Preparing Your Thermostat for Cooling Season

With cooling season on the horizon, it's time to prepare your home and thermostat so they're optimized for comfort and energy efficiency. Here's how you can get ready for the coming change in weather and temperature.

Invest in New Thermostat Technology

If you rely on a basic digital control to regulate your home's HVAC system, you'll appreciate the convenience that a programmable thermostat provides. The Department of Energy (DOE) also advises that going programmable can save you up to 10 percent on your yearly HVAC energy consumption. When choosing a new thermostat, look for one that works with your type of HVAC equipment and also meshes with your usual weekly routine.

Prime Your HVAC for Summer Energy Savings

To reap the greatest savings, the DOE recommends programming your thermostat with different temperature adjustments for specific periods each day: lower when you're home and active, and higher when everyone is sleeping or away. These daily temperature adjustments can add up to sizable savings over time, because a one-degree change for eight hours brings a one-percent drop in annual energy consumption. You should also:

• Set the temperature at 78°F when you're at home and active.

• Increase it to 85°F at night and when the house isn't occupied.

• Don't be afraid to experiment to see if you can save more energy with a higher temperature. Do so incrementally, one or two degrees at a time, to avoid causing discomfort or overtaxing your cooling equipment.

• Never use the override function to make a big temperature adjustment in order to cool down the house faster. The cooling process won't speed up, but you can accidentally cool your home too much and end up wasting energy.

• Run your ceiling fans in tandem with your air conditioner to boost the cooling effect, but only in occupied rooms. With the blades moving counter-clockwise, the fan's air movement cools the skin, which lets you raise the temperature setting by up to four degrees.

For expert help getting your Broken Arrow home ready for the cooling season, contact us at Air Assurance.

Second-Story Homes: Fixing Uneven Cooling

In our Oklahoma climate with its hot summer weather, cooling your two-story home evenly can be frustrating and difficult. Dialing back the thermostat's temperature setting frequently to cool your uncomfortably warm second story can make the main floor rooms too chilly, and send your energy bills skyrocketing, too. Warm air's lower density is why it naturally rises, and this is a main reason for uneven cooling in a multi-story home.However, these other issues may be contributing to the problem as well:

Incorrect equipment sizing and advancing age.

Over- or under-sized equipment can short cycle or may not have enough capacity to provide sufficient cooling. If you have older equipment, its efficiency may be in decline.

Unchecked heat gains/losses.

Ductwork leaks, air losses through your home's conditioned envelope and inadequate insulation can make cooling less effective and/or reduce how much conditioned air gets delivered.

Flawed ductwork design.

Insufficient return airflow, inadequately-sized ducts or a lack of supply and return ducts can cause airflow imbalances that result in uneven cooling.

How to Achieve More Consistent Cooling

To enjoy greater comfort on all levels of your home, it's best to have a skilled contractor assess your HVAC system. You may be advised to:

Update your HVAC equipment.

It may be time to invest in a new air conditioner or heat pump if yours has a low SEER rating or is more than 10 years old.

Fix ducting flaws.

Sealing and insulating or replacing a poorly-designed duct system may help even out temperature differences by curbing conditioned air losses and/or improving airflow to the second level.

Seal and insulate.

Air sealing around your home's exterior and attic may preserve more HVAC output, while boosting insulation levels on the attic floor may improve your home's overall efficiency.

Install zoned cooling.

Having duct dampers and individual thermostats installed to create multiple cooling zones can provide more precise temperature control and more consistent comfort on each of your home's levels.

If you're experiencing problems with uneven cooling in your multi-level or two-story Broken Arrow home, contact us at Air Assurance for expert help finding effective solutions.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.

Refrigerant 101: What it is and Why it Matters

You don’t need a course in Refrigerant 101 to know whether your air conditioner’s keeping the house cool on a summer day. Without refrigerant circulating in the cooling system, we’d all be a lot less comfortable in hot weather. Here are more basics of Refrigerant 101 and how this remarkable substance handles the household cooling load.

