The Quietest Air Conditioners

My house is over three thousand square feet.

There are rooms we use strictly for storage and others, like the dining room, that we use only on occasion.

Certain rooms tend to feel extra chilly or overheated because of the number of windows and location. The bedrooms are located on the second story and are always a bit warmer than the rest of the house. When we first moved in, there was a single thermostat located in the living room. The temperature in that particular room was always perfectly comfortable. There was no way to target any of the other areas without affecting the entire house. We were wasting a lot of energy and money maintaining empty rooms at an ideal temperature. Plus, any time we wanted to make an adjustment, we needed to walk to the thermostat and manually change the temperature. I finally decided it was worth the expense to upgrade to zone control. The energy savings are helping to recover the cost very quickly. The house is now far more comfortable, and there’s less wear and tear on the furnace and air conditioner. I like the convenience of having a series of smart thermostats that are accessible through an app on my phone. No matter where I happen to be, I can easily cater the temperature setting in specific rooms to requirements. I have set up programs that avoid heating or cooling the bedrooms until we’re headed to bed at night. Family members are able to customize the temperature in their room to personal preference. Implementing zone control is one of the most advantageous home improvements I’ve made.
Commercial air conditioning

It’s definitely time to replace the furnace in my home.

• The heating system was already installed when we moved in.

We were concerned with the age and condition of the heater and had expected to update it within the first year or two. We’ve now lived in the house for eight years. The furnace is showing the wear and tear of so many long, cold winters. We typically start up the furnace sometime in October and keep it running until sometime in April or even May. The temperature is regularly below freezing and often well below zero. In the last couple of years, I’ve noticed that the heating system is running more frequently and for longer cycles. I think that the output of heated air has steadily diminished. The furnace struggles to keep up with the demands of the particularly severe weather. While comfort has declined, my monthly utility bills have grown higher. Plus, there has been an increase in the amount of dust and other contaminants getting circulated throughout the house. I am worried that the furnace is going to fail right when we need it the most. If it quits during a nasty blizzard, we could be in trouble. Going without heat could quickly cause our water pipes to freeze and burst. However, when the roads are impassable and there’s a winter weather advisory, it would be very difficult to convince an HVAC contractor to provide furnace installation. I’d also need to accept whatever furnace was available. I would prefer to schedule the installation project over the summer. I’d like the opportunity to look into different brands, models and features. There are options now that achieve 98% AFUE ratings and offer perks such as zone control.

central heating

While the abundance of snow we get in my local area is certainly beautiful, it also causes a great deal of work and expense.

Because of it, we need to invest in four-wheel-drive vehicles, snow shovels, ice scrapers, heavy boots and winter coats.

Shoveling and plowing are everyday jobs. We accumulate anywhere from several inches to several feet of snow in a single day. Snow removal is time-consuming and labor-intensive. It can be difficult to find places to pile all of that snow. When the temperature drops down below zero, it’s unpleasant and downright dangerous to spend any significant time outdoors. I am very fortunate to have a boiler heating system installed in my home. The boiler heats up water and sends it through a series of pipes concealed beneath the floors. The heat radiates across the surface of the floor and rises gradually and evenly. No matter how bitter cold it gets outside, every room in my home is perfectly warm and comfortable. There are no drafts or cold spots. The system makes no noise, requires little maintenance and doesn’t cause concerns with insufficient humidity. It is the ideal heating system. Maybe the best benefit of the boiler is that it also links to a snowmelt system. Much like the radiant flooring inside, we have a network of pipes hidden under the pavement of the garage floor, driveway and walkways. The system automatically activates in response to moisture and temperature drop. Hot water travels through the pipes and distributes heat across the pavement to effectively melt away snow and ice. We never need to shovel or plow or worry about slipping and falling on the ice. We don’t get wet feet or deal with huge piles of snow.
smart thermostat

