Does the temperature in your house affect your sleep?

Have you found yourself having a hard time falling asleep? Are most of your nights spent tossing and turning instead of actually getting the quality sleep that your body needs to be its best? The answer may be as simple as changing the setting on your thermostat.

There have been many studies that show how the temperature of your home can have a real impact on the condition of your sleep. Typically, homeowners will cut energy costs by keeping the thermostat on a low setting while they sleep. At the same time, saving money by just using a couple of extra blankets might sound ideal, it also could actually be doing more harm to your sleeping patterns.

How Does Your Home Temperature Affect Your Sleep Pattern?

Sleep studies show that the best and most effective sleeping temperature is between 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit. As you are sleeping, your brain naturally does it’s job by lowering your body’s temperature. Trying to go to sleep in a room that is disturbingly cold or too hot, your body can have a hard time to find the perfect internal temperature, which in turn will cause you to more restless sleep throughout the night.

Temperature also has a huge impact on the quality of REM, or rapid eye movement, during your sleep cycle. REM occurs during the stage of sleep when dreaming happens. By programming your thermostat between 68-75 degrees just before you go to sleep, it can help keep you sleeping soundly all night long.

What Can You Do To Start Improving Your Sleep?

Our team at HVAC Philly have put together a list of helpful tips you can utilize to keep your home at an ideal sleeping temperature without having to spend a lot of money on energy bills. Our HVAC technicians who provide air conditioning and heating services to the greater Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery County, PA areas,  know how to make your system run as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Top 5 Tips on How to Keep Your Energy Bill Down While You Sleep:

1. Have your system serviced and maintained on a regular basis
2. Close the damper to your fireplace when it is not in use
3. Ensure that your home is properly insulated
4. Seal your windows and doors to ensure air is not leaking out
5. Install a new, efficient HVAC system that is more compatible with your home

By implementing these helpful tips, you can let go of those restless evenings spent tossing and turning, without having to worry about astronomical energy bills.

Not getting a good night’s sleep because of a lousy heating or AC system? Contact HVAC Philly today and speak with our Philadelphia HVAC professionals.

Contact us online.  www.hvacphilly.com or call us 215-725-6111

Follow us on Facebook, Google+, Tumblr, Twitter, or LinkedIn to learn more. HVAC Philly is readily available to answer any questions or to schedule an appointment. www.hvacphilly.com

HVAC Service Provided to

Philadelphia, South Philadelphia Feasterville, Bensalem, Bristol, Langhorne, Yardley, Fairless hills, Churchville, Newtown, Southamptown,  Warminster,  Holland,  Jamison,  Morrisville. Elkins park, Cheltenham, Glenside, Abington, Huntingdon valley, Willow groove, Horsham and Jenkintown.

Can Your HVAC System Relieve Allergy Symptoms?

Fall ushers in cooler temperatures, trees, and flowers are transitioning again, and — of course — allergies.

An estimated 50 million individuals are afflicted by seasonal allergies, that could make changing of the seasons, a season of sneezing, itchy eyes and congestion. A few of the usual commonplace contaminants found in indoor air include:

• Fibers from synthetic carpets and furniture fabrics
• Pet dander and dust mites
• Pollen
• Radon gas
• Formaldehyde and other chemical substances utilized in building materials
  risky compounds observed in insecticides, pesticides, cleaning, and personal care merchandise
• Irritants from smoking and wood-burning fireplaces
• Gasses from cooking home equipment and water heaters

In a few instances, crucial air conditioning can worsen allergic reactions.For instance, cool air is transported via the air ducts placed in your walls and attic. This may lead to condensation and mold, that is a major irritant for most allergy sufferers.

There’s excellent information though! Some simple HVAC upkeep guidelines can be just the thing to reducing seasonal allergic reaction signs and symptoms.

Don’t Skimp On Your Air Filter

An excellent air filter is your major protection against bad indoor air quality. All air filters are assigned a minimum efficiency Reporting value, also referred to as a MERV score. This score suggests the filter’s ability to dispose of different size particles from the air.

