Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning Blog

Month: February 2014

“Sizing” refers to determining how large and powerful a heating system should go into a particular space. To properly size a heater such as a furnace requires knowing the “heat load” of the space to be heated, i.e. that amount of heat required to provide the desired level of comfort. Before installing a furnace in your home in Bellvue, CO, you’ll need to have your furnace sized before you have it put in.

Sizing makes a huge difference in whether a furnace will work well or not. Although it may sound easier simply to pick the largest model possible, sizing requires finding a balance. As we’ll explain, going either too small or too large will cause serious trouble with your home’s heating. For the professional assistance you’ll need to size your furnace, contact Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. Our NATE-certified technicians can do the job right.

Problem #1: The Furnace is Too Small

Most homeowners understand why ending up with an undersized furnace will result in poor heating. If the furnace cannot supply the level of heat needed for a space, it will result in cold spots throughout the house and rooms with insufficient warmth. The furnace will also need to run almost constantly as it tries to reach the setting on the thermostat, so an undersized furnace won’t save you money either.

Problem #2: The Furnace is Too Large

“Come on, how can I have too much heat?” It’s a common error to think that going too large is superior to going too small. However, what happens when a furnace is too large is that it “short cycles”: turns off before completing its full heating cycle because it raises the temperature too fast. Short cycling means extra stress on the furnace, shortening its lifespan and incurring repairs, and it drains extra power because a furnace uses the most energy during start-up.

Prevention: Professional Furnace Installation

There’s an easy way to avoid both problems: have professional installers size your furnace. Using a procedure called a heat load calculation, HVAC technicians will determine the heat load of your home and match it to the right furnace. After this, you can relax and let them take care of performing the installation fast and effectively.

Let Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning be your dependable heating system service in Bellvue, CO. Northern Colorado residents have trusted to us for great heating service since 1934. Give us a call today!

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We understand the importance of carefully budgeting for your company, both in the short-term and the long-term. Perhaps when it comes to installing a new commercial HVAC system for your business, such as new rooftop package units, you’ll want to save money with an amateur contractor who offers you the lowest price available. However, here is a place where apparent savings will soon turn into much higher costs—not to mention employee and customer dissatisfaction with conditions. The same way you would only entrust professionals to handle important outside tasks for your business, you should only entrust commercial HVAC installations to companies with the licensing and the experience necessary to make the work goes fast, accurately, and with high prospects for long-term problem-free operation.

For your commercial HVAC installation in Bellvue, CO, call our contractors at Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. We have been in business since 1934, and our commercial experience is extensive and covers all aspects of heating and cooling.

Why Experience is Important

We would never recommend anyone hire non-professionals for a residential job, but at least the potential for damage from shoddy work in a home is smaller than in a large workplace. Commercial HVAC systems are powerful and must work to heat and cool a larger number of people over a greater space. The ventilation systems in particular are intricate. Proper commercial work not only requires years of training, but it needs hands-on experience to make all the training click together so a technician knows the right tools and repairs to apply to any situation.

There’s also the importance of local health and safety codes: as a business owner, you know your workspace must be up to code. Only experienced commercial technicians will know exactly how to install your new units so they meet health and safety regulations. In fact, in some areas it may be illegal to have amateur installation done at all. Don’t take the risk—fines and a possible business shutdown aren’t worth it. An experienced professional will do the job right the first time so you will have no worries.

You will also need experienced installers to figure out the right size system for your workspace. Sizing any heater or air conditioner is a difficult task, but it becomes exponentially trickier for a large space with many people in it. Trust the experience of a qualified commercial HVAC service to make sure you have the proper-sized HVAC system.

You’ll Find Experience at Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning

Our founding date says a lot about us: 1934. We have always been family-owned and operated, and have passed down experience from one generation to another. You will have a harder time finding a better contractor than Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning for your commercial HVAC installation and other heating and air conditioning service in Bellvue, CO.

