Carney All Seasons Blog: Archive for June, 2012

What’s it Like to Work With Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling?

Friday, June 29th, 2012

Customer Review | Lansdale | Carney Plumbing, Heating & Air ConditioningA wonderful customer details their experience with Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling .

“I called to get estimates for a heat pump and an air conditioning unit. Joe Hill came to our home to assess our needs. Within a few days, he called to ask whether or not we would like to have a back-up heat option in the event of choosing a heat pump. He said this would require an upgraded circuit box. I told him I didn’t want the back-up heat, and he put together the proposals for both a heat pump and A/C soon after. I believe I received an email with both proposals within a week of Joe’s first coming to our home. Before I received the proposals, I called Joe with questions regarding duct work as well as financing. He answered all my questions completely and assured me that we would be much more comfortable in our home regardless of which option we selected. When we decided to use Carney to meet our climate control needs, Jose contacted us to begin the application process for financing our purchase. This process took a couple of days, and Jose answered further questions we had regarding financing. Another associate called us to schedule installation, and within about a week of letting Carney know we were interested in their services, a crew was here to begin installation of a Trane XR15 AC system. The crew removed our old heat pump and installed the new system over the course of 2 days. They had to make a slightly larger opening in our ceiling to get the new unit in our attic. But before they did this, they asked our permission. They explained that without doing this, they would have to use a smaller and less efficient unit. They covered the opening in the ceiling with a cut-to-fit piece of foam, and they cleaned up each day before they left. They explained the operation of the thermostat to my wife and left the written instructions with us. They also provided us with the paperwork for financing. We are now much more comfortable in our home during the hot summer weather. I would definitely recommend Carney to anyone with climate control needs. Thank you.”

We provide top quality heating, cooling, plumbing services in Bucks and Montgomery Counties in Pennsylvania. If you are looking for a service provider in the area, call Carney today for all of your plumbing and HVAC needs.

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HVAC Guide: Saving Energy This Summer

Monday, June 25th, 2012

Everyone wants to make their home more energy efficient, it not only saves you money but it also makes your home more environmentally friendly. Upgrading your Hatboro HVAC equipment is a great place to start, but it can be hard to decide what to do first.

Before you start making changes, ask yourself the following questions:

How much do you spend on energy?

Paying attention to your energy bill from month to month is very important. A sudden spike could indicate a problem with your Hatboro HVAC system or other appliances in your home. If you start trying to embrace an energy efficient lifestyle, your energy bill can help you keep track of how well you are doing.

Are there benefits to this upgrade?

In addition to being energy efficient, you should discover if there are any other ways that a change can benefit your home. For instance, a new air conditioner could make your home more comfortable, or zone control could make it easier to keep every room in your home the desired temperature. You’d be surprised how many energy efficient upgrades can really improve your whole home and not just your energy bill.

What is your budget?

Budgeting is never fun, but it’s important step to figuring out what you should change first. While it would be great to replace your air conditioner and furnace for ENERGY STAR rated models, it’s a big investment. You can try the little things first, like improving you insulation, repairing air ducts, and sealing air leaks. After you have saved up and improved other parts of your home you can work on replacing your HVAC equipment.

Improving the energy efficiency of your home will make it more comfortable and lower your utility bills. If you have any questions about energy efficient upgrades you can make to your home, call Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling today!

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How to Choose a Water Treatment System

Monday, June 18th, 2012

Choosing a water treatment system in Fort Washington is a process that takes research and education in order to make an informed decision on what is needed and the best system for a given job.  Before diving into the details of the process it is ideal for consumers to educate themselves on the quality of the drinking water which is being supplied to their home or business.  Identifying contaminants which should be removed from the water allows for a necessary base knowledge-base which will help in identifying water treatment systems that treat the specific contaminants which need to be removed.

Water Treatment Technologies

Drinking water treatment systems utilize a number of technologies which are available, each technology focusing on producing a particular result by running water through it.

  • Filtration:  Separates undesirable elements from water by use of a layered absorbent medium such as carbon which keeps larger particles in the water from flowing through the membranes while still letting the water through.
  • Softeners:  Reduces the amount of hardness—calcium and magnesium—in the water, and replaces those ions with sodium or potassium.
  • Ultraviolet Treatment:  The use of ultraviolet light to disinfect water and reduce the amount of microorganisms present in water.
  • Reverse Osmosis:  Removal of large molecules and ions from water by applying higher pressure to one side of the membrane, then pushing the water through the selective membrane, leaving contaminants behind.
  • Distilment:  Boils water and collect the vapor as it condenses, leaving behind heavy metals but allowing some contaminants to remain which easily change to gasses.

Water Treatment Devices

In order to choose a water treatment system which is appropriate for your Fort Washington home’s needs, have a look at the water treatment devices which are currently available on the market.

