Peaden Air Conditioning, Plumbing & Electrical Blog: Archive for the ‘Heating’ Category

With fall right around the corner, those cool nights and cold temperatures are right behind it. And after a hot summer you’ll welcome the change in the weather and want to be ready to cozy up inside of your home. However, you’ll first want to be sure that your heating unit is working in proper condition and now is the perfect time to test it out so that you’ll know if you need a heater repair. Here are a few signs that it’s time to get a heater repair so that you’ll be ready for those cool fall nights.

#1: It Continually Runs

If your heater is continually running, there is probably a problem. Even when it’s extremely cold out, it should kick on and off from time to time. So when you notice that your heater hasn’t turned off for days, then call in a professional heater repair company to come take a look and see what the problem could be. They’ll guide you through the best ways to care for your heating system, as well as get your unit repaired so that you can enjoy the temperature inside your home. Plus, once the heater is repaired, you’ll find that you save money on your energy bill because it’s not continually running.

#2: It Doesn’t Stay On

Some people will notice that rather than the heater remaining on all the time, it will actually shut off when it doesn’t need to. If you’ve started to see that your heater isn’t kicking on when it should be, then it’s time for a heater repair. Ask the heater repair company what’s normal and what isn’t as far as your particular system goes, and then you’ll know what to look for and will be able to be proactive in calling the experts in for help.

#3: It’s Making Odd Sounds

Heaters will make their own set of noises that are completely normal. However, there are a few wheezing and clanking noises that will alert you when something is up. Don’t ignore these noises because when you call in a heater repair professional right away they can address and correct the problem. But if you let them continue on and still use your heating system, then you may cause more damage that will lead to a higher bill.

#4: It’s an Older Heating System

The older your heating system is, the more repairs it will require. Knowing the age of your heater will give you a good idea of how you should expect it to perform and how often you’ll need a heater repair. You should have your system inspected yearly to ensure that everything is running smoothly and is properly cleaned, as well as take the time out monthly to do a visual inspection and change out filters if your system requires it. Get the experts involved throughout the lifespan of your heater so that they have an understanding of what repairs have been made in the past, and what you can expect from your heater in the future.

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If you need a heater repair now is the perfect time to get one done because winter will be here before we know it! And whether you get a heater repair and want to prevent one in the future, or you have a system that works in prime condition and you want to keep it that way, there are a few steps that you’ll need to follow. Here are some tips to help you prevent a heater repair so you can enjoy a warm indoor atmosphere when the weather gets cold outside.

Know the Signs That Show That Your Heater Needs a Repair

The first step to preventing heater repair is knowing what signs to look for. Start by understanding what is normal for your particular heating system such as sounds, how often you should change the filter, and how the vents work. This way when a strange noise does occur, you won’t be left wondering if it’s normal or not. The same goes with the how much air blows out of the vents.

Change Filters and Pay Attention to the Thermostat

It can’t be stressed enough how important it is to change and clean filters on a routine basis. You can set a timer on your thermostat to ensure that this gets done when it is supposed to. Be mindful of how often you change your filters as well, because while the best rule of thumb is to perform this task every thirty days, each household is unique. If you have pets or a lot of occupants in the home, then you’ll have more dander and may have to change your filter every fifteen days.

Have Your Household Perform Monthly Inspections

You should get everyone in the household involved in preventing a heater repair. Performing monthly inspections for the system to listen to it and make sure the air flow is strong will go a long way. When you want your heater to be working in prime condition, you’ll find these inspections will give you a jump on the situation when a repair is needed. Create a checklist for everyone in your home to follow when it’s their turn to check out the heating system, and be sure they report back to everyone so that the next monthly inspection will know the past performance.

Call in Heater Repair Experts for Routine Maintenance

When it’s nearing the end of the summer, you’ll want to call in the heating repair experts to perform routine maintenance to ensure that you’re ready for the weather that’s ahead. While it can be easy to put off, you don’t want to be stuck when the temperature drops without a properly functioning heating system. Plus, heater repairs that occur in the winter can end up costing you more money because they’ll need to be handled quickly, and in some cases they’ll be an emergency depending on how extreme the weather is and the occupants in the household. This is one phone call that you don’t want to put off, so add it to the top of your list!