We suggest that allergic reaction sufferers look for a filter with a MERV score of at least eight. These filters will collect microscopic particles as small as 3 microns, that will go a long way in the direction of decreasing indoor allergens. It’s also crucial to check filters month-to-month and to replace them every three months or sooner in the event that they appear grimy.

Electrostatic filters also are suitable alternatives for allergic reaction sufferers. Electrostatic filters attract airborne contaminants by using an electric charge. The filters can be wiped clean with the use of regular tap water and reused.

High-efficiency Particulate Air filters, additionally called HEPA filters, are any other alternative. Those filters are made of thin glass fibers and can efficiently remove up to 99.97 percentage of contaminants and allergens.

Learn more about the distinct kinds of air filters.

Clear Away dirt and particles:

The out-of-doors part of your AC unit pulls in fresh air that will, in the end, be carried throughout your house. Any dirt or debris around your outside unit may be pulled in through your HVAC machine and introduced into your home. You need to clean around the unit frequently to maintain the area clear. The same goes for the indoor portion of your HVAC system. It is important to dust or sweep across the indoor unit to reduce the number of allergens being pulled into the machine.

Be searching for mold

Mold loves a wet, humid environment and may irritate symptoms of hypersensitive reactions, bronchial asthma, and other respiratory situations. In severe cases, it can lead to extreme infection or even loss of life.

Maintaining your home’s humidity level between 30 and 50 percentage not only makes your house experience extra comfortable, but it additionally inhibits the growth of mildew and dust mites. The handiest way to do this is with a whole-home humidifier that operates using your existing ductwork to maintain your home at a consistent humidity level.

Despite those precautions, you have to nonetheless inspect the damp or humid portions of your HVAC machine every couple of weeks for symptoms of mold. Those areas consist of the drip pan and drain, air handler, evaporator coils, and ducts.

While you may be able to take care of small mold spots on your own, you need to leave big issues to an expert mold remediation provider.

Dirt Registers and Vents First

Even folks that are conscientious about dusting once a week tends to forget to dust their air return vents and registers. If these areas are dusty, your whole house could be dusty because the air circulated via your HVAC system passes through those vents and registers. The vents and registers should be the primary things you dust in every room. It’s far best to apply a damp cloth to keep from kicking up the particles and worsening your allergy symptoms.

Know when to have your ducts cleaned.

Schedule an Annual Maintenance Appointment

Fall is the proper time to have an HVAC professional give your unit a once-over to ensure it is in tip-top form. The expert HVAC technicians of HVAC Philly can maintain your system running smoothly and give you tips on improving the air quality in your own home.

We provide professional AC set up and repair services in addition to maintenance services, which includes air duct cleaning and repair, which could improve the health and efficiency of your HVAC system. Call us today to schedule your appointment.

Contact us online.  www.hvacphilly.com or call us 215-725-6111

Follow us on Facebook, Google+, Tumblr, Twitter,or LinkedIn to learn more. HVAC Philly is readily available to answer any questions or to schedule an appointment. www.hvacphilly.com

HVAC Service Provided to

Philadelphia, South Philadelphia Feasterville, Bensalem, Bristol, Langhorne, Yardley, Fairless hills, Churchville, Newtown, Southamptown,  Warminster,  Holland,  Jamison,  Morrisville. Elkins park, Cheltenham, Glenside, Abington, Huntingdon valley, Willow groove, Horsham and Jenkintown.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Have A Bad Smell?

