours we were allowed out for our first liberty. For the rest of us, it was out to the bars, and try your luck at finding a girl for the night. I believe those girls were used to the base, and the guys getting their night off, because there were lots of girls, ready for action, in the town.

One thing for sure about the Navy, there were always girls, everywhere, it seemed. By that, I mean in other countries, there are just beautiful girls everywhere. It seems in some of these countries, they already know you are coming to town, and they have small towns set up, for when several hundred, to several thousand, guys show up on all kinds of ships, and head into town. Those are the funniest times for sure. Back when sex was practically safe, and it was in abundance, and all you wanted.

These days, a person would take their life in their hand with aids, and any other diseases out there. In the early 80's, it was a free for all, and the Navy seemed to be a big sponsor of some of the places. I was young, dumb, and horny as hell, and I thought it was a great idea, and I still do.

The Navy gave me more adventure, then I could ever get by myself, unless I was independently wealthy. In 1986, I was actually able to verify the world is round, since I was able to go around it by air, land, and sea.

It was so amazing to me, when I showed up at JFK international airport, and thought to myself, "Wow, the world really is round." I left the United States, from California, and I went all the way around it, and now I'm coming back threw the East Coast, and it's just amazing, when I thought about it at the airport when I was standing there.

At the end of boot camp, they tell you, "You will be leaving for school." That is where they train you to do your job for the Navy. Some people, were going to be welders, others would be gunners, or supply clerks. My job, was to be an office worker, who takes care of officer's paperwork. Personnel men take care of the enlisted paperwork of the enlisted people, and yeomen take care of the officers paper works for officers.

At first, when I joined the Navy, the person asked me what I wanted to do for my job in the Navy. I told him, "I never really thought about it." I thought for a moment, what might be an easy job in the Navy? I said, "Maybe I could cut hair." He said I would not want to do that, that it was mostly black guys that cut hair in the Navy, and I wouldn't fit in. I did not know what a Yeoman was, at the time, but he was a Yeoman, and he put me down for Yeoman Training. So off to Yeoman school I would go for my next duty station.

Ducane Air Conditioners - Simple Yet Effective

Air conditioners are absolutely essential to cool homes, offices and commercial establishments in the hot summer months so as to provide a healthy and comfortable indoor environment. The best of units available are simple to operate and maintain yet provide effective and efficient cooling. Some of the best quality machines available in the market are provided by Ducane Air Conditioners.

These units are known for their simplicity and ease of maintenance and service. A single side panel needs to be removed to get access to all the internal parts. This makes service or repair a very easy and quick job and helps save a lot of time, money and effort. As per most Air Conditioner Reviews, these models require much lesser time for regular maintenance and service as compared to most other options.

The heart of any air conditioning unit is the compressor. The quality of cooling provided hence depends almost entirely on the quality and performance of the compressor. These units come with a durable compressor that has the capability to provide sustained cooling for prolonged intervals of time. The design is such that the units usually have a prolonged life. Sometimes due to constant operation, a high pressure or a high temperature can envelop the compressor and reduce its performance. This is skillfully avoided by the presence of internal thermal protection and pressure relief valves that protect the compressor from unfavorable conditions thereby improving its performance, saving on energy bills and prolonging the life of the air conditioner.

Cooling is further enhanced by covering the condenser coil with copper tubing. This helps the unit to transfer the maximum amount of heat possible and hence improves its performance. Further, the hot air is discharged upwards instead of sideways so as to keep the outside air around the unit cool. This also reduces the noise generated by the unit as the air is not thrown out directly at the surrounding plants and walls.

More often than not, the units are placed outside in the open and have to face the elements of nature like sun, rain and frost. These elements combine to slowly harm the outer part of the unit and then the inner components thereby reducing the life. This is delayed simply providing a louvered panel and a wire coil guard that protect the unit and its components.

Most of the features of a Ducane Air Conditioners are simple adjustments. The company has utilized whatever was available to come up with effective and efficient units. Models are available with Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratios of 13 SEER and 14 SEER. These help save a lot on the power bills in the long run and are hence preferred by a number of people across the country.

