If your home heating and cooling system is more than 10 years old, consider replacing it. Energy Star labeled central HVAC systems can reduce your air conditioning costs by up to 20% annually.
Replacing HVAC Systems
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HVAC
Forced Air Insulation
In homes with forced air heat there may be large cracks or gaps where the ducts pass through the ceilings, floors and walls. Caulk between the metal duct opening and the ceiling, floor or wall it is mounted to.
Spring Chimney Cleaning
Springtime is the right time to get your chimneys checked! Sweeps are generally less frantic in the spring (vs. the crazy fall season) and if your chimney needs repairs, they can be made before the cold weather hits!
AC Rating
Air conditioners are rated by the number of British Thermal Units (Btu) of heat they can remove per hour. Another common rating term for air conditioning size is the “ton,” which is 12,000 Btu per hour.
Insulating Hot Water
Insulate your hot-water storage tank and pipes, but be careful not to cover the water heater’s floor, top, thermostat, or burner compartment; when in doubt, get professional help.
Carbon Monoxide Symptoms
The symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are often confused with those of influenza, and the highest incidence of poisoning occurs during the flu season. Symptoms include headaches, dizziness, nausea, unclear thinking, shortness of breath, weakness, vision problems and loss of muscle control.
Inspecting Gas Vents
When inspecting a new or potential new home, make sure that any of the gas equipment needing ventilation—heaters, dryers, hot water heaters—is ventilated properly to the outside.
Heat Leaks
Depressurize your home to help detect leaks. On a cool, very windy day, turn off the furnace. Shut all windows and doors. Turn on all fans that blow air outside, such as bathroom fans or stove vents. Then light an incense stick and pass it around the edges of common leak sites. Wherever the smoke is sucked out of or blown into the room, there’s a draft.
Beat The Heat
Install window air conditioners snugly. Insulate spaces around air conditioners for a tighter fit. An air conditioner with a tight fit around the windows or wall openings will make less noise and allow less hot air in from the outside. Check air-conditioning ducts for proper insulation. Insulation around ducts prevents cool air from leaking and keeps it directed through the vents.
Make sure your home is properly insulated. This will help you to conserve electricity and reduce your home’s power demands for air conditioning.
Weather-strip doors and windowsills to keep cool air inside, allowing the inside temperature to stay cooler longer.
During a drought, conserve water by placing a brick, or another large solid object, in your toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used in flushing.
Consider keeping storm windows installed throughout the year. Storm windows can keep the heat out of a house in the summer the same way they keep the cold out in the winter Protect windows. Hang shades, draperies, awnings, or louvers on windows that receive morning or afternoon sun. Outdoor awnings or louvers can reduce the heat entering the house by as much as 80 percent.
If you have a fan installed to vent warm air out of your attic, use the fan to help keep your home cool.
Attic Ventilation
Attic ventilation is critical for not only summer cooling performance but also the longevity of the structure of your house.