The furnace and air conditioner aren’t required to work as hard or run as often

Buying an old house presents some challenges. While we appreciate the hardwood floors, doors and moldings, there are drawbacks. The house is very difficult to heat and cool. Our local temperature swings from the negative digits into the high eighties. We deal with brutal wind chills as well as excessive humidity. Although I love the large windows that allow light into the home, they are a source of drafts and energy losses. When we first moved in, the windows were original to the house. It was easy to feel the cold air wafting in during the winter. The furnace would run constantly and yet various rooms felt overly chilly. I tried putting plastic over the windows and placing rolled up towels on the sill to minimize the influx of outside air. It helped a little. In the summer, we had issues with dust, bugs and pollen and I blamed the outdated windows. Replacing the windows was an expensive and gradual project. We couldn’t afford to buy all new and have them installed. Instead, we purchased a couple of windows every few months. My husband and I learned how to install them ourselves. We were very conscientious about properly insulating and caulking around them. Because we chose low E, thermal pane, Energy Star rated windows, they were especially costly yet more energy efficient. While it has taken a while to replace the abundance of windows, we are enjoying the results. The house stays cleaner and we are able to maintain a more consistent temperature. The furnace and air conditioner aren’t required to work as hard or run as often. Our utility bills are quite a bit lower. Those savings will help to recover the investment into so many new windows.

 

home owner solutions

For several years after getting married, my husband and I rented an apartment.

• When we were ready to start a family, we started looking for a house to buy.

We spent nearly eight months touring various properties. We were quite particular about the size of the yard, square footage of the home and location. By the time we found a house that met all of our criteria, we were getting desperate. I was anxious to move and prepare a nursery. Our only complaint was that the house was equipped with a boiler instead of a furnace. Neither of us had any experience with a boiler heating system and we worried about noise, energy efficiency and its ability to handle severe winter cold. I did a little research and learned that boilers are often recommended for people who suffer from allergies, asthma or dust sensitivities because they are especially clean. Because the system uses water instead of air to convey heat energy, it doesn’t cause issues with insufficient humidity. Boiler operation is virtually silent and with few moving parts, especially reliable. Boilers tend to last a really long time and provide a wonderfully gentle comfort. They easily handle the most severe weather and avoid drafts and stratification. Modern boilers are quite energy efficient and can link to baseboard heaters, radiators, radiant flooring, towel-warmers and snowmelt systems. Plus, there’s the added advantage of zone control. We ended up buying the house and the boiler heating system is one of the best features. We’ve had no complaints with it.

 

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I assumed that this would be an invasive and expensive project.

Last winter, I noticed that cooking odors were spreading throughout the entire house and lingering for hours and hours. When we’d head to bed at night, our bedrooms would smell of whatever I’d prepared for dinner. With the outside temperature down into the teens, there was no chance of opening a window and airing out the house. We were running the furnace at maximum capacity. The presence of the cooking odors made me more aware of the amount of dust floating around. I started getting concerned about the health and cleanliness of our indoor breathing air. I finally contacted a local HVAC contractor and asked him to take a look at the heater. The technician inspected the inner workings of the furnace and found no problems. He then tested the ductwork and discovered an alarming amount of debris built-up in the pipes. He said that this accumulation of dust and dirt was absorbing odors and spreading them to every room in the house whenever the furnace operated. Because our breathing air passes through the ductwork multiple times per day, any toxins concealed within the system are a big concern. Mold spores and bacteria can easily become airborne and cause health risks. The technician suggested duct cleaning. I assumed that this would be an invasive and expensive project. Instead, he brought in a machine that resembled an oversized vacuum cleaner, complete with a hose and brush attachment. The brush works to dislodge stubborn contaminants that then get sucked into the hose. The duct cleaning resulted in a significant improvement in the comfort and hygiene of the home. It also increased the efficiency and capacity of the furnace.
ductless mini split

I held off on the installation of central air conditioning for quite a few years.

A whole-home cooling system simply isn’t a necessity in my local area.

We are far more concerned about the winter weather and effective heating. We run the furnace for approximately 8 months out of the year. I had no interest in switching from paying a huge natural gas bill to facing a high electric bill. For our brief and sometimes chilly and rainy summer season, we were able to manage with opening windows, running box fans and window air conditioners in the bedroom. The house would sometimes get overly hot and sticky. The screens of the windows let in quite a bit of dust, pollen, bugs and fumes. We were bothered by the noise of traffic, road construction and barking dogs. It wasn’t until we needed to replace the furnace that I finally invested into central cooling. The HVAC company was offering a special and there was a rebate from the manufacturer. Purchasing heating and cooling equipment at the same time actually saved me money. I was able to upgrade to a better efficiency furnace and an air conditioner with an impressive SEER rating. I didn’t expect to run the air conditioner all that often. Instead, I’ve found that I enjoy operating the fan feature of the cooling system even when the weather is mild. It works to circulate and filter contaminants out of the air. The house feels fresher, cleaner and more comfortable. One those especially hot and humid days, we can lower the thermostat and enjoy the perfect temperature. The air conditioner helps to combat excess humidity. We sleep better at night and enjoy greater productivity during the day.

link here

I’ve had a bit of a good natured feud going with a neighbor.

