3: Maximizing Your Heating and Air-Conditioning System in VS .NET

Painting QR Code ISO/IEC18004 in VS .NET 3: Maximizing Your Heating and Air-Conditioning System

If you re buying a window air conditioner, get one with a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating (SEER) between 10 and 17 The higher the rating, the more efficient the air conditioner is Check with your utility company to see whether it offers rebates for units with high SEER numbers It may have a list of recommended units you can get at a discount You can also buy a stand-alone unit that sits on wheels and move it around your home as you see fit You can use it in the family room during the evening hours and then push it into your bedroom when you sleep When you install your air conditioner, put it in the shade The cooler it is, the more efficiently it will run Fortunately, you can easily do the maintenance yourself: Clean the fins, evaporator coil, fan, condenser fins, and tubes Be sure to unplug it first and don t make a big mess You can use a jet spray to clean out the fins Air conditioners also have filters that get clogged You can replace these inexpensively, or you may be able to vacuum the dust and debris from the filter material Buy a cheap fan comb to straighten bent fins Using the comb to straighten the fins out can make a big difference in the unit s efficiency

In order for any system to be efficient, it needs to be running well and smoothly Sometimes, though, problems creep up that can decrease the performance of the system, especially HVAC systems If your existing HVAC equipment isn t working the way you think it should, here are some of the most common problems that you can solve yourself If you have a combustion system, have an HVAC pro inspect and tune your equipment every few years It pays as these systems are prone to carbon buildups and other soot issues that can drastically affect their performance Heat pumps can work nicely for a decade without being serviced, as can solar water heaters, space heaters, and so on

To work at their peak efficiency, HVACs need adequate air flow That means that the filters must be clean, and the airflow path must be unobstructed When air flow is obstructed, the machine basically uses up the same amount

of power but does less work for that power, and so it has to be on longer to get the same job done You waste energy, and your house is noisier to boot Following are some of the most common problems impeding air flow: Blockage in the air ducts: Construction debris sometimes falls into the ducts, as do kids toys, carpet segments or pads, and so on Small items are easy to remove Larger items can be more of a problem; you may need to pull the duct from the register either from underneath the floor or from the other side of the wall Blocked registers: Something may be sitting over a register, such as curtains, drapes, furniture, toys, or decorations You may not even realize that the register is closed off Or maybe the air is flowing freely, but it s headed in the wrong direction You may be able to add a plastic reflector to aim the air better into the living quarters Loose joints: To repair joints, use aluminum tape rather than duct tape Wear a face mask to protect yourself from the dust, or you ll be sorry about an hour later Dirty coils, fins, and filters: You can take the outer cover off of your condenser unit and jet spray the fins to remove debris and crud buildup If you re still not sure whether enough air is passing through, get your system inspected A blocked return air path: A forced-air system can t heat a closedoff room You must crack the door open or cut an inch or two off the bottom of the door so the air has a gap to move through Louvers work, but they re difficult to use and neither cheap nor easy to install If you absolutely need to close off a room, look into a portable heating or airconditioning unit for that room Too many bends in the ductwork: When this is the case, air has a difficult time passing through Not only are you not getting much air through the maze-like ductwork, but the air you are getting is expensive (because the machine has to work harder to push the air through all the turns) If you can t change the ductwork, consider installing a portable heater or air conditioner and simply closing off the inefficient ductwork entirely