Barron Heating AC Electrical & Plumbing Blog: Archive for the ‘Energy Star’ Category

Energy Saver 101: Home Performance Assessment

Thursday, March 2nd, 2017

Having a qualified and experienced inspector perform a Home Performance Assessment is the first step to determining how to best prioritize efficiency upgrades and ultimately save you money on your energy bills.

You may have heard these referred to as Energy Audits, or some similarly negative phrase that leaves a bad taste in your mouth. Instead of looking at this as an anxiety-inducing inspection (thank you, IRS), we find it far more accurate to think of HPAs as a tool for big-picture analysis of your home’s indoor air quality, potential energy-loss areas, evenly-heated rooms, and other issues. Home Performance Assessments are done to better your family’s well-being and safety. We’re on your side!

Your home is likely the biggest investment that you will make; getting a Home Performance Assessment can ensure it operates efficiently, comfortably and safely. A Home Performance Assessment can result in utility bill savings between 20 and 50 percent–with the ever-rising cost of utilities, the potential savings grow each year.

Through utility bill analysis, infiltrometer testing, thermographic imaging, duct leakage and repair, indoor humidity and moisture control, combustion gas analysis, weatherization services and IAQ analysis, a Home Performance Assessment is the best and most comprehensive step for you to take towards saving money and improving your home.

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Posted in Drafty, Duct Analysis, Ductless Heat Pump, Ductless Heat Pumps, Efficiency, Energy Audit, Energy Efficiency, Energy Star, Home Performance Assessment, IAQ, Weatherization, Windows | Comments Off on Energy Saver 101: Home Performance Assessment

How important is a “Home Energy Checkup”?

Wednesday, January 20th, 2016

Only if you believe that a “leaky home” can waste money

And you should! Whether you are heating or cooling your home, leaky homes can waste your hard-earned dollars!

The best way to evaluate your home is to have it professionally tested. Home energy assessments, home energy audits and home energy check-ups are all pretty much the same thing. The important element is to choose the right type of professional contractor to perform any one of these evaluations of your home.

As explained in this video from the U.S. Department of Energy, a home energy checkup is a series of tests and inspections to help determine how your home can be more efficient. Finding the source of inefficiencies in the home will help you understand how you could be wasting money. It is common to find problems in most homes like:

  1. insulation
  2. trap doors/access doors to attics
  3. lighting
  4. appliances
  5. dirty filters
  6. leaky duct work
  7. airflow and sources of air leakage in the home

The good news is that all of these problems areas can be fixed! Many times, homeowners are tricked into purchasing new heating or cooling systems that can cost thousands of dollars. But it is quite common that a new system is not what the homeowner needs. What’s worse is that the new system will not operate as efficiently as expected because the true source of inefficiencies in the home have not been addressed. It is common that homeowners can save more money in the long run by doing a little bit of investigative work on the front end.

So why wait until those energy bills start adding up?

You may also be interested in:
Solving Drafts (and Other Common Problems) with Duct Repairs
The Importance of Sealing Attic Penetrations 

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Posted in Blower Door Testing, Community Energy Challenge, Energy Audit, Energy Efficiency, Energy Star, Fuel Costs, Heating, High Efficiency, Home Improvement, Understanding Energy Efficiency | Comments Off on How important is a “Home Energy Checkup”?

Which is the BEST HVAC brand?

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2015

Government and utility consumer protection authorities unanimously agree that your satisfaction depends much more on picking the right contractor than a particular equipment brand.


One question we are asked time and time again is “What brand of furnace or air conditioner should I buy?”

Once a homeowner becomes more informed about the secrets of the HVAC industry, they always realize that the brand question is almost irrelevant.

Regardless of brand, today’s equipment is very well made. Modern air conditioners and furnaces are similar to modern televisions. It’s almost impossible to buy a bad TV nowadays. All the major brands make really excellent products that rarely break down. Like a TV, modern heating and cooling equipment is also very well made and dependable.

Unfortunately, the comparison stops there. When you buy a TV you can take it home, unpack it and plug it in. While a TV works right out of the box, a central air conditioner, heat pump or furnace must be very carefully selected and installed in order to work as the manufacturer intended. It can’t be just plugged in. Unfortunately for consumers, the installing contractor is the weak link in the chain.

A replacement HVAC system is NOT a plug-in appliance. It is much more like a home renovation project – which depends much more on the contractor than on the renovation materials used.

Government and utility consumer protection authorities unanimously agree that your satisfaction depends much more on picking the right contractor than a particular equipment brand. Energy Star says a good contractor:

  1. Will ask lots of questions about how the old system performed, and what you are hoping the new system will do.
  2. Will measure and inspect your home and recommend the right size system for your home.
  3. Will inspect or test your existing air duct system, explain the possible impact your old ducts will have on your new equipment, and provide upgrade options.
  4. Will explain multiple options for equipment efficiency, comfort and noise reduction features, warranty – and brand.
  5. Will install and commission your new system properly to best industry practices.

Buying a new heating and cooling system is a big investment – both upfront and long term due to utility and repair costs. Invest the time to become an informed consumer. Focus on the contractor and their business practices, not on the equipment brand or brands they happen to prefer and recommend.

If you are in the market for a new system, give us a call. We’d be happy to come out and chat about your needs, and explain how we follow the best industry practices so that you are 100% satisfied!