Home Heating System: Boost the Heat in a Cold Bedroom

Homeowners know when they're cold and they know where their cold. They may not know how to light a pilot light, or air seal an attic floor, or balance a home heating system, but they know when they are cold. Bedrooms are often the coldest room in the house and most often people just live with it. Stick the kid in the cool bedroom, throw a couple extra blankets on the bed and tell them to finish their homework.

Dealing with a cool bedroom is frustrating. If you turn up the heat to warm the room, the rest of the house gets too warm. Shut all the heating registers except the bedroom and it puts too much back pressure on the furnace. Too often I see a household try to adjust the temperature of one room by closing heating registers in other rooms and soon they have half the registers in the house closed and the home heating system working overtime to satisfy the heating request at the thermostat.

Usually, the home heating system is designed by a professional Heating Contractor that went to HVAC school for several hours a week for a number of years. A Heating contractor must pass an apprentice program before he or she can even take the test for their journeyman license.

HVAC Education

During the educational phase of the heating and cooling training, they are taught how to do a heating load calculation on a home. They take the heating load and develop a designed heating system that includes furnace size, fan capacity, duct size, air flows, and register size. In other words, heating systems are designed to heat all rooms evenly and to work as a system with all registers open.

If you have one bedroom that is cooler than the rest of the house, one of two things has happened:

• The heating system was designed by a contractor that barely passed the test, or


• the heating system is broken.

Recently, I had a homeowner complain that they got very little air flow out of the heating register in their dining room. The dining room was cooler than other parts of the house. With a flow hood, I registered a 75% decrease of air flow at the register as compared to the register in the living room. I removed the register grill, took a flashlight and mirror and looked down the inside of the heating duct.

With the mirror to see around the initial elbow, I could see that a flow damper valve was installed in the heating duct. Further inspection showed that all the heating ducts in the home had a flow damper installed near the registers. The damper in the dining room was the only one that was closed most of the way. The homeowner was not aware that flow dampers were a part of the homes heating system.

Heating Duct Damper

Flow dampers are a bit unusual in my neck-of-the-woods, I don't see them very often. Flow dampers are added to a heating system to allow manual adjustment of the flow of air to the registers. With dampers, the flow of conditioned air can be balanced so warm and cool areas of the home can be eliminated. To keep from putting increased pressure on the furnace fan motor, when one damper is closed down another damper should be opened up.

Sometimes, I believe a heating contractor may throw in a bunch of flow dampers when he looses his pencil and can't be sure of how big to make the heating ducts or how many registers need to be in a room.

6 Ways to Boost the Heat in a Cold Bedroom.

Repair Heating Duct:
There is always the possibility that the duct system has a problem that can be fixed. Ducts can become partially or totally disconnected and flexible ducts can become pinched off or collapsed. This is the first and most important fix considering the cold bedroom. This fix will not only warm the bedroom, but also increase energy efficiency and energy savings.

The first step is the inspection of the duct leading from the plenum to the register to be sure it is securely connected. Also, look for holes, crimping, or collapsed areas. Heating ducts damaged by animals is also a possibility that you should be looking for.

Disconnected heating ducts can be reconnected, but damaged heating ducts most often need to be replaced as they are difficult to repair.

Check for a Damper:
The sneaky heating contractor may have placed a damper in the heating duct and kept it a pretty good secret. Look and feel inside the duct by removing the register cover. Also, remove insulation from the outside of the duct, especially near the register and check for the telling signs of a damper. A metal rod with a small handle and a few anchor screws indicate a damper inside. Open the damper and your cool room problems maybe over.

Balance Room Pressure With a Cross Over Duct:
Now we need to talk about room pressure and balloons. Crack the bedroom door open about an inch, turn the furnace on and see if the pressure builds up in the room and closes the door.

The heating system is a circle of air. Air is heated in the furnace, pushed through the heating ducts into a room and then sucked by the same furnace, out of the room, back through the return air duct to the furnace. If the air in the room cannot get back to the furnace, the room builds air pressure, like a balloon, which restricts the flow of conditioned air into the room in the first place.

With an increase of pressure in the bedroom, the conditioned air is forced through a different duct and into an adjoining room.