While you run the air conditioner, all you need is to experience pleasant, cold air coming into your house. If an unpleasant scent is laced with the cold air, however, it tends to spoil the fresh sensation. Pointless to say, you need to do away with the scent as quickly as feasible. Examine the reasons behind distinct A/C smells and a way to repair them.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Mold?
As the most common scent accompanying cold air from an A/C unit, a moldy odor indeed indicates mildew or fungus is developing in or around the air conditioner. It’s truly not that sudden. After all, similarly to cooling the air in your home, air conditioners additionally eliminate excess moisture. If it’s no longer drained away properly, the mold may also start to develop in regions with lingering moisture. Even a grimy filter can cause the scent of mildew to waft from supply registers. Hire an expert to clean your air conditioner, update the screen, and cast off the mold odor.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Rotten Eggs?
A dead animal is the most common reason of a rotten, spoiled egg scent coming from the air vents. An injured or sick fowl or rodent might also have climbed inside an air duct in the course of the winter in which it died and began decomposing. Then, while you turn on your A/C for the first time within summer, a stinky smell ruins the effect of cooling air coming into your house. You need to have your ducts professionally cleaned to wipe out any rodent remains.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Sewage?
This smell can be emanating from a backed up sewer line or ruptured sewer vent pipe near the duct device. All it takes is a little methane gasoline from the sewage leak to get into the duct work, and your entire home can also smell like a sewer. Methane gas is risky, so if you smell a sewage odor, contact an HVAC technician at once to look at the issue.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Feet?
A dirty, clogged air conditioner might also emit a stinky toe smell. This is due to stagnant water that collects in the machine and isn’t drained away well. An intensive cleansing by way of a professional should be sufficient to remedy the problem.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Skunk?
This scent could be resulting from a lifeless skunk in or around the duct work, but that’s not very likely. What’s much more likely is that fuel is leaking from somewhere. Methyl mercaptan from the fuel leak, which smells very much like skunk spray, may be entering the duct work and circulating your property. If this happens, it can endanger your family. Get out of the house and speak to an HVAC technician and your fuel organization right away.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Gun Powder?
A shorted out circuit board or fan motor might also send a gun powder smell out of the supply registers while the air conditioner initially cycles on. An expert can take a look at your machine and recommend replacing aging components if necessary.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Smell Like Exhaust Fumes?
Your air conditioner is powered by way of electricity, no longer gasoline, but the engine and some other components have fluids inside which can leak out. If this occurs, the odor of exhaust fumes may permeate your home. To prevent a harmful situation from growing, have the A/C fixed as soon as feasible.

Schedule air conditioning repair in the greater Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery County, PA area with HVAC Philly.
In case your air conditioner smells like mildew, rotten eggs, sewage, feet, skunk, gun powder, or exhaust fumes, you simply need air conditioning repair. To schedule an appointment, please contact HVAC Philly.

Why Does My Air Conditioner Keep Freezing Up?

What Causes an Air Conditioner to Freeze Up?

The symptoms of a frozen air conditioning unit can be subtle and hard to recognize , but because the consequences can be so serious, it is important to stay alert to the signs that your system might be sending to you. Running a frozen air conditioner without correcting the cause of the freeze-up can potentially lead to irreversible damage to the system’s compressor. That is one important reason every homeowner should be diligent in watching for signs that indicate that the indoor evaporator coil is icing up.

When Your Air Conditioner Freezes Up: The First Signs

The following signs can indicate a freeze-up or other problem with your AC system:

• Sudden decrease in AC performance
• Reduced airflow from the system’s vents
• Unusually large amount of condensate drainage
• Continuously running system
• Uncomfortably warm indoor temperature

If you notice any of the above issues, don not wait to investigate. Turn off your air conditioning system immediately. Then proceed with your investigation.

Signs that the Indoor Evaporator Coil is Frozen

During your inspection, you may notice one or more of the following signs that can help confirm your suspicion:

• Ice buildup on the outdoor refrigerant line
• Condensation forming on the surface of the indoor air handler
• Condensation forming on the surface of the condensate drain
• Unusually large amount of condensate drainage
• Ice buildup on the evaporator coil inside the air handler

Once you have verified that the evaporator coil is frozen, you will then need to leave the air conditioning system off until the coil thaws. This will generally take several hours. Turning on the fan, without using the air conditioning, can help speed up the process.

After the system has thawed completely, your wisest move would be to call an air conditioning specialist, such as HVAC Philly who serve the greater Philadelphia, Bucks and Montgomery County, PA areas for over 20 years, to inspect the system. Some causes of a frozen coil are more serious or more technical than others. You may need an expert to diagnose and correct the problem.

