Touchstone Heating & Air Inc. Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Macclenny’

How Can I Improve My Home’s Indoor Air Quality?

Monday, May 16th, 2022
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Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a major topic for residential and commercial buildings today. The US Environmental Protection Agency has identified low IAQ as a significant health threat in the country, with many buildings having air that is 2 to 5 times worse than the outdoor air on average—and it can often get much worse. The source of much of the trouble is the low levels of fresh air circulation through buildings because of tight construction and heavy heat sealing designed to improve energy efficiency. In other words, the better we construct buildings, the less fresh air they get. Progress has a price.

If you’ve heard about the problems with IAQ, you may wonder how you can best protect your family’s health and improve household air quality. We can help: we’re experts in indoor air quality in Macclenny, FL and throughout North Central Florida. We have several tips for how to improve your home’s IAQ, both tasks you can do yourself and professional services we offer. 

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Allergy Season Will Soon be Here: Here’s How We Can Help

Monday, January 24th, 2022
tulips-in-spring

Struggling with allergies? Making improvements to the air quality at home can help. We’ll explain the dangers you may be facing with your indoor air quality, as well as ways we can help you improve the situation.

Allergens

Allergens are substances that trigger allergic reactions. Allergens can be found in the air in an indoor environment. Furniture and floors also absorb allergens. Can you guess what’s in your air? It’s like a mix of bacteria, dust, mold, pollen, and volatile organic compounds—all of which are allergy triggers.

At-home allergy and asthma management begins with the air we breathe at home. Pollen and mold can trigger symptoms when people suffer from allergies. But dust and pet hair can cause the air in your home to be very poor. There is a possibility that the air quality inside your home is worse than outside. According to the EPA, indoor air pollution levels can often exceed 2 to 5 times the levels found outdoors, which is the opposite of what most people believe. Indoor air pollution is among the top five environmental health risks in the country. Most people in the US spend 90% of their time indoors, between work, home, and visiting different places. If you’re worried about air quality at home or need air conditioning in Macclenny, FL, we’re here for you.

Allergy Season

With allergy season fast approaching, it is absolutely essential to keep the indoor air quality up to mark, especially since many children have been home-bound during the school year. The allergy season typically begins in the spring and lasts until fall. However, different allergens appear at different times of the year. In the springtime, tree pollen is the most common allergen, followed by weeds and grasses. May is the worst for allergy sufferers because trees, grass, and weeds all pump out allergens at the same time. This marks the beginning of peak allergy season, which lasts through July. Children and adults alike should avoid being exposed to allergens as much as possible. Avoid being outside when there is a high pollen count.

Getting Control of Your Indoor Air Quality

It’s more important now than ever to maintain healthy indoor air quality. Getting rid of allergens and irritants from your home is the best way to improve your air quality. Lowering humidity also minimizes mold and dust mite growth. A central air conditioner reduces humidity, too. You can now schedule an indoor air quality test with our team at Touchstone and we’ll help you find solutions that will make the upcoming allergy season more bearable.

We offer help installing air filters, air purifiers, and UV germicidal lights, all of which target specific allergens. We’ll find the right combination of indoor air quality devices to give your house the healthiest air possible.

Whether you need help with your indoor air quality or want to start your journey towards cleaner and healthier indoor air, our team of indoor air quality experts is standing by to help.

Call Touchstone Heating & Air Inc 24/7 for exceptional customer service!

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Why Is Your Heat Pump Not Doing the “Heating” Part of Its Job?

Monday, December 13th, 2021
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We love heat pumps here in Florida. They work as powerful air conditioning systems that can keep back the worst of the summer heat. When the few cold days of winter arrive, heat pumps can then shift with little effort into working as energy-efficient heating systems. Compared to using an electric furnace for the short winters, a heat pump is a great way to save on heating costs.

But if you’re reading this post, it’s probably because your home’s heat pump is supposed to be warming your house, and … it isn’t. You may need to call us for heat pump/AC repair in Macclenny, FL (heat pumps work essentially like air conditioners) from our expert technicians to get your heat pump to do both parts of its job. Or there may be a simple explanation. We’ll look into the possibilities below.

