Smart Thermostat Facts

Our salesman for the security system really surprised us when he told us that he worked closely with an HVAC dealer in town to incorporate full monitoring for homeowners

I am amazed at how far technology has come when it comes to monitoring our lives. If you want, a system can even be controlled remotely from across the world while you are on vacation. We learned about all the possibilities when we installed our new security system last month. The list of items such as locks, lights, and even our heating and cooling system that could be set up and controlled blew us away. With the introduction of WiFi years ago advances in connectivity are amazing. We also have the advantage of voice controlled devices that enable us to check on the safety and warmth of our homes while at the office or just out running errands. This is especially important if you have varying schedules with children and other members of the family. It allows you to save on energy too by adjusting the temperature for times when the house is empty. Now, the concept of all this technology running your home or office can be overwhelming to many people and they may even consider it an invasion of privacy but for us it is perfect. Our salesman for the security system really surprised us when he told us that he worked closely with an HVAC dealer in town to incorporate full monitoring for homeowners. We coordinated appointments with both and we are very happy with the results of the installation of our security cameras and Smart thermostat. We love showing off the capabilities to friends and giving them the contact information for both companies that we worked with too.

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If you have ever attempted to make beer or wine on your own you may not know how much temperature plays a role in the fermentation process and the end results

Did you ever wish you could turn your hobby into a full time job. You know, one that you could actually do and have it pay the bills at the same time. Let me tell you, when you can accomplish this it is the best feeling in the world. I know this because that is exactly what I did. Years ago I started brewing beer as a weekend hobby. Like everyone else I started with one of those kits you can buy and then slowly started developing my own recipes. Now, that hobby has become my passion and my full time job. I have won awards in many local contests and my brews are served in many restaurants too. The expansion of the business meant that I needed a facility to house the vats and equipment. It needed a commercial sized HVAC system to keep my product cool during the brewing and bottling process. I also needed a very strong ventilation system to remove contaminants that could affect the beer. The smallest amount of bacteria in the air could ruin the beer or make it less appealing to consumers. The recipe and brewing conditions need to be consistent in order to produce a quality product. If you have ever attempted to make beer or wine on your own you may not know how much temperature plays a role in the fermentation process and the end results. If the mixture is too warm during the process it can turn, “skunky” or if it is too cold it may not develop the proper alcohol or carbonation. My HVAC equipment is one of the most important things for my business so I had to make sure that it was top of the line.

heating and air conditioning products

Many people across the country suffer needlessly with headaches, sleepless nights, and even dizziness.

These symptoms can all be related to the constant change in barometric pressure. Did you know that a simple appliance that is already in your home. Most homeowners and even those who rent have an HVAC system of some sort in their home. There are many forms of heating and air conditioning but the one thing that they all have in common is the ability to control the climate conditions in your home. They can adjust the humidity levels, clean the air through filtration, and make many of the symptoms non existent while you are home. You may not be able to control the weather or the world around you but you can have your own private sanctuary with the purchase of the right equipment. A simple call to your local HVAC dealer can make that happen. They will even come to your home to assess the conditions and make recommendations that may help you make your home safer and healthier. You may need to make some adjustments and even purchase extra equipment but in the long run isn’t it worth feeling better overall when you are home. Escaping the heat and humidity of Summer or the cold damp weather of Winter and entering your own home where you feel safe and healthy is worth every bit of investment that you may make. If you do happen to catch a cold, the flu, or other illness, the filtration on your HVAC system can help remove those germs so it doesn’t spread to other family members too.

ventilation

A few years ago my neighbor had a small barn built on his property.

He said that it was going to be used for storage and within no time he had it filled to the brim. He had stuff from his parents’ house and his grandparents too that needed to be kept and he said he didn’t want to pay for a climate controlled storage unit any longer. He assumed that the items would be fine so long as they were kept up off the ground on shelves. Many of the items were keepsake ones and photos too. I warned him that the change of temperature from summer to winter and back to summer could damage these things but he insisted that it would be fine. After a year or so he wanted to go through some of the boxes and pass items on to his kids. When he started looking through things he realized that many had mildewed because of the humidity that had built up in the shed when it constantly heated and cooled. This is why his parents had kept the items in a climate controlled space. Precious memories were now lost and items ruined that could not be replaced. I felt bad for him when he told me about it and suggested that he put in some sort of small dehumidifier at the very least to help control the humidity. The barn has electricity anyway so it wouldn’t be hard to do this and it could help to preserve the items that were not lost. Either that, or, he could move all of the stuff into his basement where it would be safe too. Of course he doesn’t want to give up his man cave for that.
air duct cleaning

When my grandmother passed we knew that we needed to clean out the house.

We also knew that this was going to be a huge undertaking because she had lived there for over 50 years and the accumulation of items was immense.

My sister and I were assigned the task of cleaning out the upstairs bedrooms and walk in attic. Seeing as it was the middle of July we were not looking forward to this job because we knew it was going to be warmer upstairs. Grandma didn’t have central air conditioning so we open the windows to try and get a breeze. This worked for the bedroom some selves however the attic did not have any windows. We opened the doorway to the walk-in attic and were met with a wall of stale hot air. I almost choked as I walked in and when we looked around and saw all of the items there was no way we were going to be able to work there without some sort of ventilation. We went downstairs and told my brother what the problem was and he immediately called the hardware store to see if there was some sort of event that could be installed. They suggested that we put in a heat driven vent on the roof and an electric fan vent at the one end to draw out any build up that was in there. We hired a contractor to do both and within a few days the overall feeling of the room was much better. It was so warm in there but at least you could breathe because the air was not hot and stale. Cleaning out the house was a huge undertaking and once that was done we put it on the market.

air purification system

Maintaining the proper climate control in your home is important for many reasons.

