Everyone turns on their air conditioners on a daily basis when summer rolls around, and in some areas that’s more than enough to maintain a comfortable indoor climate. Around here, however, humidity can make it much more difficult to keep comfortable. If you have a problem with humidity in your home, you should consider installing a dehumidifier. Let’s take a look at how a dehumidifier can correct your humidity imbalance, and help keep you cool throughout the summer months.
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning Blog: Archive for the ‘Indoor Air Quality’ Category
How a Dehumidifier Can Help Keep You Cool This Summer
Monday, July 13th, 20153 Types of Air Purifiers That Can Improve Your Indoor Air Quality
Monday, June 8th, 2015The air in your home is teeming with millions upon millions of microscopic particles, most of them harmful in large enough doses. Dust, dirt, pollen, germs, mold spores, and the like are all common in homes. These can cause all sorts of health problems, from allergy attacks to illnesses. The best way to get rid of these contaminants is to install an air purifier in your home. Read on for some of the most popular air purifier types that can remove contaminants from your home.
Household Problems Linked to Damaged Ductwork
Wednesday, March 4th, 2015It’s important to understand the vital job that the ductwork performs in your home. For most houses with an air conditioner and forced-air heater (furnace, heat pump), the ductwork is responsible for distributing conditioned air throughout the rooms, as well and drawing air back into the HVAC system to continue circulating it. Without an effective ductwork system in good repair, you won’t have an effective and energy efficient comfort system.
You can rely on Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning whenever you require duct repair in Evanston, IL or other parts of Chicagoland. We’ve been in the business of ventilation and home comfort since 1902, and our technicians are among the best when it comes to taking care of issues with ductwork.
What can go wrong in a home with damaged ductwork
- Low indoor air quality: When ductwork sustains damage that creates gaps and air leaks along it, dust and other contamination from places between walls and under floorboard will start to infiltrate the ventilation system. These unhealthy particles will then end up blown into your air and begin circulating through the HVAC system. These airborne contaminants will trigger numerous health and comfort issues, and can be especially harmful for people in the house who suffer from asthma or allergies.
- A dusty, dirty home: The same particles that will lower your indoor air quality because of damage to the ducts will also lower the cleanliness of your home. If dust seems to always coat furnishings no matter how much cleaning you do, the trouble maybe because of damaged ductwork.
- Higher heating and cooling bills: You don’t want to spend more money to keep your home air conditioned and heated than you have to. But damaged ducts that place too much resistance against airflow will cause your heating and cooling bills to rise, sometimes precipitously. (However, this jump in costs is a good warning sign of ductwork damage that needs repairs.)
- Reduced comfort: If broken ducts are allowing air to escape, it will lower the air pressure in the HVAC system, and the airflow out of the vents will drop. This will cause uneven heating/cooling around a home and comfort in general will suffer until the ducts are repaired.
Please do not attempt to fix your ducts on your own: this is a professional job and requires experienced technicians. For professional duct repair in Evanston, IL, look to a company with more than 110 years of experience: Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning. Give us a call today.
Why Ductwork Repairs Will Save You Money
Wednesday, February 25th, 2015You can’t see most of the ductwork in your home, and that unfortunately makes it easy to forget that it sometimes requires professional repairs. If you start to notice warning signs that you have damaged ducts, such as odd smells coming from the vents or a decrease in airflow, you must contact duct repair professionals right away to take care of the problem.
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning has the experienced team to handle what work you need done to fix your home’s ductwork in Winnetka, IL. We have been in the business of handling home comfort needs for more than a hundred and ten years now, making us one of the best names to trust when it come to your home comfort needs.
The money savings from ductwork repair
Fixing broken and leaky ducts does more than ensure that your air conditioning and forced-air heating system distribute air properly around a home to maintain comfort. Duct repairs will also help you save money.
Ductwork is designed to have an airtight seal to prevent a loss of pressure inside the vents. If air pressure starts to drop inside the ventilation system because of gaps, holes, and breaks along the ducts, it will force the air conditioner and/or heater to work harder. This can lead to a large jump in energy bills, often increasing your costs to heat and cool your home by a third. Broken ducts will also allow in large amounts of contamination that will coat the duct walls and place extra resistance against airflow, another source of energy inefficiency. Once you have professional ductwork repairs done, you will see a substantial drop in your monthly power bills.
