1: Turn off your furnace

2: Locate the metal panel

There should be a metal panel on the front of your furnace, below the return air duct, between the duct and blower system.  The panel might be part of a box-like projection on the furnace, or it might simply be labeled “filter.”

3: Remove the panel

Unscrew the panel from the rest of the box, or remove it from its holding hooks.  If you have a heating unit where the filter is exposed, slip the filter up and out of the U-shape tracks that hold it in place.

4: Inspect and clean (or replace) the filter

Look for brownish, dusty build up on the screen.  If you’re filter is reusable, simply use a garden hose (on a light spray setting) to rinse away the grime.  If you have a disposable filter, remember its size, and then throw it away.  Go to your home improvement store and purchase a new furnace filter of the same size.

5: Clean the blower assembly

Remove the panel that covers the filter to gain access to blower.  This panel may be set on hooks or held in place by group of screws.  You can usually gain access to the inside of a blower by sliding out the fan unit, which is held on the track by screws, as well.

Disconnect the power cord to the fan assembly, if it is not long enough for the fan unit to slide out.  Simply take note of the wire connections first, so you’ll be able to reconnect the cord later.  Use a tooth brush to clean each fan blade, and the spaces between the blades.  After that, use a vacuum cleaner hose to remove all the excess debris.

6. Clean the motor

Vacuum the pulleys and belts, and wipe down the entire motor housing with a rag.  This will prevent heat build up in the motor.

7. Reassemble all components and switch the furnace to “on”

All done!

Whether you have questions about furnace cleaning, or you think you might need your furnace looked at by a professional, feel more than welcome to contact Besco Air, your Chicago area heating contractors!

Thermostat and Heating Systems

Thermostat settings:

- Set at 60° F in the winter when you are away from the house or sleeping.

- Set at 68° F when you’re home.  This can save 10 percent or more on your heating bills during the cold months.

- Never set the thermostat lower than 40° F when you’re away.  50 or higher for many houseplants is best.

Energy-efficient furnaces:

- Select an energy-efficient furnace model by looking for an “annual fuel utilization efficiency” rating of 90 percent or greater.

Maintaining your current furnace:

- Clean your furnace filters monthly

- Replace filters if necessary

Natural gas heating systems:

- Consider switching to a natural gas heating system.

-Natural gas is less expensive than many other heating fuels.

air flow:

-Controlling air flow throughout your home ensures energy efficiency, comfort and low costs.

-Talk to your heating contractor about the different options to create proper air flow.

Insulation

Attic and basement:

- Insulate your attic to an R-value of 38 for a gas-heated home.

- Insulate your attic to an R-value of 50 for an electrically heated home.

- Insulate your walls to an R-value of 19.

- Insulate the upper portion of your basement walls to an R-value of 10.

Windows and doors:

- Weather-strip and/or caulk all areas of noticeable leaks around windows and doors.

- Removable caulking is a good option for windows that you open in summer, but keep closed during the winter.

Fireplace

Fireplace usage:

- Use your fireplace sparingly.  Many older fireplaces are somewhat inefficient, and draw more heat out of the house than they actually produce.

-Close the flue to eliminate drafts when you’re not using it.

Inserts, covers, and doors:

-If you use your fireplace a great deal, products like fireplace covers, doors, and inserts might help reduce the heat loss in your home when using the fireplace is in use.

-You save money on your heating bills while still being able to enjoy your fireplace

Space Heaters

- Portable space heaters can heat a single room without using your furnace to heat the whole house.

- Using a space heater to heat all or most of your home costs more than a regular furnace.

- Always follow the manufacturer’s safety instructions when operating space heaters.

Windows and Solar Heat

ENERGY STAR windows:

- When installing new windows, select a double-paned (double-glazed) thermal windows.

- For existing single-paned windows, make sure you use storm windows during the winter months.

The Sun’s Rays:

- Keep window shades and drapes open during winter months.

- The sun’s energy can definitely heat up the overall temperature in your home, especially if it’s shining through south or west-facing windows.

If you’re in need of furnace repair as a means of increasing your energy efficiency, or if you simply want to learn more about what other energy efficient heating options are available, don’t hesitate to contact Besco Air, your Chicago heating contractors!

Studies have shown time and time again, that most facilities with a boiler, waste large amounts of fuel.  With fuel rates on the rise, it is becoming even more important that boilers operate at peak efficiency.  It is too often the case that boiler operators are concerned only with the fact that the boiler merely runs -  placing little regard on its efficiency.  Nevertheless,  try to consider different options, to increase your boiler’s efficiency.

Does My Boiler Need Replacing?

Boiler replacement is usually is done when:

• poorly functioning equipment needs to be improved
• there is an expansion of an existing facility
• there is a construction of a new facility

Boiler repair or tune-up is usually done when:

• there is need for a small amount of added boiler capacity
• there is a small building or equipment addition

Factors to Consider

Condition of the equipment – Do boiler tubes have leaks?  What have the water treatment practices been like in the past?

