Heating and Cooling 101

Heating and cooling are 2 of the most important concepts of home ownership. In fact, heating and cooling systems are major factors for those looking to purchase homes, and are a critical part of living comfortably in a home.

You may frequently hear the term “HVAC,” which is used to describe home heating and cooling systems. The acronym stands for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning–which are the 3 primary functions of a home system. They control air temperature and humidity, and maintain the quality of the air in the home.

Warning DO NOT HOOK UP CHEAP GENERATOR’S to your Furnace when there’s a power outage, especially floating ground generators. They will burn out your control board on your furnace and or more components.

Central Systems

Heating and cooling systems may be classified as central or local. Central heating and cooling is the most standard method, and is defined by a system that produces warm or cool air in one central area and then distributes it throughout the home. There are many types of systems that work as central systems, from traditional split systems to packaged product systems.

Products typically used in central heating and cooling systems include:

• Air Conditioner
• Evaporator Coil
• Air Handler
• Heat Pump
• Unico System – Used in Tight Spaces
• Gas and Propane Furnace
• HEPA filters – Optional
• Zoning rooms – Optional
• Humidifier – Optional
• Dehumidifier (Good for mold control) – Required In Tight Homes
• HRV Or ERV – Required In Tight Homes
• Fan Coil – Apartment or Condo Use
• Single Packaged Products
• Thermostats and Controls

Air Leakage Is The Greatest Cause Of:

• High Energy Bills
• Comfort Issues
• Bad Indoor Air Quality
• Durability Problems
• Poor Performing Homes

WARNING

When your air conditioner is not cooling DO NOT RUN IT, turn it off, and then call us. It will not start cooling again, your just wasting electricity and damaging your system. And if your system stops then it starts again, then have your system checked out. If you don’t, your system may freeze over, then when it starts thawing; water can leak into your home. Also you can cause more refrigerant leaks, because of the frozen coil and or compressor to overheat and lockup or burn out. Then you need a new system.

Heating System

Heating systems keep your home warm and comfortable. If you live in a particularly cold climate, the function of your heating system is a high priority.

Most central heating and cooling systems are classified as forced air systems, because they send air through ductwork for distribution. The ductwork can contain products that filter or clean the air.

Radiant systems create heat and deliver it using components such as radiators that distribute the heat into the home. Boilers are a traditional radiant heat source.

Typical heating products include:

• Air Handler With Electric Heat
• Heat Pumps
• Gas or Propane Furnaces
• Fan Coils – Apartment or Condo use
• Boilers
• Single Packaged Products

Cooling System

Whole-home air conditioning systems are central systems that rely on ducts to deliver cooled air throughout the home. An air-conditioning system provides cooling, ventilation, humidity control and even heating (if using a Heat Pump) for a home. Air conditioning units cool refrigerants like Puron Refrigerant and Freon and deliver them to evaporator coils, which dissipate the refrigerant and blow cool air into ducts for delivery throughout the home.

Products such as room air conditioners are local cooling options for smaller areas within homes. Instead of delivering cooled refrigerant to a coil and then to ductwork, a room air conditioner contains all the components in a single unit and blows air directly into a room.

Air-conditioned homes often have sealed windows, because open windows would disrupt the attempts of the control system to maintain constant temperature.

Typical air conditioning products include:

• Heat Pumps
• Central Air Conditioners
• Evaporator Coils
• Single Packaged Products

Specialty Products—Ductless Split Systems

As the name implies, a ductless split system does not rely upon air ducts to route treated air through your home or office. Instead, these specialty products are added for a specific room, such as a home theatre, an exercise room, a garage, or other room where adding ducts is impractical. These comfort systems can supply heating, cooling, or both, and are a split-system in that the condensing unit sits outside your home while the indoor unit sits unbotrusively on the wall to control and direct the airflow. These Carrier systems are full-featured and couldn’t be any easier to operate.

Typical Ductless Systems:

• Heat Pump Systems Will Heat Home @4 Degrees Below Zero or more
• High-Wall Systems
• Under-Ceiling Systems
• Cassette Systems

Air Conditioning Retrofit Guidelines

R-22 is an ozone-depleting refrigerant used in older air conditioning units. The EPA recently mandated that the production of R-22 be phased out by 2020, after which no new R-22 will be made or imported for the United States market, the cost of this refrigerant has been go up. This doesn’t mean you need to replace your system if it still running and has no leaks, if you don’t want to. The energy savings (SEER Rating) with a new system in time will pay for its self.

The main replacement refrigerants are R410A or R407C.

WE Offer: If Your On A Budget (If its still available): Air Conditioning Retrofit. R407C is for condenser replacement only, but using old coil (If the old coil leaks we can replace it with a R407C coil). Then later on you can replace furnace or air handler with coil.