To fix the potential problem, many homes have cross over ducts installed in the ceiling or over the door that allow the air in the room to get back into the hallway even when the door is closed. In some larger, higher priced homes, they may have eliminated the room pressure problem by installing a return air register in every room.

To balance the room pressure and stop this problem, the two most used repairs are installing a cross over duct through the wall over the door or simply cutting the bottom of the door off so there is a wider gap between the door and the carpet.

Increase the Size of the Duct:
Maybe the Heating Contractor ran out of 8 inch ducting so he decided 6 inch was close enough. There is a real possibility that the back bedroom is cool because the heating duct system was not engineered correctly. When this happens, the best fix is to correct the mistake and replace the duct with a larger one. If the home is fairly new and the Contractor is still around, you might get this done as a freebee.

In this way, the cool room will get a larger share of the air coming from the furnace. This repair can still be a do-it-yourself'er if your willing. Heating duct material, both ridged and flex, can be purchased at your favorite home store. Some zip ties, a few sheet metal screws, a sharp knife and a pair of tin snips should do the trick.

If the heating duct size is simply too small to service the room, besides replacing the duct with a larger one, the only other fix that might work is installing a booster fan in the duct or adding a complete second duct and register.

Duct Booster Fan
Place a baffle in the heating plenum:
This adjustment can be very effective - especially in a manufactured home. A section of the main heating trunk ( the plenum ) needs to be opened up so a metal baffle or shield can be placed in the main trunk line that will direct more air into the heating duct that goes to the cold room. This is a very effective way to grab more of the conditioned air that passes down the main heating trunk and direct it in the direction you want it go. This is an inexpensive and permanent fix that works very well.

Install a Booster Fan in the Duct:
This $30 part won't create more heat, but it will pull more heat to the cool room. The booster fan should be installed as close to the offending room as possible and can be wired directly back to the furnace fan so the booster fan will run each time the furnace comes on. Installing it can be a pain. A section of round metal duct either needs to be dropped down or added to the system. Be sure the duct system is air sealed or this added fan will pull unconditioned air into the system and lower your energy efficiency.

I know dealing with a cold spot in your home can be a frustrating ordeal. Hopefully I have provided some solutions to the problem that will work for you and your home. The home heating system was designed to provide the comfort you are expecting and deserve and, with a little T.L.C., will provide years of energy efficient service.

Thank you for stopping by Detect Energy, hope to see you again soon, but I won't leave the light on for you...Don Ames

What Size Air Conditioner Do I Need for My Home?

So, you're looking to cool your home during the blistering heat of summer and before the autumn chill sets in. While air conditioners are available in many sizes, you're not looking for the largest one-this would be the lease efficient for a standard size home. You're looking to increase the condition of your air and not your power bill, right?

A happy medium, and even happier you
A general rule of thumb is that you will need 1 ton of air for every 500 feet of space you will be cooling within your home. Be weary of smaller air conditioners versus larger ones, as they contain smaller BTUs and will run constantly to try to keep up with your temperature requirements and humidity levels. While you may still feel stale air in your home, you'll also be displeased when you find the power bill is larger than last month.

What about a larger air conditioning unit-will this keep my home comfortable no matter what my square footage may be? Not necessarily, air conditioners tat are too large may cool your home faster, but with that-the humidity in your home is not having enough time to be extracted from the air at the same rate the unit is cooling. You see, they do not call them air conditioners for no reason-they truly condition the air you're breathing and sustain proper humidity levels. Also, the efficiency you lost with the smaller unit is even further gone with a unit too large from your home. Large units cycle on and off more often!

Measuring up to your cooling expectations
If you know the size of the area you want to cool, multiply the length by the width of the area (areas that you are not cooling do not apply). Take that number and multiply it by 25BTU. 25BTU is an umbrella for all types of climate changes, as well as a humid day. For instance, if you have a room that is 12 feet wide by 12 feet long-you will multiply 12x12, which equals 144 sq ft. So, 144x25 = 3600BTU meaning this is the minimum amount of cooling capacity needed for this space. Your cooling professional can perform this equation within seconds and have a number of how many BTUs will cool your home efficiently and effectively.