Get a Preventative Maintenance Plan

Having a maintenance plan for your heating and cooling equipment is one of the most cost effective yet overlooked ways to prevent repairs. For a reasonable yearly fee, Peaden offers preventative maintenance plans that bring in the pros to inspect and tune up your equipment. This not only keeps your unit running smoothly and cost effectively, but it’s a great way to detect and fix minor problems before they become big ones. Knowing that your equipment is getting regular maintenance can also afford you the peace of mind that you’re doing all you can to prolong the life of your heating and cooling unit.

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What is a Heat Pump and How Does it Work?

When many people hear the phase heat pump they think of a heater. A heat pump is a type of heating and air conditioning system. Heat pump refers to how the mechanism of the system uses a pump to pump refrigerant.

Refrigerant

In order to understand how a heat pump works, you must first know the basics principle of refrigerant. Refrigerant is a fluid that has a very low boiling point that can be manipulated by increasing or decreasing the pressure to absorb heat through phase transition. When these refrigerants change from a liquid to a gas it absorbs a lot of energy or heat. All air conditioning systems have heat pumps that use refrigerant. Air conditioning systems use relationship between pressure and temperature to transfer heat. As stated earlier when the refrigerant changes from a liquid state to a gas state it absorbs heat at a high quantity.  Refrigerants have a low boiling point and they are used because they will boil at room temperature. The boiling point can be altered by adjusting the pressure of the refrigerant allow the system to control the evaporation of the refrigerant.

Cooling Mode

When an air conditioning system is in cooling mode the heat pump, located outside, collects cool low pressure refrigerant, from inside the home.  With the refrigerant in a gaseous state, the heat pump then compresses this gaseous refrigerant and pumps into the high pressure side of the system. Because pressure forces the molecules of the refrigerant to get closer together it also causes the temperature of the refrigerant to increase. The hot, high pressure refrigerant gas then travels through a valve known as the reversing valve.  From the reversing valve the hot, high pressure gas travels to the outside coil which functions as a condenser. A fan blows air over the condenser coils cooling the hot high pressure refrigerant. As the gaseous refrigerant cools it condenses back into the liquid state.  Now in the liquid state the refrigerant bypasses the outside expansion valve by means of a one direction valve called a check valve.  The now cooler high pressure liquid refrigerant travels along the liquid line to the indoor unit where it is forced through the second expansion valve. The expansion valve slowly releases the refrigerant through the coils in the air handler.  As the refrigerant is released it decrease in pressure and allows the refrigerant to start evaporating.  As stated earlier as refrigerant evaporates and changes from a liquid to a gas it absorbs heat at a high rate. As the air blows over the coils in the air handler the heat in the air is absorbed by the refrigerant boiling and changing from a liquid to a gas. As air get colder it has to release moisture.  Because of this the air passing over the cold evaporator collects moister which is discarded and provides dehumidification for the home.  The now gaseous refrigerant is then transported back through the lines to the compressor where the process is repeated over and over.

Heating Mode

When the heat pump system is in the heating mode, the reversing valve reverses the direction the refrigerant in the system. Now the coils in the outside portion of the system function as the evaporator and the indoor coil function as the condenser. The cool gaseous refrigerant travels from inside the home and absorbs heat from the air outside air through same coils that were used to condense the refrigerant in the cooling cycle.  The refrigerant is then brought inside as a gas.  The air handler blows are over the coils containing the gaseous refrigerant.  The gaseous refrigerant releases its heat and cools condenses back into a liquid. This release of heat to the air passing over the coils heats the home.  This process continues as long as possible until the evaporator coils outside ice over.  When the heating mode is in use the outside temperatures are typically very low and because the temperature outside is very low the refrigerant must function at much lower temperatures in order to absorb heat. Because the system operates at a low temperature ice begins to build up on the outside of the evaporator coils. In order to combat this heat pumps have a defrost cycle. When the defrost cycle is turned on the heat pump systems functions like it is in cooling mode.  The reversing valve switches the refrigerant path to that of the cooling mode and the indoor heat is picked up by the refrigerant and used to defrost the outside coils on the evaporator.  When defrost mode is activated the outside fan turns off to help melt the ice on the coils. Because heat is now being transferred from inside to outside, a supplementary heat strip in the air handler turns on to supply the house with heat. Within a few minutes the ice melts and the system continues to operate as normal repeating this cycle over and over.

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