Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning Blog

December 2016

We could answer the question posed in the title of this post with a simple “yes,” but we’ll give you a bit more to work with than that. Ductless heating in Fort Collins, CO is absolutely worth your consideration. In fact, there are many benefits that ductless mini splits have to offer that more traditional heating systems simply cannot match.

Read on to learn a bit more about why you may want to use a ductless heating system in your home. If you still have any questions, be sure to contact us. We are happy to help you decide if ductless heating is the right option for your home.

Use One System for Efficient Comfort All Year Long!

That just about says it all. Ductless mini split HVAC systems are heat pumps, which means that they are capable of operating as both heating and cooling systems. That type of versatility is a big benefit. Even bigger, though, is the benefit of outstanding energy efficiency.

The ductless mini split is highly efficient for a few reasons. First of all, heat pumps don’t generate new heat. Refrigerant is evaporated outdoors, and absorbs heat from the air outside. Then, that refrigerant is compressed. This further boosts its thermal energy. That energy is then used to heat the air inside as the refrigerant in the system is condensed indoors.

Adding to the efficiency is the fact that ductless mini splits don’t lose any energy via duct leaks, as they don’t use any ducts at all. Plus, you can control each individual blower in the system independently. That means that you don’t have to worry about maintaining one temperature throughout the entire house. All of this adds up to great efficiency.

Contact Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning to schedule your ductless mini split services. Big enough to serve, small enough to care.

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If you use a radiant heating or ductless system, then you are not going to be depending upon your air ducts again until the cooling season arrives once more. If you use a forced-air heating system, such as a furnace or a heat pump, though, then your heating system is still very much a part of your day to day life. You cannot let leaky ductwork go unresolved.

Unfortunately, there is no way in which to guarantee that you will never encounter problems of any kind with your air ducts. When you do, however, there are definitely warning signs that you can recognize and which can give you an early alert. Read on, and remember to let the professionals on our staff handle your duct sealing services in Loveland, CO.

 

  1. Low heating efficiency is definitely something to keep an eye out for. Yes, you are going to have to pay to heat your home. If you’ve been doing so for at least a couple of seasons, you probably have a basic idea of how much it costs to keep your home warm. If you see any inexplicable spikes in your heating costs, despite not using your heater any differently, leaks in your air ducts are likely.
  2. Falling indoor air quality may also suggest that you have leaks in your ductwork. When your air ducts leak, it’s not just air leaking out that should concern you. It’s also pollutants making their way in. When that happens, those pollutants can be distributed throughout your entire home via your air ducts.
  3. Cold spots are yet another sign that you’ve got leaks in your air ducts, particularly if you have hot spots in those same areas when running your whole-house air conditioner. When the ductwork serving any given area of your home is leaking, that area is not going to get the conditioned air it should.

Schedule your duct sealing services

with Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. Big enough

to serve, small enough to care.

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If you expect your furnace to operate truly silently, you’re going to be a bit disappointed. Depending upon the location of your furnace in your home, you may hear it cycle on and off. You’ll likely also hear some sound as the furnace forces hot air throughout your ductwork.

These are what we consider to be normal operating sounds. If you begin to hear what could only be described as abnormal operating sounds, however, you have reason to be concerned. When your furnace in Fort Collins, CO starts making strange and unfamiliar sounds, call our number to have the problem resolved before serious damage is done.

 

  • Scraping sounds are most often the result of metal scraping up against metal. This often stems from issues with the blower wheel in the furnace. It could be hitting the casing as it has come loose from the motor mount, or the wheel itself could be broken and in need of replacement.
  • A screeching or whining noise is usually caused by a loose or fraying blower belt. This is easy enough to resolve for a trained professional, and a minor expense. You could also require more lubrication on moving parts within the system. That is not a big deal either, though ignoring the problem could lead to further operational problems.
  • If you hear a booming or a loud pop when the furnace comes on, you could be dealing with a delayed ignition. Perhaps the furnace burners are too dirty, or there is an issue with the igniter. Whatever the case, you may essentially have a small explosion going off in the combustion chamber. Don’t let this lead to damages or an unsafe operation.

Schedule your furnace repairs with Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. Big enough to serve, small enough to care.

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Now that winter is settling in for another cold season, many homeowners are really scrutinizing their heating systems. This is understandable. After all, you are not going to live comfortably throughout the heating season if you are unable to successfully heat your home. However, there are other considerations to make.

Your indoor air quality in Laporte, CO is equally as important as the temperature in your home. Subpar indoor air quality can not only leave you living in discomfort, but it can negatively affect your health as well. Following are two examples of air purifiers that you may want to consider using in your home.

Electronic Air Purifiers

Many homeowners are just fine using air filters in order to clean the air that circulates throughout their homes. For any number of reasons, though, basic air filtration may not be enough. That is when air purification comes into play.

With an electronic air purifier, you can take a more proactive approach to removing pollutants from the air in your home. There are different makes and models of electronic air purifiers, but the most common include devices such as electrostatic precipitators. These air purifiers give pollutants in the air an electric charge as they pass through an ionization chamber. The pollutants are then trapped on oppositely charged plates, which are easily removed and cleaned by the homeowner.

This is fine for pollutants like dust and dirt, which can simply be removed from the air. Biological pollutants, however, should not just be removed. They should be destroyed.

UV Air Purifiers

Biological pollutants include viruses, mold, and bacteria. These pollutants are living microorganisms, so it is not really enough to just remove them from the air in your home. They are generally too small for effective filtration, but that’s not the only problem.

Because they are living microorganisms, these pollutants can reproduce. If you trap them on a filter or in an electronic air purifier, they can continue to reproduce. Using a UV air purifier, on the other hand, such as ultraviolet germicidal lights, allows you to destroy the pollutants. You can disrupt their biological processes and render them incapable of reproduction. This is a much more effective way of dealing with these pollutants.

Generally speaking, a multi-pronged approach to improving indoor air quality is usually the best. Schedule your IAQ services with Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning.

Big enough to serve, small enough to care.

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If you are working with an HVAC company that does not offer emergency services, then you are working with the wrong HVAC company. It’s just that simple. You cannot plan on when you are going to encounter a true heating emergency during the winter season. If you could do that, there would be no risk of an emergency, right?

We understand that heating problems can happen at any time. We also strongly believe that you shouldn’t have to wait around in discomfort or vacate your home until normal business hours resume. If and when you encounter a heating emergency in your home, give us a call. Our answering service will page a service technician and they will return your call within 30 minutes.

Is It Really an Emergency?

Sometimes, problems may develop with your heating system that seem like an emergency, but which actually have very simple solutions. If you use a heat pump to heat your home, for instance, and that heat pump is blowing cool air, be sure to check that you have it in heating mode. It’s possible that it was accidentally switched back over to cooling mode while adjusting the temperature.

While you’re at it, make sure that you have the temperature set correctly. If an individual unfamiliar with your thermostat tried to reset it, or if a heating program was set up incorrectly, the temperature may simply be set below what feels comfortable. Maybe you’ve only got the fan on, so cool air is circulating throughout your home.

One more item to check is the circuit breaker. Your heater is most likely running on a designated circuit. If it shuts down entirely, you should double check to make sure that the breaker didn’t trip. We really appreciate our customers, but we doubt you want to see us at your home in the middle of the night just to flip a switch.

If there is no obvious cause of the problem, do not hesitate to schedule emergency heating services in Wellington, CO with a member of our team. Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning is there for you whenever you may need us. Big enough to serve, small enough to care.

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