Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning Blog

Month: August 2014

It can be a challenge to find one temperature that works for everyone in your home, but that’s what has to happen when your air conditioning system operates from a single thermostat. After a summer of struggling to find that one temperature everyone can agree on, it may have occurred to you (possibly more than once) that it would be great to have a system allowing for different temperatures in different areas of your home. You can do this – with a zone control system installation in your Loveland home.

Zone control systems offer some great benefits, as we’ll outline below, but to gain these benefits, it’s important to hire a professional for the air conditioning installation. Since 1934, Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning has been helping customers with all their air conditioning needs, and we can help you with a zone control system.

What Is a Zone Control System?

A zone control system uses a series of motorized dampers to control the flow of air in your supply ducts. The dampers are wired to the main control panel To maintain the temperature, the dampers open and close as needed.

What Is a Zone?

Zones are anything you want them to be – individual rooms, a group of rooms, a wing or floor of your home – as the homeowner, you determine what the zones will be.

What Are the Benefits of a Zone Control System?

There are multiple benefits to installing a zone control system:

  • Customized comfort – each zone operates independently, allowing you to set a different temperature without affecting another zone.
  • Energy efficiency – with a zone control system, you can turn off the cooling to an unused area; the system allows you to cool only what you need, which can save you both energy and money.
  • Less wear on your AC – when you use less cooling, your air conditioner runs for less time. This can help reduce the level of wear and tear on your system.

Call Fort Collins Heating and Air Conditioning to schedule a consultation about installing a zone control system in your Loveland home.

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Ductless mini split systems were originally developed for commercial use, but they have become increasingly common in U.S. homes during the past two decades. Ductless systems work by using a series of blower units that are mounted in rooms throughout a home, each which connects to an outdoor unit through refrigerant and power lines. Instead of sending cooled air from an indoor cabinet into ventilation shafts to distribute conditioned air, a ductless system sends the cooled air directly from the blowers.

There are many benefits of these systems: zone control, cleaner air, space saving.

For more information about ductless cooling in Loveland, CO, call Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. We can help you find out if going ductless is your top option for comfort.

The best situations for ductless mini splits

First, there’s almost never a situation where a ductless system is not an option. If you have space to mount the blower units in your home, you can have a ductless mini split installed. However, there are some scenarios where they are particularly excellent choices:

  • New home construction: Going with a ductless mini split means you don’t need to worry about constructing an intricate ventilation network for a new home that includes return vents and numerous branches running through the walls and ceilings. You will not only save room in your new home, but you will have more freedom of choice for designing it since you won’t need to take ductwork into account.
  • Add-on rooms: If you aren’t building a new home but adding onto your current one with a new bedroom, a study, play area, etc., then a ductless mini split can help you avoid problems with your current central AC. You won’t need to replace your current HVAC system with a larger one to accommodate the additional space, nor will you need to rework the ventilation system to connect to the new room. You only have to add a ductless mini split for the new space, and you’re done!
  • Remodeling: During an extensive indoor remodeling job on your house, you can have the old ductwork removed to give you more space, and then install a ductless system to replace it. This is the best opportunity for adding on ductless cooling to a home that has pre-existing ductwork.
  • Old and historic homes: Homes over fifty years old often were not constructed with a central air conditioning system in mind and so that do not have room for ductwork. Instead of using inefficient and inconvenient window units to cool down an older house, you can choose to have a ductless mini split installed. This may be the only option if you live in an historical house and are limited in the amount of remodeling you can do to it.

Even if it turns out that ductless cooling in Loveland, CO for your home is not the ideal choice, the experts at Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning can find the right alternate system. We have eight decades of experience keeping homes in Northern Colorado comfortable, no matter the season.

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Spring of 2014 Fort Collins Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc. celebrated 80 years in business! This anniversary was a special one for this family owned business that dates back to 1934. Fort Collins Heating and Air Conditioning has a long history in Fort Collins and has been family owned and operated for 4 generations dating back to 1964 when Hollis Frank and his son Vic moved to Fort Collins and purchased the company then named Fort Collins Sheet Metal Co. The name was later changed to Fort Collins Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc. in 1996 when Glenn Frank, grandson of Hollis Frank purchased the company. “It was sort of like starting over at that point” says Glenn describing how his Grandfather had retired several years prior to this acquisition after his father Vic Frank had moved on from the family business due to disagreements on the future of the company back in the early 80’s.