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Posted in 100% Satisfaction Guarantee, AFUE, Air conditioning, Ductless Heat Pump, Energy Efficiency, Energy Star, Furnaces, Installation, PTCS, Understanding Energy Efficiency, When to Replace | Comments Off on Which is the BEST HVAC brand?

Heating Your Home with Radiant Heat

Tuesday, December 17th, 2013


Wouldn’t it be nice if you could somehow have even heat spread out across your home, instead of heat coming out of a vent? There is a way to accomplish this goal, and it is called radiant floor heating. You may have heard of this type of heating but known little about how it works or how it could be of benefit to you. However, this method is gaining in popularity rather quickly.

So what is radiant floor heating? Described in its simplest form, radiant floor heating allows heat to be distributed directly to the floor of a home. This means that heat literally comes up from under the floor in an even fashion. Of course, this is in stark contrast to other heating methods, which may force heat out of vents at different points throughout your home. Homeowners who dislike the uneven nature of heated air flowing from vents will most definitely be intrigued by what radiant floor heating can accomplish. There are three types of radiant heat for floors, which include radiant air floors, electric radiant floors and hot water radiant floors. [1]

A common way for radiant floor heating to work is through piping placed under the floor. This piping brings the heat directly to the rooms and areas where it is needed. The end result is quite surprising for those who have never experienced it before, as the heat provided is far more even than other alternatives.
Not only do most people find radiant floor heating to be more comfortable, but it is also generally seen as a serious energy saver too. [2] Radiant floor heating is more efficient, in part, because heated air is not sent through air ducts. [3] Air ducts represent a major loss of energy efficiency and radiant floor heating bypasses this problem altogether. The end result will be a more efficient home and lower energy bills.

Another significant benefit to radiant floor heating is that the heating system is essentially out of sight and out of the way. This makes it a great option for homeowners who are looking for a clean look.

Adding to the cost benefits of radiant floor heating is the fact that the equipment lasts for a long time and is quite durable. Moreover, radiant floor heating can be integrated into existing systems as well, meaning that you don’t necessarily have to buy a new heating and cooling system.

Experts look on radiant floor heating favorable due to its energy efficiency, but many also feel that it also has some safety benefits as well. Radiant floor heating can contribute to helping wet floors dry faster since the heat is reaching the floors directly. This is something that other forms of heating just can’t accomplish.

If you are looking to get even more out of your heating dollar, it also is important to make sure that you have installed the proper home insulation. ENERGY STAR estimates that up to 20% of heating cost can be saved by adding sealing and insulation.

There are many, diverse benefits to radiant floor heating and, as a result, it is no real surprise that this type of heating is getting more attention. Those looking to make the most out of their energy dollars will want to explore this interesting option that is full of benefits.

Sources

  1. http://www.energysavers.gov/your_home/space_heating_cooling/index.cfm/mytopic=12590
  2. http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/article/0,,1548320,00.html
  3. http://www.energysavers.gov/your_home/space_heating_cooling/index.cfm/mytopic=12590

Content Courtesy of WellHome.com

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Posted in Energy Efficiency, Energy Savings, Energy Star, Radiant Floor Heat, Safety | Comments Off on Heating Your Home with Radiant Heat

READY FOR THE TEST?

Tuesday, October 1st, 2013

To make the process of having a Home and Duct Performance test as smooth as possible, you can follow the steps below.  Many of the steps can be done in the days leading up to your test while ‘for safety reasons’, you might want to wait unit we arrive (or just before) to handle others.  Hopefully you’re as excited as we are about learning what your house has to tell us about its Health, Comfort & Efficiency.

Watch the video.

  • Visit BarronHeating.com/service to see the 6 minute video that explains the whole home and duct performance test process. Doing this will save us valuable testing time when we are at your home and may answer questions you have.

Take the Comfort Check-up Survey.

  • Also at BarronHeating.com/homeperformancesurvey is a quick 3 minute survey regarding how you experience comfort and air quality at home. The answers you give will allow me to dial in to the opportunities that are most valuable to you as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Locate your electric and natural gas utility account numbers.

  • Your account number may in some cases give us the ability to pre-approve you for certain utility rebates.

Open up all the interior doors.

  • This allows for the natural air flow of all zones of your home during testing.

Clear access to all the registers (aka grilles).

  • In order to measure duct leakage I will need to access all the heat and return registers with a piece of equipment that needs about 2.5 feet of vertical clearance. Any that we can’t get to will be masked off and not used for the test. This will not affect the accuracy of the results.

Check to make sure the filters in your return ducts are relatively clean.

  • These will be located either at the grills in the home or in a box attached to your furnace.

Make sure all windows are closed.

  • We don’t want to measure your house leakage with a hole like that in your wall.

Make sure any wood fireplaces are cleaned out and closed as much as possible.

  • This includes closing the flue.
  • Do not build a fire in the fireplace in the 24 hours before the test.
  • When the house is under pressure, it is possible to pull a small amount of ash or chimney debris into the home if we haven’t properly sealed its path.

Turn all gas appliances, such as fireplaces and wall heaters, to “OFF”.

  • I will take care of the furnace and the water heater if necessary, but you know how to operate the appliances in your home better than I do.

We will be double checking that all these conditions have been met before we begin the testing process, but anything that can be done before we arrive will allow for more time sleuthing and discussing solutions.

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Posted in AeroSeal, Blower Door Testing, Duct Analysis, Energy Star, Home Performance, Home Testing, PTCS | Comments Off on READY FOR THE TEST?