HVAC FAQ

Air conditioners are measured in "tons." A 1-ton HVAC system is the equivalent of 12,000 BTU/H. Depending on the spatial layout of your home and the insulation quality of the house, you can expect every ton to cool between 300 and 800 square feet of space. Although tonnage estimates are good for initial pricing and product research, the only way to know for sure if the system is a good size is to have the home professionally evaluated by a Denver HVAC technician.

"Does an Air Conditioner's "SEER" Value Matter?

SEER stands for "Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating." Although some air conditioners have simple EER values, seasonal values are more accurate because they measure how efficiently a cooling system will operate over an entire season according to Energy Star, a service of the EPA and U.S. Department of Energy. SEER values are important because a more efficient air conditioner will waste less energy over time, leading to decreased electricity bills. When comparing central air conditioning units, look for a SEER rating of at least 15.

Is Central Heating better than installing a heat pump?

In terms of efficiency, water transfers energy at a much higher rate than air although radiant heat has been found to be more comfortable for the human body than warm air heating from a heat pump. A weak heat pump will generally only heat one room, using fan forced air, where as a central heating system can heat the whole house with a radiator system.

Why Have Your Air Ducts Professionally Cleaned?

Contaminants in your Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning (HVAC) system can aggravate asthma and allergies. Duct Cleaning can help eliminate bacteria and fungus to improve the air quality in your home. Cleaning your air ducts can protect everyone in your home from breathing contaminated air. Cleaning your air duct system can help maintain a cleaner home, requiring less dusting. Cleaning your air duct system helps your HVAC system run more efficiently, resulting in less run time and lower heating and cooling bills. Cleaning your air duct system can also extend equipment life. You should consider having your ducts cleaned if there is substantial visible mold growth or any other physical contaminants inside sheet metal ductwork or on other components of your heating and cooling system.

What should I do if my Pilot Light goes out?

Pilot lights do go out occasionally. Some people even shut them off in the summer. Every homeowner should know how to light his or her pilot so you do not have to call a Denver HVAC technician. It isn't too difficult and there are usually instructions printed on the equipment itself. Many of today's systems don't have a pilot light, they use spark or electronic ignition. Always follow the instructions on the appliance before anything else. Turn off furnace, boiler, or water heater at thermostat or power switch. Locate the gas valve and turn knob to "pilot" position. Hold down the red button, which sends gas to the pilot burner.At the same time hold match to pilot burner. Continue holding button for 60 seconds. Now let go of button, pilot should stay lit. If not, you need to call for service. Turn gas valve knob back to the "on" position.Turn on appliance, turn up thermostat, main gas should light. Remember to put back metal cover if your system had one. If your pilot light goes out more than once a season there could be a problem.
How often should I change my air filters?
For best performance of your system your air filters should be changed every three months although this depends on the conditions in your home. If you have to dust your furniture once a week then you should stick to the quarterly filter changes. You can tell when to change an air filter by inspecting the back side of the filter, any dirt or discoloration on the back side indicates the filter is fully loaded and is releasing dirt into the air stream.
Will a programmable thermostat really save me money?
Generally, as with anything, this depends on how it is used. The more you set the thermostat to adjust the temperature above or below your standard setting, especially when you expect to be out, the more you save. Adjusting the temperature just a couple of degrees while your sleeping will save you money alone but if your home is unoccupied during the day then the savings can be substantial. You can expect a basic programmable thermostat to pay for itself within the first year under the best circumstances and easily within two to three years in circumstances where the adjustments are minimal.

HVAC tech Motivation

In Colorado, HVAC engineers are members of a unique, specially recognized group. They belong to an international society for all individuals interested in precision climate control. They also conduct social work during the weekend to better the surrounding community. The society specializes in furnace repair in Denver for underprivileged and lower income families. It allows exchange of knowledge and experiences for the benefit journeyman appliance workers in Denver heating repair. They provide many opportunities to participate in the development of Denver air conditioning via, for example, the installation of air conditioning products in single Denver Heating and Air conditioning prides itself on paying union wages.

In lieu of profits some companies promote from within and offer free healthcare benefits with participating providers. In certain states, these courtesies are not extended to the common shop worker in air conditioning and heating profession. However, each employee that is hired for Denver furnace repair undergoes a strict 3-year background check. Local Building Permits are closely followed by Denver Heating contractors in public properties. Members are doused with the flame, which is a corporate tradition in which newly initiated employees are roasted from head to to with a localized propane torch to induce adherence to corporate guidelines. Some HVAC companies are looking at new ways to motivate their workers also offer a critically acclaimed employee assistance program for weigh loss to qualifying Denver Air Conditioning associates who have been with the company for 6 months or more.

One way techs get educated is through case examples and parables of employee behavior. One common education tactic is to take the employee through the refrigeration control system troubleshooting checklist. This is useful more for education, as modern refrigeration boards consist of solid state transistors. In such a case contact your Denver HVAC supplier to get a computer tech on the job. For older systems, this step by step ac checklist is a good confidence builder for air conditioning virgins. No matter how complicated a schematic is, control systems can only have a few outcomes from a given set of parameters. They can control: compressor or condenser fans, evaporator fans, line solenoids, or maintain a desired temperature. Whatever the component is, a great motivating tactic is to trace back the circuit to the switch that controls it. Once the tech sees where everything goes, his HVAC karma will be at one. If a solenoid drops to a set point the evaporator fan will run continuously. This simple solution should be evident once you have a trained HVAC technician.