The Cycle Of Coolness

In your central air conditioner, refrigerant passing through the indoor evaporator coil is a frigid vapor that efficiently absorbs household heat from the system airflow. After passing through an insulated line to your outdoor condenser unit, refrigerant is compressed into a hot liquid and rapidly releases absorbed heat into the air as it passes through the condenser coil. The refrigerant flow then circles back to the indoor evaporator, converting to a cold vapor again to extract still more heat from your home.

Low Refrigerant Means A Leak

Air conditioners don’t “use up” refrigerant. Theoretically, as long as the system is intact and functional, it should not require addition of extra refrigerant. If your A/C exhibits signs of a low refrigerant charge—such as poor cooling performance, ice formation on the indoor coil or rapid on/off cycling—there’s usually a leak somewhere in the system. Simply adding more refrigerant without resolving the leak isn't a solution that lasts. Call for professional HVAC service to pinpoint the problem, repair the leak, then restore the refrigerant to the proper level.

Old Refrigerant Is Going Away

R-22 refrigerant, the industry standard in air conditioners for decades, is being removed from the market due to environmental concerns. It will become completely unavailable in 2020. All new A/C units manufactured today utilize R-410A refrigerant, the environmentally-friendly replacement for R-22. As 2020 approaches, expect R-22 to become increasingly less available and more expensive. Ultimately, all R-22 units will have to be replaced with new R-410 units by 2020.

To learn more about the basics of Refrigerant 101, contact the cooling experts at Air Assurance.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.

Benefits of a Portable A/C

Although it’s hard to match the convenience and comfort of a central air conditioner, sometimes it makes sense to use a portable A/C in junction with it or independently. Over the last few years, portable air conditioners have become more energy efficient and versatile and they may be just what you need in certain situations.

Supplemental Cooling

If you need supplemental cooling in one particular room or area of your home because it’s consistently hotter than the rest, a portable air conditioner might be the best solution. You can use the A/C as a supplemental cooling unit only when you plan to use the areas that are overly warm.You might have a home office or a hobby room that isn’t consistently used. When the air conditioner isn’t in use, you can disconnect the venting hose and tuck the unit into a closet or roll it into a corner.You may also use the cooling unit to make a guest or family member more comfortable. What’s comfortable for one person may not be for another and rather than cooling the whole house down to accommodate their preferred sleeping temperatures, it makes sense to use a portable unit to cool just their bedroom instead.

Dehumidification

One of the newest features a portable A/C may have is a dehumidify-only switch. Being able to remove the humidity without having to cool the room. Humidity increases the "feels like” temperature and by lowering it, you will feel cooler. You can also use this feature in the winter to dry out a damp, clammy basement.

Appearances

Unlike window or wall air conditioners, portable units have small venting requirements that aren’t necessarily visible from the street. When the unit isn’t in use, simply remove the vent and store the A/C. Wall and window A/C units, on the other hand, have an unsightly appearance both indoors and out.

A portable A/C might help you solve some of your cooling and humidity challenges. For more information, contact Air Assurance, providing trusted HVAC services for Broken Arrow homeowners.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.

Why Winter is the Best Time for an A/C Replacement

Having a reliable and efficient air conditioner is essential with our long, hot Oklahoma summers. If your A/C is getting on in years, it has needed repeated repairs in the recent past, or you're afraid it might not survive another cooling season, why wait until next spring to replace it? A winter A/C replacement is a wise choice for a number of good reasons:

Flexible Installation Options

After a hectic cooling season when area HVAC contractors are fully booked maintaining, repairing and replacing air conditioners and heat pumps, winter brings a bit of a slow down. Scheduling an A/C replacement during this period can allow you to avoid a long lead time for your installation. It also gives you the flexibility to book the upgrade at a time that's most convenient for you and your family.

Full-Season Energy Savings

Getting your new A/C installed during the winter means you'll have it in place and ready to switch on when the temperature starts rising in the spring. This means you'll get the energy-saving benefit of operating a more efficient cooling system all season long.

Upfront Cost Savings

The winter slow period is when many area HVAC companies offer discounts and deals to customers who book a new equipment installation, and this can help you save money on the upfront cost of your upgrade.