We’re not actually buddies as we see the world from vastly dissimilar perspectives.

But we try to be good neighbors nonetheless. However, he’s always telling me what a chump I am for getting HVAC maintenance from the HVAC professionals at the HVAC company. He’s just that sort of guy. The man really doesn’t have any sort of social filter on his mouth. I’d probably avoid him at all costs if I didn’t know that he was actually harmless and could actually be kind at times. So he thinks that stuff like HVAC maintenance is just all made up. He gave me this long speech once about how HVAC equipment is already built to last for at least two decades. The HVAC company is just conning me and taking my money. I asked him for the source of this information and of course, he couldn’t produce it. I know full well that HVAC maintenance is so worth the money. Not only does the HVAC unit operate at peak efficiency but an HVAC unit receiving consistent HVAC maintenance lasts about 7 years longer. So it was with great but subtle joy that I walked over to his house while an HVAC company was ripping out his heating and cooling equipment he’d only had for about 15 years. It was garbage now and he had to totally replace the whole HVAC. I couldn’t help but ask what the problem was. While he was in no mood for getting hassled, he did sort of smirk at me when I suggested maybe getting some HVAC maintenance this time around.

 

 

ductwork sealing

I’m so happy I pulled the trigger and put some heating and cooling inside my garage.

This idea was spawned by a neighboring house.

This place is a few streets over and was a custom build. I would watch the progress each day when I was on my walks. While it’s not exactly palatial this place, it’s not far off. The size isn’t too much but man, it has everything. That includes a four car garage that has it’s own central air conditioning system. I walked over and talked to the HVAC professionals as they were putting it in. The garage had shiny floors and came with all sorts of other amenities and even a separate bath and shower. Apparently, the owner planned to spend a lot of time in his garage. That got me to thinking since I have a work bench in my garage but sort of got forced out of there. We just ended up packing the garage with so much gear and junk. But that new house inspired me to actually utilize the space in my garage. I gave my family fair warning and then I tore through the garage and got rid of all the junk. Then, I spent some time organizing our gear properly and the result was I had plenty of room to do my thing at my work bench. That’s when I decided I’d take it all to the next level and put in a ductless heat pump. Having heating and cooling outside in the garage is just the best and I would highly recommend it to anyone who’s asking.

Commercial air conditioning

When I walked into my house and the thermostat was set in the lower 80’s, it felt cool, crisp and comfortable to me

I guess I should have gone to the source right away. Instead, when I moved down here, I just went all out on the air conditioning as I really didn’t know what else to do. It was so hot and I was from the north where the summers could get hot but they never stayed hot. This place stays near a hundred degrees for like four months straight. So of course, the only thing I knew to do to manage was to crank the HVAC cooling. And it cost me a bunch of money for the first two years I was here. I mean a bunch of money. So last year, I finally went to a friend in the office who is a native of the region and asked him how he did HVAC cooling in his place. I told him what I was averaging on monthly HVAC cooling costs and he almost fainted. We chatted about it a bit and I realized that I was going about this air conditioning thing all wrong. For me, when the temperatures hit 75 or so, I flipped the thermostat over to HVAC cooling. That was my mistake. My local friend advised me that it’s best if I allow my body to acclimate to the heat during the spring. So that’s what I did last spring. Instead of cranking the air conditioning right away, I simply opened the windows and turned on fans. So by the time the real heat hit in June, I was sort of accustomed to the heat. When I walked into my house and the thermostat was set in the lower 80’s, it felt cool, crisp and comfortable to me. And believe me, I cut my HVAC cooling costs so dramatically that I took a really nice vacation in the fall.

multi split air conditioning