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For more than a hundred years, people in countries around the world have marked the 14th day of February as a time for lovers to give each other gifts and for children to write cards to each other and eat heart-shaped candy. But Valentine’s Day isn’t the only important event to occur on February 14th. There are many other anniversaries to mark on this day. Here are a few:

1400 – The death of King Richard II: The same English king whose engagement resulted in the first love poem mentioning Valentine’s Day (from court poet Geoffrey Chaucer) dies in prison in Pontefract Castle after his cousin Henry overthrows him. He probably starved to death, although another famous author, William Shakespeare, would portray his death as murder.

1859 – Hello, Oregon: The Oregon Country is admitted to the United States of America as the 33rd state.

1876 – Who invented the telephone? Alexander Graham Bell applies for a patent for his new invention, the telephone. Another inventor, Elisha Gray, applies the same day for a similar device, sparking a long controversy over who invented what first.

1912 – Hello, Arizona: Continuing the statehood tradition that Oregon established, the Territory of Arizona is admitted to the U.S. as the 48th state. Women are granted the right to vote in Arizona the same year, eight years before the rest of the nation.

1929 – The world’s most infamous mob hit: Unknown assailants shoot down seven people in Chicago, IL. Six of the dead are gangsters in the mob of Bugs Moran, an enemy of Al Capone in the business of selling Prohibition bootleg liquor. No one is ever arrested or charged for the crime—but there isn’t much doubt who masterminded it.

1931 – “I am… Dracula”: The most influential vampire movie ever made, and the start of Universal Studio’s famous monsters series, Dracula starring Bela Lugosi, premieres in theaters. Universal cannily uses Valentine’s Day to promote the film as “The Story of the Strangest Passion the World Has Ever Known!”

1961 – The Periodic Table becomes larger: The 103rd chemical element, Lawrencium, is discovered at the University of California. The name comes from the laboratory where it is synthesized, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

2005 – Now it’s easy to watch funny animal videos: A group of college students launch a video sharing website call YouTube.

Even if Valentine’s Day itself isn’t a major holiday for you, February 14th has many reasons to celebrate—unless you are a member of Bugs Moran’s gang or a supporter of Richard II. All of us at Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning would like to wish you a happy Valentine’s Day, however you observe it.

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The most common method of heating homes is through forced-air systems: heaters that distribute warm air through ductwork and out vents. Furnaces as well as most heat pumps use ducts to provide homes with the warmth they need during winter.

There’s a downside to ducts, however, which is that if they develop contamination from dust, dirt, pollen, dander, or microbacteria, they will contribute to a reduction in the quality of your indoor air. They will also place more strain on your heating system, and this will lead to higher heating bills and extra repairs.

Because some level of dust or dirt will eventually develop in your ventilation system, you should schedule duct cleaning in Wellington, CO regularly or when you find evidence of duct contamination. This is a job for professional duct cleaners using special equipment. For excellent local duct cleaning services, call Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning.

The Stages of Professional Duct Cleaning

System testing: The duct cleaners will open up the cabinet of your heating system and then activate it to see that it is working as expected. They will then shut off the power to the system.

Removing the blower and accessing the vents: The blower unit is what sends the conditioned air into the ductwork. The cleaners will detach the blower to allow them to access the ducts.

Power vacuuming: The most important step in the cleaning process is attaching a high-powered vacuum to the ductwork that applies pressure to the entire network of ducts. Compressed air forces the dust and dirt from the walls to make it easier for the vacuum to draw it in. These vacuums are immense and apply a level of pressure and suction far above anything found in a commercial vacuum. The cleaners will also use special agitation tools like rotary brushes, as well as inspection camera equipment to monitor where they need to apply cleaning.

Sealing the system and testing: Once the cleaning is complete, the technicians will detach the vacuum, reconnect the blower unit, and seal up the ductwork. They finish by testing the system to make sure there are no air leaks and everything is working properly.

Only Rely on Professionals

Duct cleaning is intricate work that involves thorough knowledge of how HVAC systems operate. A “duct cleaning” service from amateurs that is nothing more than putting a vacuum hose through a few vents will not get the job done. Instead, you should contact trained experts with the advanced equipment necessary to do the work right.

Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning takes pride in our services for duct cleaning in Wellington, CO. Give us a call when you need a proper cleaning job done for your ductwork or when you’re looking for other HVAC services in Wellington.

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