Now that the weather is tolerable, it is also a good time to take advantage of these nice spring weekends (OK, so the equinox is a couple weeks away, but I can’t wait) to hose off that air conditioner condenser or heat pump.  It is about to start working a lot harder to keep the house comfortable, and if the coil is clean, it will lower the operating pressure in that unit and reduce the energy consumption.  And it is cheaper than a professional cleaning by someone like us.  If you can manage to get the top off the unit without damaging the fan blades or disconnecting the fan motor, that’s better (be sure to kill the power first), as it is best to wash from the inside out (opposite the direction of airflow), but if not, even a cursory hose off with the garden hose is sufficient to get all the grass and such off (you do remember to mow with the chute pointing away from the unit, right?).

If you are like me, it is also time to get the indoor seeds started for the garden.  Happy growing, and stay comfortable.

SPECIAL OFFER GOOD ONLY THROUGH MEMORIAL DAY, 2011!

Through Memorial Day, receive a $300 instant rebate on tax-credit-eligible Tempstar heat pumps and air conditioners.  Add this on top of the federal, state and local incentives already available!

For a list of local and federal tax credits available, see the winter newsletter post.

Call or email Masonaire for tax credit-eligible models or go to tempstar.com.

New construction not eligible.  Call for details!

Masonaire HVAC

HM04635

sales@masonaire.com

502-517-9624

This was covered in our winter newsletter but we felt it was important enough to give it another posting to be easier to find.

Spring comes first, though, and that’s a great time to get your air conditioners, furnaces and air handlers tuned up for the glorious warm weather.  Scheduled maintenance agreements allow you to pay one price, one time, up front for two service calls – one in the spring and one in the summer.  Call the office today to schedule yours.  You can see a sample service agreement on our site over on the “Services” tab (follow the link to the “Sample Service Agreement”).

Now on to some additional information.  We have been struggling as of late to keep up with the changing energy tax credits and have finally found a good one-stop-site for answering all your tax credit (including the federal 25c) questions.  The best part is it also includes state and local incentives.

For example, did you know that Bluegrass Energy offers a $150 rebate for having your ducts sealed?  Neither did we until now.  Atmos Energy offers a $200 utility rebate for the installation of a new gas furnace with a 90% or greater AFUE.  The state of Kentucky offers rebates for water heaters, heat pumps, furnaces and such through the state rebate program and the KY Home Performance with ENERGY STAR organization.  These are just a few of the available incentives that are still active, and all are in addition to the federal tax breaks that get all the attention.  Yes, the federal tax incentives are still around, it’s just that the amounts have been reduced and the caps have changed.

The website that summarizes all these incentives by state is the Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency.  This site is quite nicely organized and the information is clear, precise, and easy to find.

Spring is coming.  We think.

http://www.achrnews.com/Articles/Service_and_Maintenance/ec22894ffbe5a010VgnVCM100000f932a8c0____

During air conditioning operations, the inside coil needs to breathe.  That old chest-type freezer in your garage gets coated with ice because there is no airflow in the box.  When there is no airflow (or not enough) across your air conditioning evaporator, it turns into a freezer.  If you see ice on the copper lines at your indoor unit, and/or you notice no airflow out the vents in the house, and/or it simply is not cooling the home, chances are the coil is frozen because of a lack of airflow. In some extreme cases, this condition can cause the compressor to fail.

In heating, the coil still needs proper airflow to perform properly.  Heat pumps can experience high head pressures, compressor lockout, and auxiliary heat failure from lack of airflow.  Gas furnaces may shut down the burner because of overheating.  If you have a gas furnace, and the thermostat is calling for heat, the blower is running, but the gas burners are not lit, chances are the unit has shut down on high temperature limit because of a lack of airflow.

Blowers and fans are just like pumps – in fact, they are pumps, but they pump air instead of liquid.  As such, they can only pump so much flow against a certain pressure.  The lower the pressure, the higher the flow.   Higher pressure means less flow.  If you were to open the garden hose right of the hydrant outside the house and let it flow freely into a bucket and note how long it takes to fill the bucket, you would notice it takes longer (thus less flow) to fill the bucket when you block a little over half the hose with you thumb.  If the blower is loosing too much pressure by trying to pull air through a dirty filter or coil, the air flow will be greatly reduced.

In some cases, improper filter maintenance will cause a coil to become so clogged that it must be removed, cleaned, and reinstalled.  In these instances, the repair can start at about $600.  Compared to the cost of a $2 filter every 30 days, this is quite expensive.  So do yourself a favor – get some 1-inch, disposable, non-pleated filters, put them next to the furnace, and change them each time you pay your gas or electric bill.  It will save you money in the long run.

Fall is falling upon us. Here in Kentucky we set back our clocks an hour, change the batteries in our smoke detectors, and make sure our homes and businesses are prepared for the cooler temperatures ahead.

Now is the time to prepare your home’s mechanical systems for the coming season. If you have fossil fuel heat, such as natural gas or propane, and you have carbon monoxide detectors in the home (and you should), now is the time to change those batteries as well. A $5 battery is good insurance for you and your family should you need to be awakened during the night.

Any heating system should be checked now for proper operation. Make sure the furnace filters have been changed. Might need to check that tank of gas in the back yard. For heat pumps, a good spray-off with the garden hose can make sure the outside unit is clean for proper operation on these cooler nights. If the unit’s coil is considerably dirty, it may be time for a professional cleaning. A professional can also check the refrigerant charge, clean the inside coil, and perform a check on the system’s vital signs to see if any problems may be looming. Furnaces should get a combustion check, heat exchanger examination, gas pressure check, flue check, and general vital sign inspection.

As the leaves drop, so do the temperatures. Don’t get caught out in the Kentucky cold. Let Masonaire assist you in preparing for the days ahead. Give us a call at 502 517 9MCG or surf through our website for all your HVAC needs.