Currently the company is led by Glenn Frank with his father Vic Frank playing a key role in the company for the past 17 years. Glenn’s son Jesse Frank also joined up in 2012 after graduating from Fossil Ridge High School as a lead installer. The company culture really has a family feel to it and considers everyone on the team a part of the Fort Collins Heating and Air family that is proud to be the premiere heating and air conditioning company serving Fort Collins and surrounding areas in residential & light commercial HVAC sales & service. Glenn said “I am humbled and honored to be leading this company at this stage, and I am very grateful of the ground work that was laid before me along with the loyalty we have with both our employees and customers. I would not be here if it were not for all of them.”

With this announcement, we would like to thank Fort Collins and the surrounding communities for their support. We focus on customer satisfaction and we could not have gotten this far without you. We look forward to continuing to offer you the best in HVAC service in Fort Collins for years to come!

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If your air conditioner has been struggling lately, you may not be sure whether replacement is the best option. You’ve had your air conditioner for many years, but it may seem too late in the summer to purchase a new one. However, older systems are more likely to break down with little warning, and it is often more expensive to replace a broken down air conditioner in the spring than to replace your unit now.

When you decide on air conditioning replacement, a technician measures your home and takes into account many factors to help you choose the perfect system. Air conditioning replacement is a great opportunity to have peace of mind knowing you will need fewer repairs and that your new system is energy efficient. If you need reasons to schedule replacement today, we’ve put together a list of some of the benefits of replacing an older system now.

Fewer Repairs

A new air conditioner will likely need fewer repairs than an older one. If you simply patch up frequent major repair needs by replacing or repairing parts individually, you may spend more money overtime than you would spend purchasing an entirely new system.

Reduced Risk of Sudden Breakdowns

An older air conditioner is far more likely to fail suddenly than a new system. Purchasing a system and choosing professional installation gives you peace of mind knowing that you will have a high-performance system that may not break down or need major repairs for years to come with proper care and maintenance.

Energy Efficiency

Finally, an older air conditioner usually has worn down parts that may cause the system to work harder to cool your home. This uses more energy, costing you significantly, but a new air conditioner won’t have this problem. You can also ask your air conditioning technician about the ENERGY STAR program. This distinguished label marks systems that meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s strict guideline for high efficiency and performance.

For professional air conditioning replacement in Loveland, trust the experts at Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning. Give us a call today!

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Air cleaners, both mechanical and electronic, can do a great deal for your indoor air quality. But when it comes to biological pollutants like bacteria, viruses, mold, mildew, algae and fungi, mechanical and/or electronic air cleaners may not be able to capture the biological particles you need them to. A great solution for not just removing, but eradicating, biological pollution is the installation of UV germicidal lights in your Loveland home.

What Are UV Germicidal Lights?

UV germicidal lights are lamps that emit UV-C rays. These types of rays destroy the DNA of biological particles, which not only kills the particles but destroys their ability to reproduce. So, unlike air cleaners, UV lights don’t capture biological pollutants: they destroy and eradicate them.

What Can UV Lights Do?

  • Stop mold and mildew growth inside your AC
  • Eliminate odors
  • Destroy VOCs (volatile organic compounds)
  • Generate negative hydroxyl ions, a natural compound that helps destroy pollution
  • Kill bacteria and viruses

The effectiveness of UV germicidal lights is virtually unmatched, as they kill over 99% of the pollutants that come into contact with the rays. They are easily installed and can be placed in a number of locations throughout your system, including the evaporator coils and the ductwork. The cost to run UV lights is minimal, about 1 cent per day.

Limitations

UV lights do not filter anything; as such, they do not capture and remove particles like dust, dirt or pollen. This is why it is highly recommended that UV lights be paired with an air cleaner so that your air is both filtered and purified. In addition, micro-organisms must be within site of the UV rays in order to be affected.

Maintenance

UV lights last about a year, so it is recommended that they are changed every 12 months regardless of whether or not they are still working. They can also attract dust, so you may need to wipe them off every few months to maintain their effectiveness.

If you have concerns about biological pollutants affecting your health and indoor air quality, it may be time to consider the installation of UV germicidal lights in your Loveland home.

Call Fort Collins Heating & Air Conditioning today and schedule an appointment with one of our air quality installation experts.

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