Energy – What are the operating hours, what is the size of the boiler compared to its load?

Reliability – How important is the boiler exactly?  What is it used for?  Is there a back-up?

Maintenance costs – how much will it be to repair?

Repair interim – can the building withstand the downtime required to replace the boiler?

Satellite boilers and water heaters – You can eliminate most distribution-system losses by installing equipment near the load. Doing this, you must consider potential venting issues and the availability of natural gas service.

Building requirements for steam -  Does the building only use steam to generate hot water?  If so, it id cost-effective to replace steam boilers with high-efficiency hot-water boilers in order to improve system efficiency, and reduce operating and maintenance costs.

Efficiency and Boiler Design

Boiler design has the biggest impact on the system’s overall efficiency and maintenance costs.  The initial cost is a small portion of investment in a boiler. Energy costs usually take up 70-80 percent of the annual operating cost of boiler systems and 30-50 percent of the life-cycle cost.

Since a boiler’s capital cost is a major component of its life-cycle cost, deferred maintenance that shortens equipment life hurts the bottom line. A typical boiler uses many times the initial capital expenditure in fuel annually, so to maximize the boiler investment, managers need to specify the most efficient boiler for the application.

replacement options:

• converting steam to hot-water boiler system
• use non-condensing type boilers and water heaters
• use condensing type boilers and water heaters

Nevertheless, an efficiency increase of 11-15 percent is possible when comparing condensing equipment with non-condensing equipment. Managers can easily address the creation of sulfuric acid in flue gases by using stainless steel for flue piping and by collecting and draining condensate.  This can result in efficiencies of greater than 95 percent.

Efficiency and “On/Off” Cycling

The less boilers cycle on and off, the more efficient they are.  Because of this, modular boiler installations are becoming more common, compared with the traditional option of installing one large boiler with a 100% redundant back-up boiler.

Boilers generally have very bad efficiencies at low loads.  The reason installations of multiple packaged boilers can operate more efficiently, is that they are better able to match the current load with boiler capacity, and due to this, cycle on and off less often.

Cost-Effective Details

Modern boilers include the following burner features:

• electronic control systems that monitor flue-gas components and adjust fuel and air as needed
• re-circulated flue gases, that ensure optimal combustion with minimal excess air
• highly improved turndown ratios to improve efficiency at less than peak load
• forced draft burners, instead of atmospheric burners

Dual-Fuel Choices

Dual fuel burners often are a realistic option for facilities that can use an alternate fuel, such as oil, during short periods that a gas utility is under peak demand. The result is lower annual interruptible gas rates.  Backup fuel also might be provided to ensure boiler operation in the event of a problem with the gas system.  Fuel oil fires at higher efficiencies than natural gas, because it has less water vapor during combustion, but this equipment typically is more costly to operate.

New and Retrofit Applications That Improve Efficiency

• Install Burners equipped with digital-combustion management, to automatically adjust excess air and fuel for precise control.
• retrofit existing boilers with new burners and controls.

What Is It, and How Does It Work?

Tank system – It consists of an insulated tank, that acts as the storage and heating system for the water.  Cold water is supplied to the tank through a pipe and is heated according to a set temperature. The heated water is then stored in that very tank, as it waits to be used.  Once the hot water is expended, for instance, when you have the shower running for a long time, the tank must fill up and heat the water again, before it can be provided to you.

Tankless system – The tankless system does not heat up stored water, waiting to be used.  Rather, it senses the flow of water, and heats it up as it passes through hot coils.  For instance, when a shower or sink knob is turned, it instantly begins the heating process, and supplies an endless flow of hot water.

How Energy Efficient Is It?

Tank system – Takes a great deal of energy to operate.  As hot water is heated and stored constantly, energy consumption is high.  Cold water is supplied in the tank as soon as hot water is drawn off.  So, the tank is always full with hot water, even if it is not required, which results in lots of wasted energy.

Tankless system – Does not have to constantly heat stored water, and in turn, uses 10-20% less energy than its conventional counterpart.  As a result, the tankless system reduces water heating bills by about 10-20%, as well.

Where Did the Hot Water Go?

Tank system - As the amount of hot water available in a tank system depends on the size of the tank, hot water may run out sooner than you’d like it to.

Tankless system – Supplies a virtually infinite amount of how water.

What Does it Use For Fuel?

Tank system - Commonly electric, natural gas and liquid propane. Gas and liquid propane heaters are more energy efficient, than electric models.

Tankless system – Gas or electric.

Does Size Matter?

Tankless system - A smaller size tank might not be sufficient to provide enough hot water, while an extra large one may result in energy wastage.  So, depending on your hot water requirement and family size, the correct size tank should be installed.