Building Commissioning and HVAC Certification

Building commissioning is the process of ensuring all building HVAC systems work properly through one year of verification and documentation. Any large commercial HVAC system will need proper commissioning to ensure all systems are safe, working properly, and will pass Denver HVAC certification standards. Systems must work interactively with the owners according to the original design and intent to get this certification. Different jobs may have different levels of commissioning. Originally, the commissioning process was just making sure the building matched the original engineering specifications. Today, especially in socially conscious areas like Denver HVAC systems are often trying to achieve green building standards. Proper design and implementation can now save money as builders are trying to obtain tax breaks and increased sales through Green recognition. Not only in areas of efficiency, building commissioning is now holding contractors to a higher standard in electrical, health and safety systems, as well as overall building structural integrity. Commissioning is now involved in every aspect of the construction process, from design to training the operators of building systems. For green cities like Denver heating repair is not all that hard to accomplish and maintain standards. Those without HVAC contractors aware of green standards will have a harder time trying to commission a green building.

This is called total building commissioning. Obviously this adds cost to the project, but it also adds value to the property and may save money over time. The owner of a project will assign various responsibilities to the commissioning team based on trust and the difficulty of the project. The team may work with the HVAC contractor or with the owner.

A specialized commissioning engineer will work with your HVAC contractor in Denver from the beginning. A schedule of equipment testing will be worked out to determine when which piece of equipment will meet certain Denver heating and air conditioning standards. The commissioning team should review all documents to look for inconsistencies or flaws that could effect construction. Different commissioning plateaus will be assigned based on product arrival documents, proper function and testing. A large commercial HVAC job may even require factory testing before and at instillation. Training of operators should also be documented to insure they can operate all the functions of the building. Proper testing validates overall building design by testing functionality in various scenarios. Operating procedures for the use of equipment is a step in the commissioning process that helps ease the transition from construction to a fully functional site. The commissioning process is helpful from the heating contractor in that everything is documented. Any problems that arise later should be easier to identify, and liability will no longer be on the contractor.

Replacing a Thermostat: Wiring Colors

Replacing thermostat by yourself without a Denver HVAC technician can be pretty harrowing if you do not hook up the wiring correctly. Inside of the thermostat there are several terminals which must hook up with the right wires. The R-terminal is the thermostat's power. R means Red, the Colorado heating repairman should have red wires going to this terminal. This power comes from the transformer. The transformer is usually in the condensing unit or the air handler in a split system. Because they are supplying power, it is a good idea to kill the power to both the condenser and the air handler before working on the thermostat.

The RC terminal is the power for cooling. Some large HVAC systems have two transformers, one for cooling and one for heat. In such a case, the power from the ac system goes to the thermostat terminal. A jumper can be installed between RC and RH for a single transformer heating and cooling system. The RC terminal is also red.

The RH terminal is the heating power-in. This is also red and can be jumped to the RC.

The Y terminal is yellow and goes to the compressor relay. Some Denver HVAC specialists use a terminal board strip on the air handler control board which makes splices not needed. Y2 is usually light blue and is the code for a second stage cooler. If you do have two compressors, both should work off the same thermostat. Most Denver heating and air companies do not need the cooling of a two stage company.

W is the heating terminal. W is for white terminal. This should go directly to your heating source, whether it be a furnace or boiler. W2 is for second stage heat and is usually brown. This is for gas furnaces with low and high settings. Heat pumps use W2 for auxiliary heat.

G is for green and goes to the indoor blower fan relay.

C is for Common, and does not have a specific color although black is seen frequently. For digital thermostats that consume power, the common wire is necessary to complete the 24 volt circuit.

Orange "O" and "B" Blue are for heat pumps. Rheem and Ruud heat pumps use the B terminal for the cooling reversing valve. Other HVAC manufacturers use the O terminal. Trane, Lennox, Goodman, Ducane, Heil, Carrier, Fedders, Amana, and Janitrol are normally hooked up to the O terminal by HVAC contractors in Denver.

E is for emergency heating. This has no standard color but should be wired to the heating relay or E terminal strip board.

S1 and S2 are for outdoor air sensors. This has no standard color, but should use a shielded wire to reduce interference and the possibility of water damage from outside.

Warning: These colors are the defaults. The person wiring the thermostat could have used unconventional color coding.

Identifying Shoddy HVAC Ductwork

The Uniform Mechanical Code states that all duct work should be rugged enough to stay together and not leak. Support is a big part of durability, because ducts are not made to be structurally sound by themselves and will cause damage and leaks without proper support. Make sure you have the proper permits when you hire a Denver HVAC contractor to replace or repair your heating and air conditioning system.

A proper permit will protect you when your inspector finds shoddy ductwork. Often ductwork is overlooked by Denver air conditioning and heating installers, so more than likely, there will be some sort of problem. Specialty HVAC companies in Denver test commercial ductwork. They work with engineers to balance the design with the original HVAC parameters. For commercial HVAC jobs, the contractor will usually not receive full payment until the system passes these test. A good Colorado heating and AC contractor will not be hesitant about inspections and permits. If it is a good job, the inspector will validate your HVAC contractor's work.

If your inspector does not do a thorough job, consider hiring an independent HVAC contractor to inspect the work. In areas susceptible to flooding, the mechanical code asserts that the ducts be sealed from water. This ductwork is usually made of hard sheet metal sealed at all joints. Wet insulation will fall apart and expose ducts to moisture. In Denver HVAC systems that are wet can corrode and cause damage from mold an mildew. These problems can be harmful to your health so inspect your system and make sure there is a vapor barrier.

Do not make me reiterate: Duct tape is not for ducts. Duct tape is the number one sign of shoddy heating and air conditioning work. Duct tape specifically made for central air designs works O.K., but in reality, duct tape was not made for ducts and does not hold a seal for long enough. It was originally used in World War 2 to seal ammo containers. The name was changed to duct tape after the war to find a use for this handy tape. New HVAC certified duct tape should have an aluminum backing.