Posts Tagged ‘Cobblestone’

The Benefits of a Well-Insulated Home in Cobblestone

Wednesday, October 5th, 2011

Insulation is a vitally important part of your Cobblestone home. While it is not something you look at or probably even think about much, the amount and quality of the insulation in your home can have a dramatic impact on many aspects of your quality of life while you are living there.

The most basic reason that insulation is important is that it keeps the cold air out in the winter and the heat out in the summer. Without proper insulation at these times of year, your house will be much less comfortable than it would if you had high quality insulation in the right places.

Going hand in hand with this, of course, is the fact that proper insulation will help you get more out of your home heating and cooling system. By preventing outdoor conditions from affecting the temperature indoors, insulation makes it easier for your HVAC system to keep your home comfortable all year round. That means that the HVAC system uses less energy and is subjected to less wear and tear.

And because proper insulation aids in temperature control, it also helps to keep moisture problems from developing. When there is too much or too little moisture in your indoor air, it can have serious consequences, both for you and for your wood furniture and fixtures. Too little moisture will quickly dry out your skin and can make cold and allergy symptoms worse.

Dry air also can make it harder for your heating system to keep your house warm enough to be comfortable and it can take away from the ability of your indoor air cleaner to remove contaminants from your indoor air. Air that is too moist, on the other hand, will make it more likely that mold will develop in various areas of your house.

Mold needs moisture to grow, and it also often prefers dark, warm areas. For that reason, you can have a significant mold problem and not even realize is if the mold is growing in the walls or in crawlspaces beneath the floor.

Proper insulation, however, can keep excessive humidity from becoming a problem and make it easier to create a comfortable indoor environment all around. Some types of insulation can even keep many potential indoor air contaminants and allergens from getting into your home in the first place.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Energy Savings | Comments Off

What Is the Energy Efficiency Rating of Central Air Conditioners and Why Is it Important? A Question From Cobblestone

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

When you are shopping for a central air conditioning system in Cobblestone, you will have to evaluate your options based on a number of different factors. For instance, you will need to decide which type of system is the best match for your home and for your particular cooling needs. It is also important to make sure that the central air conditioner you choose is the right size for the cooling load it will have to take on.

However, it is also very important to evaluate your central air conditioning options based on how energy efficient they are. This will have a great deal to do with how much you pay in terms of cooling costs each month, which makes it easy to see why you should take it into account before you make a purchase.

The energy efficiency of a central air conditioner is generally expressed as a seasonal energy efficiency rating, or SEER. The SEER numbers you will typically find on the latest air conditioning systems range from eight to 19.5 with the higher numbers signifying a more energy efficient model.

So it is pretty easy to figure out that a central air conditioner with a higher SEER will save you some money monthly because it will use less energy to get the same job done. But central air conditioners with high SEERs also typically have high price tags. So to determine how high of a SEER you need, you will need to know more exactly how much more money you will save as you move up in the rankings.

You can do this by comparing the SEER of the system you currently use with the new system you are considering and compare how much your current energy usage would cost you with each model. Basically, you want to pick a central air conditioner that will save you enough to offset the purchase price of the unit.

Often, this means that you will be best off with a SEER 14 or SEER 16 because these units save you a considerable amount over older models without carrying too high a purchase price. However, the amount you save will be directly related to how much you use your central air conditioning system, so if you live someplace that is extremely hot for a large chunk of the year, it may be worth it for you to buy a very high efficiency air conditioning system. If you have more questions about which type of air conditioner will work for you, contact your local HVAC professional.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Air Conditioning | Comments Off

What Are the Benefits of Having a Ceiling Fan? A Question From Cobblestone

Wednesday, August 17th, 2011

There are definitely some days every year in Cobblestone that would be pretty miserable to get through without the benefit of a central air conditioning system in your home. And since you have a central air conditioning system in place, it may seem silly and unnecessary to think about having ceiling fans put in as well. There are actually quite a few benefits of having ceiling fans, however, regardless of what kind of central air conditioning system you have or how powerful it is.

Ceiling fans are not too expensive to put in and they take very little energy to run. But the breeze they produce can have a powerful cooling effect on a room. In fact, running a ceiling fan can make you feel up to eight degrees cooler than you would otherwise.

