Blog | Puyallup Heating and Air Conditioning Company

Understanding the Role of Insulation in HVAC Efficiency

Your Puyallup, WA, home relies heavily on its HVAC system to remain comfortable all year round. Inefficient equipment can lead to increased heating and cooling bills, decreased indoor air quality, and shorter lifespans. Insulation can enhance the system’s efforts and provide better efficiency and consistent comfort throughout the home. Preventing Air From Escaping It’s common for homes to have a lot of gaps and cracks around windows, doors, foundations, etc. These areas may be small, but they can greatly impact the efficiency of your HVAC system. As conditioned air can escape your home and outside air comes in, this can result in your heating and cooling equipment working harder. Not only will this impact the overall comfort of your indoor air, but it will increase your energy consumption. Adding insulation to your home can result in significant savings on your utility bills. Protecting HVAC Equipment When your HVAC equipment runs more frequently to keep up with demand, it puts additional wear and tear on your furnace and air conditioner components. This often leads to more frequent repair needs. You may even need to procure a full replacement much sooner than you planned. As HVAC equipment becomes strained and ages, it...

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How to Prevent Heat Loss in Older Homes This Winter

Older homes have a lot of character, but they can also come with their share of challenges, especially when winter rolls around. One of the biggest problems in older homes is heat loss, which can make it harder to keep warm while driving up energy bills. Many older homes lack the modern insulation and energy-efficient features that newer homes have, which makes preventing heat loss even more important. In Puyallup, WA, we’re focused on helping homeowners address these issues to stay warm and save on energy costs. Let’s look at ways that you can keep heat from escaping and stay cozy. Search for Drafts and Seal Gaps Older windows and doors are especially prone to letting cold air in and warm air out. Start by walking around your home and looking for cool spots, especially near the edges of windows or under doors. If you find any, it’s time to seal them up. You can use caulk to fill in small gaps around windows and doors. For larger spaces, consider using door sweeps or foam strips to seal the bottom of doors. If your windows are extra drafty, you can add plastic film over them to create an extra layer...

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Why You Need a Professional for Furnace Installation

Upgrading your furnace is a monumental task that often comes with a hefty price tag. With that in mind, you may be tempted to tackle the job on your own to save a few dollars. However, due to the intricacies of a heating system, professional installation is a must. Read on to learn about why you need our Puyallup, WA heating and cooling experts for your furnace installation. Knowledge and Experience Our top-rated technicians have decades of combined experience installing and working with heating systems. Each of our technicians goes through rigorous hands-on training to learn every aspect of furnace services. Without this knowledge, you won’t know what to do if the unexpected happens. Our technicians can provide a new furnace installation without issues, but we are also able to troubleshoot problems quickly to get the new system in place. Safety Now and Later Furnace installation involves connecting electrical and gas hookups for the system to have fuel and power. These connections can be dangerous if not handled carefully. Our technicians know how to precisely handle and connect the utilities to your new heating system, avoiding safety hazards from improper handling. Electrical malfunctions may cause damage to your new system...

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Winter Care Tips for Your AC Compressor to Protect Your Investment

The compressor in your air conditioner circulates and pressurizes the refrigerant and raises the temperature and pressure of refrigerant gas. It plays a key role in your unit’s cooling process. Let’s explore how you can protect your AC compressor during the winter. Lubricate Moving Parts Lubricating the moving parts in your air conditioner’s motor prevents the air compressor from rusting or corroding. It also betters the chance of this key component surviving snow, ice and other winter weather. Inspect the Electrical Components Inspect all of the electrical components for wear and tear and have an HVAC technician repair or replace them as needed before winter. Clean the Outdoor Unit Remove debris like leaves, dirt and grass clippings on and around the outdoor unit as part of your air compressor winterizing. Check for Damage As you clean the outdoor unit, look for signs of wear and tear or other damage like holes or water leaks. Have an HVAC technician make any needed AC repairs before cold weather arrives. Cover the Outdoor Unit Use a breathable material like woven polyester or PVC to cover the outdoor unit and help protect the air compressor for the season. Insulate the Pipes Insulating the exposed...

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How to Prep Your Heating System in Puyallup, WA

Now that autumn is here, many of us are starting to think about the winter ahead. As a homeowner, you need to prepare your heating system properly to take on the cold. We share our ultimate list for prepping your furnace below. Install a New HVAC Filter As we transition to a time when you’ll be spending more time indoors, it only makes sense to replace your HVAC filter. This will ensure that it’s ready to start trapping airborne particles and enhancing your indoor air quality. You never want to run a heating system with a dirty filter, as it can greatly reduce its overall efficiency and shorten the lifespan of your furnace. Schedule Maintenance Service Another must on the list is scheduling professional maintenance service. You’ll likely find that, as part of the warranty contract for your heating system, you must invest in annual maintenance by a licensed HVAC technician. This is a great way to learn about any potential problems that your system may have and give you peace of mind that it’s ready to take on winter temperatures. Switch Ceiling Fan Direction If you’re a homeowner who relies on ceiling fans to help reduce your energy bills,...