  • Point-of-Entry System:  The purpose of this whole-house system is to treat a majority of the water which passes into a residence.  Some water softeners are POE systems.
  • Point-Of-Use System:  Water is treated in batches and delivered to a single tap such as an auxiliary faucet mounted next to the kitchen sink.  Within the POU system are a number of options such as the personal water bottle, pour through pitchers, faucet mounts, counter-top manual fills, counter-top connected to sink faucet, plumbed-in to an existing faucet, or plumed-in to a separate tap.

Once you decide what your water treatment requirements are, how extensively you want your water treated, and what contaminants you want to focus on eliminating, it will become quite easy to choose a water treatment system which is right for you. For help choosing the right system, give Carney Plumbing Heating & Cooling a call today!

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What Are Thermostatic Expansion Valves?

Monday, June 11th, 2012

The thermostatic expansion valve, sometimes known as a TEX, TEV or TXV, is a critical piece to influence the efficiency of your Blue Bell air conditioning and refrigeration units.  A tiny sensor controlling the evaporating phase of process, the valve can have a big effect.

Cool air is manufactured by a re rapid movement of a refrigerant between liquid and gaseous states.  Compound chemicals that are able to do this at a low temperature are compressed and expanded, absorbing and releasing heat at different points along the way.  The TEV controls the flow of the refrigerant into the evaporator coils according to the temperatures of the various ingredients.

Cool Air 101

To condition air, the refrigerant, most often freon or another fast acting, low temp compound, evaporates into a gas that runs through a coil and absorbs heat.  Passing through a compressor, the freon condenses under pressure back into a liquid again and releases the heat, becoming cool enough to chill a party.

Too much freon in the evaporator tube and the pressure is not low enough to expand to gas and absorb heat, working inefficiently for no gain.  Too little freon and the conversion is also ineffective by not reaching the density needed to condense.

There are four types of valves with different benefits for different types of cooling environments.  With its ability to adjust minutely to changing conditions, the thermal expansion valve creates the perfect mixture of pressure and freon for more complicated systems.

At the Starting Gate

An interactive device, the valve senses the evaporator pressure and temperature and adjusts the flow of the refrigerant so as to maintain a given “superheat”, the differ­ence between the refrigerant vapor temperature and its sat­uration temperature.  By controlling superheat, the TEV keeps nearly the entire evaporator surface active while not permit­ting liquid refrigerant to return to the compressor.

Some valves operate on an electrical impulse from sensors that can measure the temperatures.  Others are open all the time.  The thermostatic expansion valve actually utilizes the pressure between the two sections to open or close itself, regulating flow based on the very same pressure it is designed to moderate.

Like the buildings they comfort, Blue Bell central air conditioning systems are varied and diverse.  There are nearly as many thermostatic expansion valves as there are units to receive them. Call Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling today if you need any air conditioning service in the Blue Bell area!

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Air Conditioning Q/A: Why Is My Air Conditioner Not Cooling?

Monday, June 4th, 2012

Your Lansdale air conditioner can run virtually trouble free with just a little maintenance annually.  If these little things like changing the air filter and cleaning the drain are not done regularly, the neglected units can really lose their cool.

The Basic Course

Through a process which involves the rapid evaporation and condensation of chemicals called refrigerants, air conditioners use compounds that have properties that allow them to change rapidly from gas to liquid and back again at low temperatures.

Heat is absorbed when the liquid evaporates and transforms into gas, making the space around it cooler.  Compressing it tightly together again, the heated gas condenses back into liquid with a residue of unwanted moisture that must be released and is vented usually to the outdoors.

The newly cooled air is distributed through the house by means of ductwork, pushed by fans driven by electric motors.  As the air moves along, it passes through a filter and can be further de-humidified.

Problems in the System

If the filter is clogged, movement of the cooled air is slowed to the point we might think the unit is broken.  If the condensate drain is plugged, the motor can get damaged and stop producing.  Regular maintenance performed by the home owner or as a service of Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling can avoid or eliminate these simple aggravations.

When the heat builds, however, and cool relief seems nowhere near the air ducts, it may be time to call a professional to dig deeper to find the reason and suggest solutions.

Back to Cool

If not serviced regularly, the amount of refrigerant in the coils may decrease over time or the coils themselves could get clogged and impede the evaporation/condensation process.  A leak in the coils could drain the system, rendering the unit useless and wholly unproductive.

There are belts on each of the two separate fan motors which may be worn or loose, causing the fans to blow less efficiently.  The motor may need to be oiled or have a broken part that doesn’t allow it to push the air at all.

Most of the time, these fixes are relatively minor and do not threaten the life of the air conditioning unit.  Schedule an annual inspection and service from a certified Lansdale HVAC company like Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling today!

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