It’s the first day of spring, flowers are blooming, birds are singing, and the temperature is rising! It’s my favorite time of the year, that is if your air conditioner doesn’t break down.

• This is unfortunately what happened to me.

Of all days, spring’s first day it had to happen? I noticed my house was getting stuffy after enjoying a cup of coffee on my back porch. The thermostat was approaching 80 degrees when I checked it. This was not the kind of weather you want to be stuck in without air conditioning. I called and begged the HVAC company to have a cooling technician come to my house asap. After a few hours, the HVAC tech arrived looking like he was just woken up. It is the middle of the day! His hair was all over the place, his eyes were bloodshot, and he was a bit grumpy. I tried welcoming him but he just wasn’t in the mood and got to my air conditioner unit. After an hour of the HVAC tech working on my air conditioner unit, he told me that my unit was done and I’d need a new HVAC system. He said he couldn’t fix my old HVAC unit and he gave me a number to call to start looking for a new one. So yeah, that’s my first day of spring. I had to deal with a grumpy HVAC tech and found out I was going to have to pay for a new HVAC unit. At least it’s the air conditioning unit, it would be horrible if it was the heater on the first day of winter.

Cooling specialist

Love can drive people to extremes.

Some of us express our love by lavishing our significant other with expensive presents.

For some, it’s installing radiant heated floors exclusively in the bedroom. My husband is an HVAC tech who installed heated floors in our bedroom as a surprise. To be honest, I was a little taken aback when he said he was only putting in heated floors in our bedroom. I was looking forward to seeing what he has in store. I asked him why only the bedroom. He said that is the place where he felt we needed it the most, especially after waking up in the morning. I saw his point, and I was looking forward to having toasty toes during the winter. As the installation began, I had to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. The rest of the house lacked even basic amenities, and here we were, heated floors in one room. It also made me laugh because when we stayed in our bedroom, it felt like we were staying in a five-star hotel. My husband put in countless hours fiddling with the thermostat and heating system to get the floors just right. It was a fun way for us to spend time together, even if I felt it was a silly project. The heated floors are amazing and a welcome addition to our home, well, bedroom. I’m hoping someday my husband will install additional heated floors throughout the rest of the house. I guess until then, I can spend more time in the bedroom. I wonder if he will move the TV in here?

Mini split air conditioner

My friend, Eric and I used to go to the library all the time to prepare for our class tests.

• This one day, the air conditioning unit blasted us with the coldest of air as we walked in.

We both felt our arms getting cold and rubbed them together. Eric, who was always been fixated on HVAC systems, began checking the registers and dials at once. He complained that the temperature in the rooms was too cold. A lot of energy is being wasted, and indoor air quality is probably suffering as a result. I knew he wasn’t going to give up until he found his answer. We took a break from studying, which I didn’t get a chance to do to find an HVAC specialist. We knew that the school had an HVAC specialist on campus so it didn’t take long for us to find him because he is always in the breakroom if he isn’t doing anything. So after finding him, we explained the situation. We explained the situation to him about the air quality of the library and how much it concerned us. Bob just said, “A jacket is something you can try.” It was slightly amusing he would say that but still didn’t like his response. We went back to the library and Eric said, “Let’s check out the air filter.” Eric wouldn’t give up! I sighed silently, realizing this was only the beginning of his fixation on climate control systems. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get back to my studies so I went with him to look at the air filters.

HVAC installation

This past weekend when I visited my brother, I noticed it was freezing inside his home as soon as I entered.

When I asked my brother why he didn’t turn on the heater, he just looked at me with a smile and shook his head, and said, “Funny thing about that.” Apparently, my brother attempted to fix the electric heater himself.

He is a handyman, of course so I would understand why. Unfortunately, things didn’t turn out as he hoped. The electric heater was completely destroyed. My brother isn’t a fool, leaving the house for him without heat was impossible. He called an HVAC company as any reasonable person would. When the HVAC tech showed up, he didn’t realize how much of a mess my brother created and all I saw from the HVAC tech was a shake of his head. The heating tech tried to fix the heater. It was fun watching and my brother was asking a million questions over the tech’s shoulder. I can tell the HVAC was getting a little annoyed because, after a few minutes, he asked my brother for some space so he could concentrate. My brother was a bit hurt by not gaining the knowledge he desired but he did let the heating tech do his job. About an hour or so later the electric heater was fixed. My brother said after that, “Electric stuff is something I leave for someone else to do going forward.” I laughed a bit and agreed with his statement. I, after all, wouldn’t want to have the fire department called because he caused an electric fire.
Duct sealing

They had gone to great lengths to find the most energy-efficient heating technology in the heating industry, and we’re now pleased with their choice

When I first moved into my new apartment, there was a lot to get used to—having come from a house full of people and noise and having to share things and amenities in the place. Now I was in my own space and did not need to share anything with anyone. My father and my brothers had helped me move. It was such an exciting experience. The first thing I think I did when I moved in was switch on the newly installed heating device. The quality of heating that the furnace provided was top-notch. When the HVAC tech from the home services company recommended I purchase it, he gave it such excellent reviews. The HVAC serviceman said the unit would require heating maintenance only once a year. However, the ductwork was not new, so they had to clean it and conduct duct sealing to seal a few leaks before the installation. The heating dealer advised me to get a digital thermostat since it would go well with the unit. The installation process was a one-day event, unlike when my parents installed their heat pump, which took weeks. They had gone to great lengths to find the most energy-efficient heating technology in the heating industry, and we’re now pleased with their choice. I would also not have to worry about heating repair for a while, and with proper care and tune-up, I would not have to worry about breakdowns. My apartment was a cozy little corner of the world, and being an introvert, I spent most of the time in my house.