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Why You Shouldn’t Wait to Replace Your AC Unit

Your home’s air conditioning system will exhibit signs that mean it’s time to replace the unit. It’s one thing, though, to look for and know the signs you need a new installation; it’s quite another thing to actually go through with the replacement. New AC installations can get expensive, which is a big reason why homeowners put off the service until they can no longer do so. There are four main reasons why you should avoid procrastinating when it comes to getting a new air conditioner. 1. Save on Monthly Utility Costs An inefficient air conditioning unit won’t run as well as it should. It will have to work harder to try and cool down your home in Puyallup to acceptable levels. When your system has to constantly strain to provide your home the comfort it needs, the result will be that your utility bills will increase. An easy way to check for this is to monitor your energy costs during the summer. If your bills keep going up but your AC usage hasn’t increased that much, you may need a replacement system. Because newer air conditioners function much better than older systems, you’ll notice savings on your monthly bills...

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Lower Your Cooling Costs With Professional Duct Cleaning

Keeping your Puyallup home cool can cost you a fortune during the peak of summer, especially if your system isn’t as efficient as it could be. There are many ways you can reduce your cooling costs and keep your hard-earned money in your pocket. Professional duct cleaning is a service that can save you money and should be regularly scheduled to maintain efficiency for your air conditioning system. How It Works Professional duct cleaning targets dust, dirt, and other debris inside your HVAC air ducts. Technicians may begin the process by scoping or visually inspecting your ducts, looking for signs of blockages, gaps, and holes. The technician then uses compressed air to blast contaminants out of your ducts. A high-suction vacuum system attaches to the ends of your ducts to collect this debris, ensuring it doesn’t blow around your home. Experts recommend scheduling duct cleaning once every three to five years to enjoy the most benefits. Of course, you can schedule the service more often if you live in an industrial or dusty area, and duct cleaning can be scheduled anytime if you’ve failed to stay on schedule. Benefits of Duct Cleaning Services Professional air duct cleaning leaves your ductwork...

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How Regular AC Servicing Extends the System’s Lifespan

The average AC should last 10 to 15 years, assuming it operates at or near the designed efficiency and doesn’t experience excessive strain and wear. Discover how maintenance extends your AC’s life, improves performance efficiency, detects problems early and provides better home comfort. Better Efficiency Every air conditioner has a rated efficiency level, known as its SEER rating. Over time, that efficiency degrades, both raising your energy bills and increasing the wear on your system. Consider these three ways that routine maintenance protects better efficiency. Airflow Advantage Your air conditioner functions by circulating air and cooling it in the process. However, the amount of air it circulates slowly reduces over time due to dirt building up in the system and wearing components. When less air moves through the system, it runs less efficiently. One of the major aspects of routine maintenance is a deep cleaning of your system, including the evaporator coil and circulating fan. A professional will test your circulating fan to ensure it’s spinning fast enough to move the appropriate amount of air through the system. Heat Transfer Advantage The air conditioner cools the air by the refrigerant absorbing heat through the evaporator coil. Even with a clean...

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Combatting Poor Indoor Air Quality in Puyallup, WA

Indoor air pollution is among the top environmental health risks facing Americans. This is true even in regions where outdoor air pollution is historically low. Indoors, pollutants can concentrate to very high levels and affect both your short- and long-term health. Let’s look at strategies recommended by organizations like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to combat poor indoor air quality (IAQ). Schedule Seasonal HVAC Maintenance Schedule a cooling tune-up each spring and a heating tune-up each fall. During these visits, your HVAC technician will comprehensively clean your HVAC equipment. If applicable, that includes the evaporator and condenser coils. That deep clean will prevent your HVAC system from negatively affecting your IAQ. Control Dust in the Home The EPA warns that dust is the top concern when it comes to indoor air pollution. That’s because dust is much more than just dirt. It’s a mixture of pollutants absorbing other pollutants and continuing to release them into your air over time. The EPA recommends a deep dusting of your home at least once a week. You may need to dust more often if you live with someone who has asthma or severe...

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Tips for Improving Ventilation in Your Home

The air that we breathe has a big impact on our health. Unfortunately, the air quality in our homes is often poor. There are several ways to deal with that, including ventilation. The air outside of your house is usually cleaner than the air inside it. Ventilating your home brings clean air in and pushes contaminated air out, which keeps you safe. There are many ways to ventilate a home, and the best results come from combining all of them. 1. Use an Air Filter Air filters will not increase the airflow into your home, but they do improve its quality. You have a few options for cleaning incoming air. Your HVAC system will include a few filters. Keep an eye on them and replace them as necessary. The frequency will vary depending on the type of filter and how often you run the system. You may need to replace them every month. When in doubt, follow the instructions that came with your equipment. You can also get an air purifier. These devices excel at eliminating mold spores, bacteria, and other irritants. If you’re interested in installing one, can help you get started. We’ll help you learn about your options...

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