While this certainly is not enough on a really hot day, it can actually be plenty when the weather is not all that hot. But even if you have your central air conditioning turned on, you can still benefit from running your ceiling fan. That is because the cooling effect of the ceiling fan can allow you to turn up the thermostat for your air conditioner, resulting in a considerable savings on your cooling bill.

Because ceiling fans are so cheap to run, they can complement central air conditioning systems nicely and will provide significant savings over time. Running an air conditioning system alone can certainly keep you cool and comfortable all summer long, but it will also cost you considerably more than if you were to throw a ceiling fan into the mix as well.

And that is not all a ceiling fan can do to help you stay comfortable all year long. In fact, ceiling fans can also be of use in the winter because they help to return the warmer air to the lower parts of your rooms. Warmer air will naturally rise, meaning that your heating system will have to work harder and harder to keep the air in the lower part of your room warm. But with a ceiling fan in place, that warmer air will be re-circulated throughout the house to keep you warmer and help keep your energy bills down at the same time.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Air Conditioning | Comments Off

IAQ – To Zone or Not to Zone my Home Comfort

Friday, July 15th, 2011

There are a lot of decisions to make related to your home comfort system. You must decide what type of heating you want, how you’ll implement air conditioning, and then how to keep all of that heated and cooled air clean and healthy in your home.

On top of everything else, you have the option to implement zone control in your house to provide multiple comfort levels for each member of your family. Zone control systems are growing rapidly in popularity because they allow home owners to enjoy an enhanced level of comfort throughout the day, while not negatively impacting any one person.

For example, if it’s chilly outside and you need to turn your heater on, that doesn’t mean everyone in the house wants the thermostat set to 72°F. There are a few reasons for this. You may be in the kitchen, working over the stove or doing dishes where there is plenty of heat to keep you warm. More warm air coming through vents or radiators isn’t going to make you comfortable.

The second floor of a home traditionally needs less heat because warm air on the first floor rises and fills that space. The same is true in the summer when cool air settles in lower floors. Having a zone control system allows you to set specific temperatures in each room which are then controlled by your home heating system. You can even turn off the heating and cooling in a specific room like your office or the attic if it will be empty for long periods of time.

Other Considerations

A zone control system is good for comfort, but also for the overall air quality of your home. Too much conditioned air moving through your ducts carries more allergens and contaminants into your home and causes your air quality system to work harder. Your ventilation system will be asked to work harder as well.

Ideally, a good home air quality system is designed to use as little conditioned air as possible to keep everyone comfortable. A zone control system does this very effectively. When talking to a professional about a new installation, check to find out about programmable thermostats as well. These can make it easier to set and forget the temperature in rooms that are only used for a few hours each day.

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Indoor Air Quality | Comments Off

What is the COP and Why Is It Important?

Monday, May 16th, 2011

If you’ve been researching air conditioners, you’ve probably seen all sorts of numbers associated with each model. One of these numbers is the Coefficient of Performance (COP). While it’s good to gather as much data as you can before you make a purchasing decision, you also need to know what that data means if it’s going to help you make the best selection possible.

Measuring COP

Calculating the COP for any air conditioning model is relatively simple. The number you see displayed on the box is the ratio of energy input to cooling output. For the most part, the air conditioners you’re probably been looking at have a COP of between 2.5 and 4.0, although newer models are beginning to appear with COPs of up to 5.0.

The higher the COP, of course, the more efficient the air conditioner, so it makes sense to take this number into account when you’re making your purchase. You should also keep in mind, though, that the COP is not a constant measurement. The warmer it is outside, the lower your unit’s COP will be. However, this is standard across all units, so a relative COP comparison is still a viable evaluation method.

If you’re not sure what COP you should look for or whether a lower number will be effective for your home (especially if you only need to cool a small space), you should talk to a professional who can help you match the right COP level to your particular living space.

Improving Efficiency

While it’s always a good idea to get an air conditioner with the best energy efficiency ratings possible, that’s not the only thing you can do to reduce your energy usage and keep your cooling costs down. For instance, there are plenty of ways to keep your home naturally cooler without even turning on the air conditioner.

Even when you do need to flip it on, anything else you can do to reduce the indoor temperature will make it easier for your air conditioner to keep your house comfortable. So put up some awnings, run the ceiling fan and close the blinds to block out that harsh afternoon sun. The more you can do to reduce your indoor temperature naturally, the less your air conditioner will have to do, and the lower your cooling costs will be.

Tags:
Posted in Air Conditioning | Comments Off