The first, and most obvious, is that you want to keep your family comfortable year-round. Did you realize that your HVAC system does far more than that in taking care of you and your surroundings? If you don’t have proper heating and cooling, along with moisture control and ventilation. many things are affected beyond your own personal comfort. Everything from the furniture and woodwork in your home, to the other living things such as houseplants, is affected by the climate in which you live. Having a faulty HVAC system can cause problems that you may not consider such as mold and mildew developing in a climate that is too moist, or your woodwork being damaged by an environment that is too dry. I never realized all of this until I decided to purchase several house plants and had a problem keeping them alive. I went to the Garden Center to ask their advice and one of the first things they asked me was where the plants were placed, and what type of HVAC system I had. The placement I understood however I didn’t understand why they cared what type of HVAC system I used. When I told him that I had a forced air system they suggested adding a humidifier to the rooms that had the plants because they said it was too drying and tended to kill plants instead of keeping them healthy. I would have never dreamed that my climate control could be a problem for something like plants I just figured that if I watered them they would be fine. Apparently the air conditioning that I depend on to remove the excess humidity during the summer was also drying out all the leaves on the plants.

 

new hvac equipment

We have just lived through a storm that can only be described as apocalyptic.

The devastation that surrounds us is unbearable and I am not sure how our area will ever recover. Making matters worse is the fact that winter will be here in just a few weeks and I am not sure how people will survive without heat and electricity. Even those with generators are struggling because fuel is in short supply or so overpriced that they can’t afford it. Basic human needs are all that many are focusing on right now. The storm damaged so many homes and businesses that many are left living out of tents or whatever they can use to make some sort of shelter. Without electric, even the local HVAC repairman can fix the systems for those who were fortunate enough to still have a home to heat. We were lucky that we didn’t have a great loss of life during the storm itself, but, I fear that if we don’t get help soon many lives will be lost due to the elements. I know that people have travelled from many states away to help restore our infrastructure. Even the repair people are surviving on little sleep and we are very grateful for their help. We can only hope that our power is back on soon. Heat is a vital resource during the winter and even if we have to live in a large shelter with many of our neighbors, we will survive and help each other through this very trying time. I only hope that we never have to go through a storm like that again.

 

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When deciding to make a major purchase, most people do the legwork and research each aspect before putting down any money.

I only wish my brother was one of those people. My parents needed to have their HVAC system repaired and he told them that he would find a company to do that. He went with the first company listed on a web search because he figured that if they could spend that much on positioning with the search engine, they had to be a reputable company, right? Wrong! The company just had the resources dedicated to top billing advertising. They showed up to repair our parents HVAC system and ended up telling them that they needed a complete replacement of the system that was only six years old. When dad called to say that they were going to be spending over a thousand dollars on the new heater I was really upset. I knew that this would put a strain on their savings so I decided to do some research on the company they were working with. I asked him to give me a day or so to look into it. After researching online and reading reviews it was clear that many of the customers felt as though they had been taken advantage of. Just because a company has a huge online presence and pays for top billing in advertising doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do the research and check them out yourself before committing to work being done by them. I called my brother with the information that I found and he apologized for not taking more time. He just figured that time was money and he didn’t want to waste his on the computer. I hope he learned a valuable lesson from all of this and at least we saved our parents from a big expense.

portable space heater

As winter is approaching it seems that every other commercial on TV is from one HVAC dealer or another.

I really can’t help but wonder if we should upgrade our homes HVAC system with all the deals that they are advertising.

I am always skeptical of advertising on TV because they can make everything look like it is no big deal as far as replacement goes. Through the magic of television the job only shows the highs and never the downfalls of construction. I decided to do some online research to find out how these companies faired in online reviews. What I found was that these local companies were difficult to find online. Many of them have similar names to ones found in other states so I had to search my zip code instead. The search was still frustrating due to pop up ads from the bigger companies. Eventually, I found the ones I was looking for and when I questioned why it was so difficult to find them, they told me that they only had a small advertising budget set aside for online search engines. I told them how hard it was to find them in hopes that they would realize how big of a mistake it was not to dedicate more to these types of ads. Many people are like myself these days and want to hear from real people about their real experiences. They don’t just go with the guy who has the catchiest TV add or the best advertised deal. We finally decided on a company and went with the upgrade. The online reviews for them were great once I finally found them.

residential hvac

Not only do companies pay for this advertising, but, search engines like Google enlist the help of people who have visited these places to add photos, reviews, and answer questions about these destinations

If you live in even the most remote places these days, you can connect to the internet via wifi or satellite signal. Cell phones are much easier to use around the world to communicate and share information that, even five years ago, would have been impossible. Thanks to GPS signals, we can even take a hike without a map and still reach our destination. This technology is also used in locating people who are lost or injured. Did you know what a key role this plays in advertising as well? When my family and I decide to go on vacation we usually will drive to a new are of the state. We use the internet to find our accommodations and even rent a car, but, once we arrive we want to find the best attractions and restaurants. Advertisers for the connect a GPS locator to their websites to ensure that they are found by passing tourist. When you type in, “restaurants near me”, you will instantly get a list of those who advertise on these sites. This will usually produce a list of the more popular and higher rated places before the unheard of or less appealing places. Not only do companies pay for this advertising, but, search engines like Google enlist the help of people who have visited these places to add photos, reviews, and answer questions about these destinations. This certainly increases the advertisers dollars spent in a way that doesn’t cost them anything extra. Many of the search engines are designed to do just that and advertising with them really pays off in the long run.

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