Touchstone Heating & Air Inc. Blog: Archive for October, 2014

The Steps of Professional Furnace Maintenance

Monday, October 27th, 2014

Have you scheduled your furnace’s annual maintenance visit yet? Right now is the ideal time to get it done, during the fall before the weather starts to turn colder. We recommend that anyone who uses a furnace to heat their home have maintenance done once a year during fall. This will not only prepare the furnace for the work ahead, but it will also catch any repair issues before they can become serious, and will keep the furnace working at its most energy efficient.

With our Energy Savings Agreement, you’ll receive a furnace check-up and inspection in the fall, as well as a visit for your air conditioning during the spring. Call us today to hear about the details.

What happens during furnace maintenance

A routine maintenance visit for a furnace follows a number of basic steps. Your technician will make any adjustments necessary depending on the condition of your furnace and what he or she may discover during the session.

The technician will start by replacing or cleaning the furnace filter, and show you how you can do this during the rest of the year on your own if you don’t already know how. After that, the technician will check to see if the thermostat is correctly calibrated so it reads temperatures accurately.

Next, the work inside the furnace cabinet begins. The technician lubricates the fan motor, which is an important part of relieving stress on the system. Next comes a check on the electrical system (even a gas furnace uses electricity to run its fans) to measure voltage and look over the fuses, breakers, and other wiring. If necessary, the technician will tighten loose electrical connections.

One of the key steps a technician will take for a gas-powered furnace is to look for any signs of corrosion on the unit and especially on the heat exchanger; cracks along a heat exchanger due to corrosion can lead to dangerous carbon monoxide leaks, and the exchanger will need to be replaced. The technician will also clean off the burner if necessary. Finally, the maintenance technician will perform a visual inspection of the ductwork to see if there are places were air might be escaping.

The technician will present you with any problems discovered during the check-up and offer advice on repairs or services you may need to improve the system and keep it operating safely. Once the maintenance job is completed, you should have a furnace in the best running shape possible, ready for another year of keeping your home cozy.

When you sign up for the Energy Savings Agreement with Touchstone Heating and Air Inc., you will not only receive quality heating maintenance in Lake Butler, FL that will keep your heater working efficiently for many years, you will save 15% on repair services and receive priority scheduling. Contact us today.

Touchstone Heating and Air Inc. offers an excellent program for heating maintenance in Lake Butler, FL and other communities in North Central Florida. Call us today!

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What Are the Benefits of Scheduling Prompt Duct Repair?

Monday, October 20th, 2014

The ducts are a key component of any home HVAC system, but they can fall prey to a number of problems that keep the unit from running as efficiently as it could. Ducts may develop cracks, come loose at the joints, or even collapse. Or, your ducts may have a design flaw that keeps one area of the home from feeling as cool or as warm as you’d like. In fact, a majority of homeowners have problems with the ducts that lead to up to 30% of air loss, a major drain on their energy bills.

Noticing a problem with the ducts may be tough, but there are a few signs to look out for. If one area of the home never seems to be as cool as the rest, it could be a problem with the air conditioning system, such as low refrigerant or a struggling compressor. On the other hand, it’s very likely a problem with the ducts. Prompt duct repair is vital if you want to achieve the following results.

  • Fewer HVAC Repairs: When there are holes in the ducts, air leaks through, which means your home will not feel cool as quickly as it should. This means that your unit will have to work harder to keep up with the loss, which could cause parts to wear down quickly and fall into a state of disrepair.
  • Greater Efficiency: Furthermore, when parts become worn, they simply cannot run as efficiently as they should. Worn down parts will take longer to heat your home and consume a lot of energy in the process, leading to higher energy costs. With prompt duct repair, your HVAC system can distribute air as it is supposed to, and won’t spend excessive energy making up for a faulty duct.
  • Better Air Quality: Finally, duct repair can actually help improve the air quality in your home. A leak in your ducts may allow pollutants like dust and bacteria to enter from the attic or crawlspace and infiltrate your home, causing sickness or aggravating existing conditions like asthma and allergies. Well-sealed ducts keep these from infecting your home.

The technicians at Touchstone Heating and Air Inc. know properly sealed ducts are key to a comfortable home. Call our office today and ask about scheduling professional duct repair in Gainesville.

