First Choice Heating & Cooling Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Howell’

Why Your Furnace Isn’t Heating the House Evenly

Monday, December 7th, 2020

cold-man-and-woman-in-parkasWhat do you expect from your home’s furnace when you start it up for the season? Heat, obviously! But just plain heat isn’t enough, otherwise you could do well for a house with just a cheap space heater. No, you have a furnace because you want heat distributed throughout your house so all the rooms enjoy warmth. That’s the whole point of having a central heating system.

So if you’ve started your furnace for the season and noticed that not all the rooms are getting warm the way you expect, you may have a problem. It’s possible there’s a simple explanation. Or you may need to call our technicians for furnace repair in Howell, MI to see that you’re getting the heating performance you deserve from the furnace.

We know a little something about furnaces, so we can share some of the reasons that your furnace isn’t providing even heating:

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An Important Winter HVAC Prep Tip: Seal the Ductwork

Monday, November 9th, 2020

duct-sealing-with-caulkingHave you already scheduled heating maintenance for the fall? This is the most important service you can have done to prepare for the winter, since it gives your heating system the best chance to sweep through the winter without problems, no matter how cold the outside may get. The peace of mind you receive from maintenance is well worth it—and you’ll save money on heating costs as well.

But you may need additional service to help your heating system operate at peak level for the season. You may not know if, but the ductwork in your house might suffer from numerous leaks and gapping. A loss of the airtight integrity of the ducts will reduce the effectiveness of your heater and lead to inflated bills. It can even lower the quality of the indoor air.

The way to solve this problem is with professional air sealing in Howell, MI, which is a service we offer. You may not need the work, but if you do, the difference it makes is tremendous.

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Grading Your AC at the End of the Season

Monday, October 12th, 2020

ac-coilsOctober usually means we a break from the heat (although there are always those sudden turns—you can’t take cooler weather for granted until it’s truly winter!). As you get ready for the change in seasons to settle in, it’s a good time to evaluate the performance of your air conditioning in Howell, MI during the previous summer. You can use this evaluation to help make choices about your HVAC system’s future. The big question is whether you think your AC is prepared to keep going next year. If it’s ready to be replaced, then taking care of it during the calmer conditions of fall is ideal.

No matter if you need your air conditioning system repaired or replaced, we’re the trustworthy team for the job. We have almost 20 years of history making homes happy!

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This One Repair Is Common for ACs Over 5 Years Old

Monday, September 28th, 2020

outdoor-ac-unitAir conditioning systems tend to need the most repairs during the last few years of their service lives. This increase in repairs is a warning an air conditioner is almost ready for a replacement. But there are some repairs that can occur when an air conditioner is still less than ten years old—and there’s one that can occur in an air conditioner that has only been in service for more than five years. In fact, it’s one of the more common AC malfunctions, and it’s a serious one.

What is it? Pinhole leaks in the refrigerant lines. And the repair to fix that is to have the lines sealed.

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Your Air Conditioner Might Overheat: 4 Reasons Why

Monday, September 14th, 2020

thermometer-going-red“Wait, my air conditioner can overheat?” You might not immediately think of the air conditioner as an appliance that might overheat, but this is a danger for any mechanical device that uses motors. When your AC overheats, it will cause its circuit breaker to trip, the same as other electrical appliances in your house that are connected to the electrical system.

If you find that your AC is constantly tripping the breakers, please don’t keep trying to run it. Call our technicians to check on your system and find out what’s happening that is causing it to overheat and what we can do to fix it. We’re the Howell, MI, HVAC pros who can get the job done right!

There are several common causes for an air conditioning system overheating:

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Why Your AC Just Isn’t Getting the Job Done

Monday, August 31st, 2020

woman-before-fanWhen the heat and humidity of late summer start their relentless assault on your home and your family’s comfort, you’ll be glad you have a powerful central air conditioning system to man the battlements and keep the invading heat hordes from storming the walls.

Or … not that. As the case may be. You may have an air conditioning system that isn’t getting its job done. It runs, you feel cool air coming from the vents, but the house is still too hot and humid and nobody is happy.

Why is your air conditioning system no longer a partner in keeping the household comfortable? We’ll take a look at some reasons for a faltering air conditioning in Howell, MI and what can be done about it.

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5 Odd Air Conditioning Smells and What They Mean

Monday, August 17th, 2020

girl-pinching-noseWe’ve talked before about the warning signs you need to schedule AC repair in Howell, MI. Your air conditioner gives off different signals when it’s malfunctioning, and strange sounds are the most common.

But strange odors are also a common cautionary sign—and they are also hard to ignore. When these strange odors come from the vents of your central air conditioning system, here’s what they might mean:

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How the Condensate Drain in Your AC Works

Monday, August 3rd, 2020

waterYour refrigerant-based air conditioning system doesn’t use water to cool down the air (that’s what swamp coolers do). But the process of evaporating cold refrigerant in the indoor coils of the air conditioner creates water moisture. So when you hear the sound of water dripping inside your AC, that’s part of the normal process of cooling your home. The air conditioner is getting rid of the moisture that built up.

The way it removes this moisture is with the condensate pan and drain. We’re going to look into this component of your air conditioner, because if it develops problems, you need to call us for air conditioning service in Howell, MI.

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What to Do With a Noisy AC

Monday, July 6th, 2020

air-conditioner-units-near-grassAir conditioners runs using motors and fans, so they can never run silently. However, the construction of standard split system air conditioners removes a great deal of the noise from the house by placing the compressor and exhaust fan outside. Inside the house, most of the sound will come from the indoor blower fan, water dripping from the evaporator coil, and the movement of air through the ventilation ducts.

This is the basic “white noise” of summer—until it isn’t. A rise in sounds from the air conditioner, and this includes a noisier outdoor unit as well, is a problem. And not just because it can be annoying. Let’s look into what can be done about a noisy AC.

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Some Common Thermostat Problems You May Encounter

Monday, June 22nd, 2020

technician-working-on-thermostatThermostats are among the most advanced parts of HVAC systems. Even the simple ones have such an important part to play that no homeowner can afford to overlook the thermostat—especially since thermostat troubles are among the most common for creating comfort issues in a home.

What’s tricky about thermostat malfunctions is that they aren’t always obviously coming from the thermostat. This is one of the reasons it’s important to have a Howell, MI, HVAC contractor on the job when you aren’t receiving the comfort levels you expect from your AC or heater, or if you’ve noticed odd behavior from the HVAC system and a steep rise in energy bills.

To help you recognize a thermostat on the fritz, here’s a list of some of the most common thermostat-based problems you may run into:

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