Ductless multi split

It was the second time I was calling the home services company for heating repair in the same month.

The HVAC tech had even stopped telling me to buy a new heating device, he had told me so many times, but every time I came up with a new excuse.

The worst part was that I had the financial capability but refused to let go of the old furnace. After the repair, I started looking into every heating technology available in the heating industry. I then called the heating dealer to determine how many options were viable. The was so much information on the internet that I barely scratched the surface. Besides the heating device, I also wanted a digital thermostat to replace the analog one. The HVAC serviceman readily empowered me with all the knowledge I needed, and he also introduced the concept of a geo heat pump which was entirely new to me. I fell in love with everything about it, but the installation involved so much, and I was not ready to take on such a big project. The professional was on board with my choice. I am not sure why I held onto the old system when it was always needing fixing; if it was not one thing, it was the other. The next thing was to send a professional to my home to get the correct calculations so I could have the exact figures. He also checked the ductwork, which he confirmed was in good condition due to regular heating maintenance. They would only do duct sealing and cleaning before the new installation.

Air conditioning system

When my mother told me about plans to install a new heating device at the church, I told her I would send the invoice.

I have a home service company installing different systems and running tune-ups on them.

Before installing the new furnace, we needed to assess the current unit’s state and start planning to install the new team. The assessment revealed that the boiler had a blown heat exchanger and could no longer function. The heating dealer was requested to bring a heat pump. The church had contributed toward a fund that helped purchase the new unit in cash. Since there was a series of ductwork in the church, we left them there. We only redid the duct sealing to help conserve energy and warmth within the church. The board had settled on this type of system plus a digital thermostat because the system needed little to no heating maintenance. My HVAC techs took up the installation of the new unit. They took time to locate an ideal location for the unit but finally found a spot at the back of the church. The high unit cost would be mitigated by the low cost of operation since there is little to no heating repair. My parents were fascinated at how much the heating industry had evolved. The new device now had the latest heating technology to notify the owner of any upcoming issue and call for quick action. The installation process took the HVAC serviceman about four hours. The congregation was excited about the new and improved indoor comfort on Sunday. Even though it is a church, we worked very well together, and they paid for every service.

HVAC system

When it’s winter, the last thing I want is the furnace going dead on me.

Over the years, I learned how to prepare myself for winter from the experts in the heating industry.

A factor that has helped me keep up with my scheduling is having the heating maintenance done on the same day every year. This type of scheduling has helped me always attend every tune-up. Last fall, I got super busy around the same time; I scheduled my heating repairs, and the HVAC serviceman called to confirm whether the tune-up was still planned. Another tip is to build a good rapport with the HVAC techs, which can gladly keep your schedule. Alternatively, some home service providers offer packages at a very affordable rate. These packages include scheduling of the tune-ups. It is also essential to visit a heating dealer to upgrade your heating device or a digital thermostat. It helps to talk to the supplier before getting an invoice and budget for any new system. Last year, I budgeted for my new heat pump. It was costly but worth it. If you are fortunate enough to own a system with advanced heating technology, then you know it has alerts when something is incorrect. I can take care of leaky ductwork quickly because of the warnings. Duct sealing is a task I leave to the professionals. I have learned that when you care for these devices, they last longer and do not use as much energy as they would when faulty.

Central heating

I was on my way home from work and the boss called me to help another employee with the last few hours of a boiler and air conditioner installation job.

The boiler and air conditioner installation job was the first one that the employee had done on his own and he was taking quite a long time to finish up.

The guy had some help in the afternoon, but he was still struggling to finish before 8:00 p.m. I told my boss that I would turn around and go back to help the young guy finish up on time. I got off on the next exit of the interstate. I turned around and got on the westbound side of traffic. I was coming down the ramp when I saw someone with a flat tire. I decided to pull over and help the young man. The kid did not look like he was even 21 years old, but he actually looked like he was driving for the first time. The kid was stumbling around trying to figure out how to change the tire. I told the kid to get into the vehicle and I would handle the concerns with the tire. I changed the tire and got the kid back on the highway and less than 15 minutes. The Heating and A/C installation job went actually well and I ended up back home by 9:00 p.m. I got a cellphone call later that evening and it was a lady that was looking for me. I provided the kid my card just in case the tire didn’t make it the whole way home. His mom wanted to thank me for making sure that he got off the interstate safely.

a/c professional

I thought my pollen irritations were disappointing when I was a kid; I was always sneezing and sniffling and during hay fever season my mom didn’t want me to go outside and play.

I was frustrated and sad because I wanted to hang out with my friends.

It was Springtimetime and all of the snow was melted and I was ready to ride my bike all over, then my mom made me stay inside when everything was blooming, and when I went to college, I didn’t have my mom there to tell me what to do and how to keep my pollen irritations from becoming terrible. I ended up at the infirmary one afternoon when I woke up with a big migraine, however the healthcare expert told me that it was likely due to pollen irritations and recommended a few things to help! One thing that the healthcare expert recommended was putting a small indoor media air cleaner in my dormitory room. The college campus actually had some indoor media air cleaners and they were willing to supply me one to put in my room. I didn’t have to spend my savings a deposit, but I did have to sign it out just like a book at the Borders. The air inside of my bedroom is much cleaner and fresher now thanks to the media air cleaner. My pollen irritations are actually getting better and I haven’t woken up with a headache since the media air cleaner was jammed in. Even my roommate is happy with the odor in our room. The guy was smoking pot in here almost every night and now the odor doesn’t stay in the room.

Energy saving tips