Ductwork repairs will also help you save money by lowering the number of repairs you will need for the heater and air conditioner and prolonging their service lives. The less stress a comfort system experiences, the less likely it will start to encounter malfunctions due to wear and tear, and the longer it will last. You don’t want to pay for unnecessary repairs for your heater and air conditioner, and you certainly don’t want to pay to replace a heater or AC years ahead of its time.
You deserve to have an HVAC system in your home that works its best so your family will enjoy comfort and high indoor air quality—and so you will enjoy lower bills. If you think that your ductwork needs professional repair work, don’t hesitate to call Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning to schedule the job. We provide high-quality repairs for ductwork in Winnetka, IL and throughout Chicagoland.
How Custom Ductwork Makes a Difference
Thursday, February 5th, 2015When your forced-air heating and air conditioning system runs into trouble, you may be surprised to learn that the actually heating and AC unit might not be at fault. Sometimes, when a furnace or air conditioning system struggles to perform as it should, or if you notice hot or cold spots around the house, it’s actually due to a problem with the ducts. Ductwork is quite prone to leaks and cracks or unwelcome heat transfer, all of which is often due to faulty installation.
Unfortunately, a large number of ducts suffer from problems because the ducts were never set up properly in the first place. If heat can easily move into or out of the ducts, or if air is not well-contained, your heating and AC system may run into any number of issues. For example, air from your home blows over a cool coil in order to condition your home. The warm air keeps this coil from freezing, so without enough airflow, a frozen coil may drip water into your unit and cause serious component damage.
When heating or cool air cannot make it to your home because of leaks or due to an ineffective duct design, then the system has to work much harder than it should, which means parts wear down well before their time. Many times, your technician will simply repair the damage without attempting to figure out whether the ducts could be at fault.
If you decide it’s time for new ductwork in order to eliminate frequent heating and AC problems, custom ductwork design makes all the difference. A true ductwork professional will do the very best to make sure that no leaks or cracks are present and that they are unlikely to appear in a short time. These technicians will thoroughly inspect your existing ductwork before deciding whether sealing, repair, or replacement is best.
During installation, the technician must make several decisions to make sure the ducts are in an efficient location. They usually try to place ducts in a conditioned space so that heat cannot easily transfer out in the winter or enter the ducts in the summer. They’ll use the right fittings, connectors, and sealants, and try to form the ducts with as few twists and turns as possible for the most efficient pathway for delivery.
At Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning, we’ve been around for a long time, so we’ve seen how poorly-designed ductwork can affect a home. Call us today and schedule an appointment with us for quality custom ductwork service in Lincolnwood, IL.
Signs You Need Professional Duct Repair
Monday, October 13th, 2014People often underestimate the importance of the ductwork in the HVAC system of their home. It’s easy to take for granted that the ducts will stay in good shape no matter what happens, since most of the time they are out of sight–and therefore out of mind.
However, ductwork that sustains damage from corrosion and age, or which received poor initial installation, will have a severe negative effect on how well your HVAC system operates. It can mean a drop in comfort and an increase the contamination that enters your indoor air. When your ducts have gaps, leaks, or bad connections, they must be taken care of with a professional duct repair service to restore their integrity and protect your comfort, budget, and health.
Look to experience when you need duct repair in Northbrook, IL and other parts of Chicagoland: Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning. We have been in business so long that we are only two years younger than the invention of the air conditioner itself! We also offer 24-hour emergency service for your convenience.
Look for These Warnings That it’s Time for Duct Repair
- Hot or cold spots: Broken ductwork will create spots in your house that are the wrong temperature from what you want. If you have the heater running during winter, but certain rooms still feel too frigid, you probably have busted ducts preventing proper airflow from reaching those rooms. The same problem applies in reverse to the summer, when you will notice abnormally warm rooms while the air conditioner is running.
- Strange noises from the ductwork: As air flows through the ventilation system, the ducts will expand and contract with the changes in heat. An occasional “popping” noise when the heater or AC first comes on is normal. But loud rattling and shaking noises that happen continuously are warning you that the ducts are loose or damaged in some way and need repair work.
