Archive for August, 2016

How Does Dust Hurt Your AC?

Monday, August 29th, 2016

Dust is a part of life here in Portland, OR, brought in whenever you open a door or window and circulating throughout your home thanks to your HVAC system. We often advocate diligently replacing the filters in your system, or buying a formal filtration system to help cut down on the dust. Nothing is more important than your family’s health, and if you have someone in your home particularly vulnerable to dust (infants, the elderly, or anyone with sensitive lungs), then it behooves you to look into the best air filter you can afford. (more…)

Now is the Time to Decide if You Need a New Air Conditioner

Monday, August 22nd, 2016

August is the ideal time to perform a long, hard assessment of your older air conditioner and make a decision about its future. Summer has been running at a high clip for the last few months here in Oregon City, OR and while Labor Day is right around the corner, there’re still a few more weeks of hot weather to endure before things start to cool down. Your air conditioner has likely had to handle the heat on a daily basis, and if its warranty has expired, it may be showing signs of strain. An assessment now lets you determine if your system can go another few summer as-is, or whether it should be replaced before next summer rolls around. That gives you the entirety of the fall and winter to find the best replacement system for you home and schedule an installation according to your timetable, instead of rushing around when the system finally gives up the ghost unexpectedly.  (more…)

Heat Pumps Perform Two Jobs in One

Monday, August 15th, 2016

Late summer is a good time to perform an assessment of your older air conditioner and determine if a replacement is in order once the summer turns to fall. It’s also a good time to evaluate your heating situation before the temperatures drop here in Oregon City, OR. In both cases, you would do well to consider a heat pump as a possible option. Though not right for every home, they offer a number of advantages, including combining the effects of a heater and an air conditioner into one single system, Here’s a quick breakdown about how they work. (more…)

Stay Cool When Your AC Breaks Down

Monday, August 8th, 2016

Hot summers are par for the course in Wilsonville, OR, and a reliable air conditioner can be your best friend when it comes to keeping your home cool and comfortable. No one likes to think about unexpected breakdowns and with regular servicing you can keep such risks to a minimum, but sooner or later, most systems suffer an unexpected shutdown. Once you’ve determined that the problem can’t be fixed by troubleshooting (say by checking the breaker box to see if the circuit break has been triggered), you need to shut off the system and call in a qualified air conditioning repair service. While you wait for them to arrive, it’s very important to stay as cool as you can. High heat is nothing to toy with, and these steps will help ensure you can wait it out as painlessly as possible. (more…)

Geothermal Air Conditioning is Good for the Environment

Monday, August 1st, 2016

You may have hear about geothermal systems in passing, and admittedly, it’s not a system for everyone. But if you have a large piece of property and can pay the installation costs, there are a huge number of benefits to be gained from the geothermal heating and cooling system. It draws upon the ambient power of the earth itself — which never changes temperature once you dig down past 10-12 feet or so. The system merely takes advantage of that fact to provide you with cheap, plentiful and environmentally friendly heating and cooling. Here’s how: (more…)