Common Causes of a Frozen Evaporator Coil

When an air conditioning unit freezes up, a number of issues may be at fault.

Air Flow Issues

The following situations can impede air flow to the evaporator coil in your AC system

• Dirty air filter
• Too-small return air ducts
• Blocked air ducts
• Closed or blocked registers
• Malfunctioning fan

Other Potential Problems

The following are several other situations that can cause your AC system to freeze up:

• Dirty or blocked evaporator coil
• Blocked drain pipe
• Refrigerant leak
• Low outdoor air temperature
• Too-low nighttime thermostat setting

A refrigerant leak is a serious issue that must be handled by a professional HVAC technician who is certified in the safe handling of AC refrigerant.

If you have any question about the seriousness of this or any other HVAC issue, call the experts at HVAC Philly for prompt service.  Contact us online.  www.hvacphilly.com or call us 215-725-6111

Follow us on Facebook, Google+, Tumblr, Twitter,or LinkedIn to learn more. HVAC Philly is readily available to answer any questions or to schedule an appointment. www.hvacphilly.com

HVAC Service Provided to

Philadelphia, South Philadelphia Feasterville, Bensalem, Bristol, Langhorne, Yardley, Fairless hills, Churchville, Newtown, Southamptown,  Warminster,  Holland,  Jamison,  Morrisville. Elkins park, Cheltenham, Glenside, Abington, Huntingdon valley, Willow groove, Horsham and Jenkintown.

HVAC Maintenance Tips For Pet Owners

Pet ownership is not a role should be taken lightly. In exchange for the endless hours of companionship and unconditional love, you then assume the responsibility of providing your special pet with a safe and loving home. Sometimes that may mean waking up before dawn to attend to their physical needs, and other times it means taking care of their messes. It also means a little added effort is required when it comes to your HVAC system. Follow these tips to keep your rambunctious pets from wreaking havoc with your HVAC and ventilation system.

Wires

Exposed wires to your HVAC system can be an invitation to play or chew for many pets. This is most common with puppies and kittens, but wires can be a temptation for grown up pets too. To keep the wires safe and prevent injury to your pet, enclose them in conduits.

Filters

It is no secret that when dogs and cats shed, their hair finds its way into every nook and cranny of your home. But what you may not have considered is how cat and dog hair affects your HVAC system. As your system sucks in the air, pet hair can clog air filters and decrease the efficiency of your system. This means you’ll use more energy and pay higher utility bills and it may shorten the life of your system as well.

To combat problems with pet hair in your HVAC or ventilation system, establish a routine of regular bathing and grooming of your pet and step up you housekeeping routine, too. Dust, sweep, vacuum and mop regularly to keep pet hair under control and don’t forget to check and replace your air filter frequently. This will keep your HVAC system functioning properly, reduce allergies from pet hair and dander and make you feel more comfortable!

Outside Condenser Units

Pets can also pose a threat to your outside unit, especially if they have free reign of the yard. Many dogs like to dig and claw at hard surfaces and may target your condenser for a little fun. If they claw the fins on the condenser coils, they may injure their sensitive feet and damage your unit. Male dogs also mark their territory by urinating. If your dog, or dogs in the neighborhood, target your condenser, the urine may leak into the fins and cause them to erode over time. This can cause refrigerant leaks that can be costly to repair. To prevent dogs from ruining your outside unit, put up a fence or other barrier around it.

For more tips on how you can improve your system’s efficiency or to make an appointment for services or repairs, contact us today. We provide 24-hour emergency services.

Follow us on Facebook, Google+, Tumblr, Twitter,or LinkedIn to learn more. HVAC Philly is readily available to answer any questions or to schedule an appointment. www.hvacphilly.com

HVAC Service Provided to

Philadelphia, South Philadelphia Feasterville, Bensalem, Bristol, Langhorne, Yardley, Fairless hills, Churchville, Newtown, Southamptown,  Warminster,  Holland,  Jamison,  Morrisville. Elkins park, Cheltenham, Glenside, Abington, Huntingdon valley, Willow groove, Horsham and Jenkintown.