- Higher utility bills: An HVAC system trying to send conditioned air through leaking or broken ductwork will have to battle uphill to reach its expected temperature. That means the system will draw more energy, and your heating and cooling bills will start to climb. If you notice a rise in your bills that you cannot account for because of increased use or a change in energy costs, you are either dealing with a malfunctioning comfort system or damaged ductwork. Call for HVAC professionals right away.
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning is a full-service company for home comfort, from AC and heater repairs to indoor air quality solutions. We can handle your needs for duct repair in Northbrook, IL: just give us a call at the first sign of trouble.
What Is Aeroseal Duct Sealing?
Wednesday, October 8th, 2014The ductwork in a ventilation system must retain an airtight seal along its length or else it will cause a drop in air pressure from the heater and air conditioner. If your home experiences a decline in comfort due to low airflow from the vents, or if you notice a rise in heating and cooling costs for which you cannot account, the culprit may be a loss of integrity in the ductwork. Fixing leaking and damaged ducts requires indoor air quality specialists armed with the best technology—such as Aeroseal Sealant.
Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning has been in business for more than a century taking care of ductwork in Evanston, IL and throughout Chicagoland. We use Aeroseal to help provide the best service possible for when you need duct sealing.
How the Aeroseal Process Works to Repair Your Ducts
The Aeroseal process is different from most standard duct sealing methods, such as using mastic sealant or metallic tapes. Where other techniques approach the ducts from the outside, applying the sealant to the holes, Aeroseal uses an approach from the inside. This process is faster, more thorough, and can reach difficult to access ducts such as those in the attic or underneath flat roofs.
What happens during the Aeroseal process is that polymer particles are released into the ventilation system after the air inside the ducts is pressurized. The pressurized air escapes through any available opening, and the polymer particles are drawn toward these holes, where they adhere to them and build up until the leak is completely sealed. To make sure the process works, a computer monitors the internal pressure of the ducts until it detects that the leakage had been sealed. This will eliminate all leaks, including many you may not have known about.
Although Aeroseal is an efficient and effective method for duct sealing, not all ductwork or types of damage will benefit from it. The process works best for smaller leaks. If you have more extensive damage in your ventilation system, technicians will use hand-sealing with mastic or metallic tapes to take care of the problem. As long as you rely on experienced indoor air quality professionals for the work, you can rest assured that your ducts will receive the type of sealing they need.
Call Shavitz Heating and Air Conditioning whenever you require repairs for your ductwork in Evanston, IL. We will determine the ideal method to seal up your ducts to protect your HVAC system and your quality heating and cooling.
How Damage to Your Ductwork Affects Your Air Conditioner
Friday, April 25th, 2014If you use a central air conditioning system to cool down your house during spring and summer, then ductwork plays a necessary part in its operation. It’s best not to think of the ducts as a separate unit away from the AC, but as an extension of it. Problems in your ductwork will become problems with your cooling and also with your air conditioner.
At Shavitz Heating & Air Conditioning, we both air conditioning and ductwork services, so we know exactly how the two operate together and the types of maintenance and repairs they need. When you have ductwork damage, such as corrosion, holes, or gaps, call us right away for repairs. Keeping your ductwork in Lincolnwood, IL in good shape is an important part of keeping your air conditioner in good shape throughout the warm season.
What Ductwork Damage Can Do to Your Air Conditioner
There are three key ways that damage to your ductwork affects your AC:
- Reduction in cooling power: When breaks form along the tight air seal of ductwork, it lowers the air pressure inside and reduces the airflow to the vents. You’ll experience a drop in cooling power that won’t disappear until the damage is repaired.
- Lowered efficiency: The loss of air pressure does more than damage the air conditioner’s cooling; it also forces it to work harder, and this puts extra stress on the system. Warm, humid air can also start to enter the ducts, making it more difficult for the AC to reach its target temperature without straining. This drop in energy efficiency will mean higher bills and possibly early repair needs.