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Here’s How Professional HVAC Maintenance Can Save You Money

Monday, October 13th, 2014

Air conditioning and heating systems use up a large portion of any home’s utility bills every month, and sometimes, it seems like the easiest way to save money is by shutting off your system entirely. Of course, doing so means sacrificing comfort—and a lot of complaints from the members of your household.

Another easy way to save is by scheduling HVAC maintenance every year. With professional maintenance, a technician cleans, inspects, and makes adjustments for your heating and cooling system. All it takes is one phone call and a bit of your time, and the savings will surely make up for the low cost of maintenance.

Steps of Maintenance that Help You Save

Every part of the maintenance process is intended to protect your air conditioner from costly future repairs and to help keep energy costs low. Although there are many other components to the process, here are the details of just a few of the most important steps of HVAC maintenance.

  • Adjust Thermostat Calibration: If your thermostat is inaccurate, you may be setting your thermostat too low in the cooling season or too high when it’s cold outside. Even if you are only one or two degrees off, it could mean you are spending a lot more on your energy bill. A technician will clean or adjust the thermostat, and may recommend replacement in some cases.
  • Inspect and Clean the Filters: A dirty air or furnace filter could reduce the required amount of airflow to your system, resulting in poor efficiency and possibly leading to repairs. You should replace or clean the filters in your HVAC maintenance system about once every month, but a maintenance technician can ensure that this is completed properly.
  • Inspect and Tighten Electrical Components: Electrical problems could lead to issues with fan motors or the compressor, both of which may need replacement. Technicians check for wiring problems and tighten electrical components when needed, in order to prevent costly repairs later on.
  • Visually Check the Ductwork: The ductwork in your home may have leaks, and leaks can cause up to 30% of the air from your HVAC system to escape from the ducts in some homes. A technician can tell you if duct sealing will have a significant impact on your cooling and heating costs.

At Touchstone Heating and Air Inc., our maintenance program includes a twice yearly tune-up and discounts on services.

For these offers and more, call Touchstone Heating and Air Inc. today and ask about scheduling HVAC maintenance in Lake Butler.

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Only Allow Specialists to Service Your Commercial AC System

Monday, October 6th, 2014

Because of Florida’s warm climate, you will rely on the air conditioning system in your commercial space almost every month of the year. Keeping the AC in prime working order so that it is always ready to provide you with crisp and relaxing cool air without excess energy waste is important to keep a business running smoothly and its employees, customers, and/or clients happy. To make sure that the air conditioner in your commercial space can live up to your expectations, arrange for prompt repairs when necessary and regular maintenance once a year.

But when it comes to scheduling these services, you can’t simply turn to any HVAC contractor. A commercial AC must have commercial experts to install, maintain, and repair it. For your light commercial air conditioning in Jacksonville, FL (25 tons and under), look to the dependable name of Touchstone Heating and Air Inc. We have served North Central Florida businesses with quality comfort since 1998.

Why commercial HVAC specialists are essential for your business

It is easy to think of light commercial air conditioners as nothing more than larger siblings to the ones found in homes. But this is rarely the case. Even if it were, a larger system is already more complex to work on for someone inexperienced with it. The amount of cooling that commercial ACs must provide makes them difficult to service for anyone who has not received special training. Just the horsepower required to run the fan motors makes them significantly different than anything seen in the largest system used for homes.

In general, the design of commercial air conditioners is dissimilar to residential ones. Most home ACs are “split systems” that consist of an indoor cabinet and an outdoor cabinet that connect through refrigerant and power lines. Most commercial air conditioners, on the other hand, are “packaged units” that place all the components, including both the evaporator and condenser coil, into one cabinet that is customarily housed on the roof. These systems require special training to repair and maintain.

Commercial air conditioners must provide comfort for a large number of people; even smaller businesses must worry about keeping a larger number of people comfortable than in a home. Specialists in commercial HVAC technology know exactly how to service air conditioners so they will take care of everyone in a commercial space; this is not work that you can expect from a technician only familiar with home ACs.

With all the strain that your commercial air conditioning in Jacksonville, FL will experience each year, you will eventually need to schedule service for it.

Call Touchstone Heating and Air Inc. today and talk to our light commercial HVAC technicians to arrange for whatever work you need done.

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