AC Comfort Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Katy’

Join Us at the Spring Katy Home & Garden Show

Friday, January 17th, 2020

katy-spring-home-show-logoIf you’re looking for excellent ideas for your home and garden, we invite you to join us at the annual Spring Katy Home & Garden Show next week: Saturday, January 25 and Sunday, January 26 at Merrell Center. You’ll find hundreds of home design and renovation experts to help you realize your dream projects. Along with the many exhibitors, the show features workshops and seminars from Houston area professionals.

We’re one of the featured exhibitors—you’ll find us in booth #614. Come on by, say hello, and see what we can do for your home comfort!

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The Problems With an Old Furnace

Monday, January 13th, 2020
old-furnace

rustic old furnace

When you look at the furnace in your house, wherever it’s located, do you think that it seems like it wouldn’t be out of place in the ruins of ancient Rome? That’s an exaggeration, but you’ll know an old furnace when you see one, even without looking at its manufacture date.

If you think your furnace is too old, then it probably is. Check the manufacture date on the furnace’s information plate to learn out its exact age. If it’s more than 15 years old, it’s in the range where a replacement is on the table. We recommend furnace service in Houston, TX to replace the heater with a new unit. An old furnace can become a problem … and here are a few of them.

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Excellent Uses for a Ductless Heating and Cooling System

Monday, December 30th, 2019

ductless-mini-split-systemThe spread of ductless heating and cooling systems, also known as ductless mini split heat pumps, has been a huge gift to many homeowners. Not every home can have a standard central AC and heater. Many older homes sometimes only have window AC units and no central heater. Ductless systems allow those homeowners to junk their old ACs and instead have cooling from wall-mounted units around the house, each of which connects through the wall to a single outdoor unit. When the cool weather arrives, these units switch over to heating in a snap.

Below are a few of the best uses for a ductless heating and cooling system installation. If you find yourself nodding at one or more of these, call us for ductless HVAC services in Katy, TX.

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Getting Your House Ready for Winter

Monday, November 18th, 2019

furnace-repair-technician“Winter” for Katy is a relative idea—we don’t have consistently freezing temperatures a snow storms sweeping through, and we don’t bundle up in parkas and worry about scraping ice off the car windshield each morning. That doesn’t mean we completely get to escape cool weather, or that we don’t have to make any winter preparations. It doesn’t take much, but with a few basic steps, you’ll have any winter comfort problems beaten before they arrive.

Let’s get into the basics of prepping for … well, less warm weather.

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Repair or Replace the AC: Why It’s a Tricky Choice

Monday, November 4th, 2019

old-air-conditionerAir conditioners never shut down “for the season” in Katy. They only get less use during stretches of the year. Because we’re entering one of those cooler periods, you have an opportunity to make a big change to your air conditioner if it’s malfunctioning: replace it. You’ll have no trouble managing an AC replacement in Katy, TX with us during the late fall.

But … is the malfunctioning AC ready to be replaced? Maybe it’s worthwhile to repair it. But, if the repair only squeezes another year or two from the air conditioner, that wouldn’t be worth it. And new air conditioners have better efficiency, so you’d start saving money. But a new AC is a large expense, and what if the repair is money-saver and …

Aaaaagh! Help, I don’t know what to do!

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Can I Buy a Used AC as a Replacement?

Monday, October 21st, 2019

air-conditioner-recyclingIt’s difficult, it not outright impossible, to get along in the heat in Katy, TX, without an air conditioning system in a home. Central ACs aren’t low-cost appliances, and immediate finances often present an obstacle when it’s time to have an old system replaced.

This is why it occurs to some people to see if they can have a previously owned air conditioning system installed instead. Buying used cars, books, and furniture are all excellent ways to save money, so why not buy a used AC?

There are plenty of reasons! Installing used air conditioning equipment is an absolute no way. We’ll explain why.

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Dry Air Can Be as Bad in Your Home as Humid Air

Monday, October 7th, 2019

desert-landscapeDuring the summer, high humidity can make the hot weather dreadful. And everyone knows this. A dry heat is much better. Helping to lower high humidity during the summer is why we install whole-house dehumidifiers. If you don’t have a dehumidifier, you’re missing out on better indoor comfort and lower air conditioning bills.

But we’re here today to talk about the other end of the humidity spectrum: when the air is too dry during the winter.

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How Cool Can an Air Conditioner Make My House?

Monday, September 23rd, 2019

frozen-acA residential air conditioner has a straightforward job: remove heat from a house using refrigerant and release the heat outside, cooling down the air inside the house so it can then be spread through the rooms. This process is called heat transfer, in that it shifts heat from one place to another. A good way to think of it your AC is as a pump that pumps out the heat from your house to make you feel cooler.

But how much heat can an air conditioner pump out? What are the limits on how cool your air conditioner can make your house during a heat wave? You’ve come to right place for an answer, since we are a NATE-certified air conditioning contractor in Katy, TX who work with all types of systems.

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Dead Compressor—Does It Mean You Need a New AC?

Monday, September 9th, 2019

compressor-in-ac-unitWhat’s the worst problem a central air conditioner can face? We won’t keep you in—it’s a dead compressor. When you turn on the air conditioning system to cool down your home, and you hear no sound from the outdoor cabinet aside from the fan, the compressor has stopped working. The fault might not be a dead compressor—it could be a failed capacitor or an electrical issue—but it’s a possibility.

The compressor is the literal heart of an air conditioning system. It’s where energy is applied to the refrigerant to make it circulate through the rest of the AC. Without the compressor to turn refrigerant into a high-pressure hot gas, the refrigerant won’t move between the indoor and outdoor coils and cool the inside air of the house.

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When Your AC Starts and Stops Too Often

Monday, August 26th, 2019

air-conditioner-cabinetsDuring a hot summer day in Katy, air conditioners in home put in long hours. You’re used to hearing the air conditioner humming away for long stretches during a 90°+ late summer afternoon. This is normal, although we recommend setting the thermostat as high as comfortably possible. This will reduce the strain on the AC and allow it to cycle down for periods.

However, your air conditioning system should for cycles of 15 minutes or more. When you notice cooling cycles shorter than this, something may be wrong. The AC’s compressor shouldn’t run for less than 10 minutes and then turn back on a short time later and repeat the process. This is short-cycling, and you don’t want it affecting your cooling system.

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