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6 Common Causes of an AC Become Inefficient

Monday, September 20th, 2021
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A great air conditioning system does more than keep your house cool. It keeps your house cool without wasting energy. In other words, it runs efficiently

But the same way that an AC can start to decline and provide less cool air, it can also start to become inefficient and waste energy. The two don’t even have to go together: you might still enjoy ideal comfort from your air conditioner yet see a tremendous rise in utility bills. If you have a problem with an inefficient air conditioner, you may need AC repair in Macclenny, FL—or possibly a new air conditioner!

We’ll look at six ways an AC can become inefficient. 

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Explaining the Electric Furnace Efficiency Rating

Monday, January 25th, 2021

money-saving-houseInstalling an electric furnace in Macclenny, FL is a good choice for home heating. Electric furnaces can handle the heating requirements of the mild Florida winters without much trouble, and they’re good for homes without a connection to a gas main. 

We want to address something that’s often misunderstood about electric furnaces in this post, which is their energy efficiency, or specifically their energy efficiency rating. This can help you understand the benefits and disadvantages of using an electric furnace, as well as assist in the future when you’re making decisions about HVAC installations.

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Why Is My Heating System Making My Home Too Hot and Stuffy?

Monday, December 28th, 2020

temperature-gaugeHeating a home in Florida during our mild winters is a bit of a juggling act. We don’t need our heating systems to run every day, through most of the day, as in a cold northern state where the weather is routinely below freezing. We’ll need our heaters on certain occasions and run them long enough to keep away the cool chill of days that are in the 50s. This makes it easy for a heater to get a house too hot and stuffy when it runs. 

If you’re currently having trouble getting your house to the right balance of comfort on colder days because it always seems like rooms are getting uncomfortably warm, then you may need heating repair in Macclenny, FL. There are several possibilities for why you’re having this stuffy, overheated house problem.

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Tips for Controlling High Humidity Indoors

Monday, June 29th, 2020

heat-wave-fanFlorida is notorious for its high humidity, and we can expect to see relative humidity levels over 60% on most days, which is the point where the moisture in the air will have a negative impact on comfort. When you combine relative humidity above 60% with days above 90°F, it can make it difficult to scrape through the day, even with the best and most reliable air conditioning system.

You can improve your indoor air quality in Macclenny, FL with a number of steps and by arranging for service from our IAQ team. Below we have some tips for lowering indoor humidity.

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Your Furnace Is Older Than 15: A Few Things to Know

Monday, October 21st, 2019

furnace-oldOne of the best ways to tell when a heating system is ready for a replacement is basic age. Each heater comes with a manufacturer’s estimated service life. Once the system is beyond that age, we advise you to think about replacing it, even if the unit still seems to function well. It doesn’t mean you should automatically replace it. But it’s time to ask yourself serious questions about the heater’s performance so you’ll know when to pull the trigger on a new system.

Since it’s now fall and you’re preparing for cooler weather, it’s the right point to address the furnace in your home. If you have a furnace that’s older than 15 years (the usual estimated service life for a gas furnace), there are a few important things for you to know.

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High Heating and Cooling Costs? The Ducts May Be the Problem

Monday, February 11th, 2019

inside-corrugated-air-ductWe run our HVAC systems throughout the year in Central Florida, often with the air conditioner running even during winter—and heating systems taking over for a few days here and there. If you keep a close eye on your utility bills (always a good plan!), you should have an idea of what your seasonal heating and cooling costs are, and they should remain steady through the season.

Sudden spikes in the cost of heating and cooling your house when there isn’t an obvious reason for it is often a warning of a malfunction. Your might first think it’s a problem in the AC or the heater. Almost any type of repair need in a cooling or heating system will cause it to drain more money as it runs. But one of the main causes of wasted energy in an HVAC system isn’t located in the AC or heater—it’s in the ductwork. You may not realize it, but the cure for your high utility bills might be professional duct repair in Macclenny, FL from our experts.

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The Simple Step that Makes Your Air Conditioner Live Longer

Monday, August 28th, 2017

technician-changing-filter-ventRegular maintenance, as we’ve discussed before, is key to keeping your air conditioner running smoothly for longer. This is something that should always be handled by a professional technician, someone who knows the ins and outs of central AC systems and can spot AC repairs sooner. Regular tune-ups involve many steps, but not every step of air conditioning maintenance can (or should) be handled by the pros.

Completing this one simple step, once a month at least, can make your air conditioner run better, last longer, and use less energy—meaning that overall, you save!

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