HVAC Air Filter Media

If you’ve been in the HVAC industry for any length of time, you’re familiar with complaints involving dust and dirty equipment. As a result, most technicians target the air filter first when they receive such calls. As you investigate these problems, keep in mind how the following ways reduce filtration effectiveness so you can more …
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When it comes to ethics, I love to tell this story. I once called a plumbing service company to investigate a leak in our shower above the kitchen. They quoted me $195.00 for the work. Two hours later I had five holes in my kitchen ceiling, a messy bathroom, and no conclusive source of the …
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Heat exchangers

The connections between a furnace and duct system are rarely considered as a cause of cracked heat exchangers. Commonly repeated mistakes with return and supply duct connections significantly impact airflow and the length of time before you’re back for repairs. Let’s look at some these issues that may be killing airflow and the heat exchangers …
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Notime for webinars? Bah Humbug

Doesn’t it seem like you are constantly being invited to attend webinars on every topic under the sun? They range from product announcements to how to do something, why you should do something, and more. Is it to the point where you just skim past those invitations or just delete them out of hand? Even …
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CO - What Do You Know?

Many HVAC professionals assume the leading cause of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is a cracked heat exchanger. This assumption leads to inaccurate test methods that pass on from technician to technician. They try to assure customer safety, but unknowingly rely on misinformation. No one wins in this scenario — both the contractor and customer have …
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2017 is still loading

The election is over. We are now in Week Four of the Donald Trump presidency. We have already seen a whirlwind of controversy as Trump drives hard to make good on his campaign promises. Whether you support or are against our 45th president, how will he impact the HVAC Industry? Back in December 2016, I …
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Avoid sharp turns

Flex ducts could be in imminent danger. A few months ago, I wrote about a recent proposal to severely limit the use of flexible (flex) ducts. Due to poor installation methods, the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) is proposing to limit use of flexible duct to only five feet in length. How …
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Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is one of those scary issues that most HVAC professionals hope to never encounter. As with many frightening things we want to avoid, this doesn’t make those issues go away. The threat is very real even though contractors often turn a blind eye to it. With all the stories and reports …
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Changes are coming. If our President-Elect remains true to his campaign promises, bolstered by a business-friendly congress, we could see a very positive environment in 2017 for small businesses — i.e.  HVAC contractors. Of course, we should take campaign promises with a grain of salt, as we know politicians will usually say anything to win …
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HVAC Airflow and leaf blowing -- the common denominator

Let’s talk airflow. We live back in the woods on a half-acre with fifteen 100-foot tall oak trees. For years I’ve imagined sharing leaf blowing airflow lessons with my fellow airheads. Let’s take a look at the mad airflow skills you can master while blowing leaves. Fascinating Statistics “If you don’t measure, you’re just guessing.” …
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