No Rush Decisions

Making your A/C installation a planned event instead of a mid-season emergency next summer allows you ample time to comparison shop. You can check out advanced options and features, like two-stage compressors, smart thermostats and variable-speed air handlers. You can also compare SEER ratings for equipment at different price points and fully weigh lifetime energy savings versus upfront costs.

Avoiding Stress and Inconvenience

Installing a new air conditioner this winter means you won't have to deal with the inconvenience, discomfort and stress of a mid-summer emergency replacement if your old equipment can't make it through the cooling season and fails unexpectedly.

To learn more reasons why planning a winter A/C replacement for your Broken Arrow home is the best choice, contact us at Air Assurance.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about air conditioner replacements and other HVAC topics, call us at 918-217-8273.

Need Advice on Choosing a New HVAC System? Here's a Helpful Guide

When choosing a new HVAC system, you'll be looking at technology you may not have known existed, most of it vastly more efficient than what you had in your home before. Here's a rundown on some of the new technology, but remember, your best bet is discussing your HVAC system replacement with an experienced contractor.

Cooling

When choosing a new central air conditioner, your new system is likely to be much more efficient with a higher seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER). You'll also have the option to choose features such as:

• Variable-speed air handlers that gently gear up to provide cooling as needed, then slowly cycle down, maintaining cool temperatures as you need them.

• Two-stage compressors that use the most power only on the hottest days.

• Scroll compressors that use less energy than a piston-driven compressor.

These features are also available with a heat pump, which works similarly to an A/C. Both systems use refrigerant to extra heat from the home, but a heat pump can be reversed in winter so that it moves heat into the house from the outdoors for warming.

If you already have central heating but don't have a central cooling system, ask your HVAC consultant if the current ductwork is sufficient to handle the volume of air produced by the A/C you are considering. You may have to replace the ductwork.

Ductless systems are a popular option for homes without existing ductwork. You can get a ductless A/C or heat pump depending on your heating and cooling needs. With these systems, air is distributed by small, strategically mounted air handlers, which are connected to an outdoor compressor/condenser. Multiple air handlers can run on one outdoor unit, making these systems perfect for creating comfort zones.

Heating

When choosing a new furnace, pay attention to annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE). The higher the AFUE rating, the more efficient the furnace you choose will be. Newer furnaces also may have safer, more efficiently sealed combustion technology, as well as an efficient modulating gas valve and a variable-speed blower.

To learn more about choosing a new HVAC system, contact Air Assurance. We've been serving customers in the Tulsa area since 1985.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  Credit/Copyright Attribution: “schatzy/Shutterstock”

Consider These Air Conditioner Options When Cooling Your New Home Addition

If you're planning to add a room or section onto your home, one of the major decisions you'll have to make is how to cool and heat the added space. The decision could have far-reaching consequences; if you choose the wrong alternative, it could prove quite costly. Here are three main options for heating or cooling your new home addition.

Extending an Existing Cooling and Heating System

This is the simplest option if your existing HVAC system has the capacity to cool and heat the added space. It just requires the labor and materials to extend existing ductwork. You can also have a zoning system installed, which allows for independent temperature control in the new area.

Replacing an Existing HVAC System

This option is practical if your existing system is nearing the end of its useful service life. This usually happens after 15 years or more for a furnace, and 10 to 12 years for an A/C or heat pump. When replacing your old system, you can upgrade to high efficiency heating and cooling, setting yourself up for lower energy bills. For even more efficiency, combine this with a weatherization project throughout your home by sealing air leaks and enhancing insulation.

Install an Independent System

If either of the first two options are too expensive or otherwise impractical, consider installing independent cooling and heating. A variety of options are available, including a ductless mini split, a small furnace-A/C setup, or a mini-duct HVAC system. With all of these options, you get independent temperature control in your home's added space.

For more advice on heating and cooling your new home addition, please contact us at Air Assurance. We've provided superior HVAC services to Tulsa, Broken Arrow and the surrounding communities since 1985.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Credit/Copyright Attribution: “GSPhotography/Shutterstock”