- Dust and dirt infiltration: Breaks along ducts usually open onto closed-in and dusty parts of your homes, like between walls and in crawlspaces. Dirt, dust, sawdust, and other debris will be drawn into the ducts, making them dirtier and also threatening to enter the air conditioner’s cabinet. This will cause extreme wear and tear on the components and could easily cause malfunctions.
How to Repair Your Ducts
The secret to repairing your ductwork is to call professionals to do it! It’s difficult to access your ducts on your own, and commercial duct tape is never an effective solution. You will need duct repair specialists to perform testing to find the damaged portions, and then seal any holes or breaks using mastic sealant or metallic tape.
Shavitz Heating & Air Conditioning started in business a hundred years ago, and we’re still around because of the quality of service we provide. To keep your ductwork intact and your air conditioning in Lincolnwood, IL running without a hitch, call our technicians today. We have 24-hour emergency service. Give us a call today to schedule your next service appointment.
3 Types of Materials Used in Duct Repair
Thursday, April 10th, 2014Here in Chicago, duct repair services are standing by to help fix a breached or broken duct. Breaches can create all manner of problems for your HVAC system, from pulling unconditioned air into the system to spreading dust and debris throughout the home. Professionals can seal and repair any breaches in your ducts using a variety of materials. Unfortunately, duct tape is not among them. The shared word in the name leads some people to believe that duct tape can easily be used to fix breaches in their home’s ductwork. Duct tape, however, simply can’t stand up to the fluctuations in temperature, and normally only lasts a few days at the most. Here are 3 types of materials used in duct repair that professionals use to do the job.
- Matching components
Ducts are usually made of fiberglass, sheet metal and similar materials. When a breach occurs, a professional can simple use a shaped piece of material of the precise same composition of the duct itself to make repairs. That ensures that the new material won’t suffer from temperature and air flow fluctuations (or at least no more than the surrounding material). - Duct mastic or duct sealant
This is a kind of paste that can be placed over the breach and used to seal it. Once applied, it hardens in place and seals the breach admirable. Duct mastic works best for small breaches (1/8 of an inch wide or smaller). Larger breaches usually demand a patch. - Sealing tape
As stated above, duct tape doesn’t work for ducts. (We know: it’s ironic.) Instead, rely on tape brands that don’t use a rubber adhesive. Any kind of heat-resistant tape, such as foil tape or butyl tape, can be used. In particular look for any tape that carries the Underwriters Laboratories label.
Even with these materials used in duct repair, you still need the training and know-how to apply them. In Chicago, duct repair services can be provided by Shavitz Heating & Air Conditioning. We have the knowledge and experience to seal your ducts properly, so don’t hesitate to give us a call today!
This is How Ductwork Should be Repaired
Tuesday, January 28th, 2014Ductwork is a key part of your heating and cooling system, carrying conditioned air from a centralized unit throughout the corners of your home. When a breach arises in the ductwork, it can severely crimp your HVAC system’s ability to function. Here in Park Ridge, IL, ductwork can be fixed by trained professionals, which is a good reason not to attempt to fix any of it yourself. This is how ductwork should be repaired.
In the first place, you can’t simply fix any breaches with duct tape or other over-the-counter components. It sounds like a natural fit until you consider the stressors the tape will be under. Ductwork must handle extremes in temperature – hot and cold alike – which break down duct tape very quickly. The same thing happens for other types of sealant. All of that assumes that the layman understands how to reach the damage portion of the ducts to begin with: a situation that usually requires professional training.
Contrast that with a visit from an expert. If repairing the breach is required, he or she can use materials specific to the kind of ductwork you have, meaning that it can stand up to the rigors of your HVAC system. Furthermore if replacement is necessary, an expert can pinpoint the exact type of component you need and size if properly. He or she can then install it with the confidence that comes with years of experience, leaving your ductwork in the same shape it was before the breach.
Ductwork issues can be resolved by the Park Ridge, IL ductwork technicians at Shavitz Heating & Air Conditioning. We know how ductwork should be repaired and we have the trained expert to make sure it happens exactly the way it should. We’ve serviced the Chicagoland areas for over 100 years – four generations of dedicated care – and we pride ourselves on doing the job right the first time, every time. If you’re having ductwork problems and need an expert to fix them, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We’re eager to show you what we can do!