Design Comfort Blog: Archive for the ‘Heating’ Category

What to Check If Your Heater Stops Working

Monday, March 14th, 2016

With plenty of cold weather still ahead of us—especially at night—a functioning heater is essential. As all Salt Lake City, UT residents are aware, nobody wants their comfort to be disrupted by a seemingly failing heating system. Your first instinct may naturally be to call for repairs. We are happy to take your call and do offer these services. However before you contact us, check for the following factors to make sure there’s not a simple explanation for your heater not working.

Check Your Power Supply

When a heater stops working, your assumption may automatically be that there’s something wrong with the system, but this might not actually be the case. Perhaps the power switch got turned off by accident. This might have occurred as you were getting other work done to your home. Make sure your HVAC breakers and flipped to the “on” position and check your system again.

Change Your Air Filters

Are your air filters looking particularly dirty? If they haven’t been replaced in a while, they may be clogged and preventing airflow from passing through. As a result, you may notice a lot less power than usual coming from the system.

Check Your Vents

Have you recently moved any furniture or large objects in your home that can be blocking vents? Look around your vents, grills, and air registers to make sure there is nothing blocking them, and to see that there is sufficient airflow.

Check the Safety Switch

Heating systems have a safety switch on or near them. Depending on where your system is located, this switch might have been bumped off by a family member, pet, etc. Be sure to check this before assuming that you need heater repairs.

Let’s say that you’ve checked all the factors above, and/or your heater is showing troubling symptoms. It’s now time to call for a repair. Signs that your system may not be working properly include insufficient or uneven heating, or cold air coming from your heater.

Call our experts at Design Comfort for heating repair services in Salt Lake City, UT.

 

 

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What to Consider Prior to a Heating Replacement

Monday, February 29th, 2016

With a good amount of chilly weather still ahead in Millcreek, UT, hopefully you’ve come across this post before your heater has completely died. You may have noticed some troubling symptoms, though, which has you wondering if it’s time for a heating replacement. However, before you replace your system with a newer version of what you currently have, there are some considerations to make, which we’ve highlighted below. This will help you determine what system will be best for your needs.

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3 Benefits of Radiant Heating

Monday, February 22nd, 2016

Today’s heating system options are abundant. While most homeowners are quick to choose a furnace as their heating method, other options may be better suited for homes in Cottonwood Heights, UT and surrounding areas. Radiant heating systems are an excellent choice, especially in homes being newly constructed.

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When Should I Schedule Heating Repairs?

Monday, February 15th, 2016

As we discussed earlier this month, many homeowners hold a mistaken belief that heating system maintenance is all about the timing. Truthfully, while maintenance is vital to the performance of your system, if it’s being done regularly then the time of the year doesn’t actually matter. What about repairs though? Can certain repairs wait, or should they be taken care of right away?

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When Should I Have Scheduled Routine Heating Maintenance?

Monday, February 1st, 2016

We are certainly well into the heating season at this point. Because you are running your heater quite regularly, you may find yourself wondering: “When was the last time I scheduled heating maintenance?” It can be quite alarming to realize that you didn’t schedule a heating tune-up before the season got underway, but perhaps not quite alarming as you may think. The fact of the matter is that there isn’t necessarily a “right” time of the year to have this service done. If you didn’t have your heater maintained going into this heating season, don’t panic. Read on for some tips about ensuring the successful maintenance of your HVAC systems. 

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Should I Use a Zone Control System with My Heater?

Monday, January 25th, 2016

Now that we are back into the winter season once more, you’ve probably been running your heater pretty regularly. That also means that you’ve been reminded of just how much it costs in order to keep your home warm and comfortable during the coldest time of the year. If you’d like to scale back your heating costs, or if you’re just interested in getting a better performance from your home heating system, give the pros on our staff a call.We have a few different options for you to consider, with one of the best being the use of a zone control system in Holladay, UT

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Why Choose a Hydronic Heating System?

Monday, January 18th, 2016

There are a lot of different ways in which homeowners may choose to heat their homes. In fact, there are so many options available today that many homeowners may struggle in narrowing them down. Fortunately for you, Design Comfort is here to ensure that you are using the ideal heating system for your needs. Whatever questions you may have regarding the heating systems we offer, our team is here to provide you with answers. One option that you should give some serious consideration to is a hydronic heating system. Radiant heating is popular in Taylorsville, UT, and hydronic systems are the preferred option by many. Contact us today to learn more.

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Why Your Heating System Must Be of the Right Size

Monday, January 11th, 2016

With the heating season really underway, you hopefully have a great heater installed and operating in your home already. If you never got around to replacing an old, failing system, though, or if your system has unexpectedly broken down early in the winter season, be sure to dial our number to have it replaced now. Not only do we carry a great selection of heaters, including furnaces, boilers, and radiant heating systems, but we also take every step necessary to ensure that your heating system in Millcreek, UT is a great fit for your home. This means guaranteeing that it is of the right size for your needs. When you work with Design Comfort, you need have no doubt about it.

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How Newer Furnaces Are Improving in Energy Efficiency

Monday, December 28th, 2015

How old is the gas furnace that’s currently keeping your home warm during cold weather? If it’s more than 15 years old, and especially if it’s more than 20, it is definitely time to consider having the unit replaced. This isn’t just a way to ward off a furnace having its final failure at an inconvenient (i.e. freezing) time: it’s a way to improve energy efficiency. Not only is an aging furnace going to require more power to produce heat, but newer furnaces have improvements that have made them more energy efficient than ever. Where the average AFUE rating (an annual energy efficiency measure) of gas furnaces was once 60%–80%, most furnaces score higher than this today—and some even score as high as 97%! That means a furnace that wastes only 3% of its fuel source.

How Do Newer Furnaces Achieve This Increase?

The basic answer is that furnaces are simply better made today than ever before, with improved materials making it easier for them to effectively transfer heat from their heat exchangers to the air. They have also changed over from using a standing pilot light that drains power even when the furnace isn’t on over to using electronic ignition systems, which are not only less drain on power but also more reliable.

There are some specifics that go into the special high-efficiency furnaces currently available. One of these is the second heat exchanger found inside condensing furnaces. The second heat exchanger captures the combustion gas vapor from the first exchanger that would otherwise end up vented outside and wasted. The second exchanger condenses the vapor and draws even more heat from it.

Many modern furnaces have special sealed combustion chambers, rather than the older style known as an atmospheric combustion chamber. A sealed chamber loses less heat to the outside when the burners ignite. As an added benefit, furnaces with sealed combustion chambers are safer and run quieter.

Finally, many newer gas furnaces have multi-stage burners and variable-speed blowers, which means they don’t have to operate at the same power level whenever they turn on. Instead, the furnaces modulate the burners and the blower capacities to match the needs of their homes and to reduce energy use.

Design Comfort offers heating replacement services in Millcreek, UT.

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Should I Upgrade My Thermostat?

Monday, December 21st, 2015

With the coldest weather of the year still ahead of us, you may be thinking forward to the overall performance quality of your heating system. If you want to get a more efficient and effective performance from your system this year than you did last winter, know that you don’t have to completely replace your heating system. You may be able to enjoy a superior performance from the same equipment simply by upgrading your thermostat in Cottonwood Heights, UT. If you think that investing in a new thermostat may be on your agenda this year, contact the professionals on our staff to schedule service. Design Comfort is happy to ensure that you have the ideal thermostat in place in your home.

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