Tankless system – Generally, tankless water heaters tend to be the size of an average suitcase, or smaller.  Many times, they can be installed underneath the sink or even attached to the wall in the shower.  A tankless heater can free up a great deal of space.

If you have any questions about hot water tanks or tankless systems, don’t hesitate to contact Besco Air, your Chicagoland heating and air conditioning experts.

Care For Your AC

• Keep window air conditioning and outdoor central air units free of debris: vines, leaves, etc
• Change and clean your air conditioner filters on a regular basis.
• Simply turn your air conditioner off when you’re not using it.

Don’t “Freeze Up” When Managing Electrical Services

• Keep an eye out for hourly pricing programs, where you will be billed for the electricty you use, based on hourly market prices.
• Peak-demand rationing gives you a discount for allowing the utility to “turn off” your air conditioning for short durations.
• Bill averaging gives you a statement that is the same every month, allowing you to spread out costs, throughout the year.

It’s Cool to Reduce Your Cooling Needs

• Awnings can be used to block the hot sunlight in the summer, and some even retract in the winter.
• Keep drapes and shades closed during the day.
• Plant leafy trees that shade the house in summer, but that allow sunlight in the winter.  Most deciduous trees are an appropriate choice.
• Have an electrician install an attic ventilation fan, so that hot air will drift away from the living areas in your home.
• Add a special film to south-facing windows to reduce heat and protect your home decor from the harmful effects of the sun.
• Try not to use the stove and oven.
• Use florescent lighting instead of incandescent light.  They keep you cooler and save energy, as well.
• Use ceiling and floor fans to help with your bodies natural cooling ability.
• Trying eat spicy foods, which increase your perspiration, to cool off your body.
• Make sure to drink lots of water.
• Take a cool shower.  It will be a great relief from the heat, and will last about an hour.
• Avoid clothing that traps heat inside your body: socks, heavy shoes, hats, and synthetic materials.

When the heat wave rolls into town, you’ll be a little better off knowing that there are simple things you can do to keep a few degrees cooler.

It’s a helpless, frustrating feeling not knowing how many hours you’ll suffer and how many sleepless nights you might endure waiting for an A/C service technician to make it to your home. Throngs of calls are made to HVAC companies in spring as thousands and thousands of homeowners discover too late that their air conditioning is no longer working.

Having no A/C in Chicago and the Greater Chicago area is more than just uncomfortable … it’s dangerous. Infants, young children, the elderly and those who are ill are most susceptible to suffering from heat stroke, and the results can be deadly. In the July 1995 heat wave in Chicago, 525 people died of heat-related causes. It’s a staggering, sobering number, especially considering those deaths could have been avoided.

To protect the health of you and those in your household, it’s absolutely imperative that you get your home’s air conditioning system checked before temperatures skyrocket. In addition to avoiding a potential disaster (the failure of your system), the routine maintenance performed during an A/C check-up can lower your energy bills considerably.

Although the term “routine” maintenance might make the process of doing an A/C system check sound easy, never trust your home’s air conditioning system to just anyone. To protect your investment – and your family – trust only a reputable company that uses quality products and ensures 100% customer satisfaction.

Look for a full-service HVAC company that inspects, maintains and installs systems, and insist on one that provides:

• Licensed technicians

• Hourly and flat rate pricing

• Written warranties on the work provided

• EPA certified procedures

• 24-hour service

• 2-hour appointment windows

Proper A/C maintenance performed by a qualified HVAC technician will help defend you from system failures this summer, keeping you safe and comfortable while cutting your energy costs. Contact Besco, Chicago’s most trusted HVAC company today to schedule an appointment for you and those you love. In the city of Chicago, call 773-777-0200. In the Greater Chicago suburbs, call 847-397-1777. You also can email Besco using this handy online form.

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Douglas Falasz – (June 08)
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Energy costs have been soaring, and we all need to heat and cool our homes, so that expense eats up a large portion of the typical family’s monthly budget. The good news is that the new wave of heating and cooling equipment that is on the market today is much more energy efficient than the older units that they are replacing, so you can actually save a significant amount of money while improving the value of your home when you upgrade your heating and cooling systems.

Here at Besco Air we offer the most energy efficient products on the market today, from all of the top manufacturers like Trane, Buderus, Peerless, Honeywell, and more. Having an Energy Star qualified heating and cooling system installed can save you a nice chuck of change while making the environment just that much greener at the same time.

Below are some simple things that any homeowner can do to make their heating and cooling systems more efficient. To learn more about energy efficient heating and cooling, feel free to give us a call at (773) 777-0200 in the city and (847) 397-1777 in the suburbs.

• Have a professional tune up your HVAC equipment

• Remember to change your air filters

• Seal and insulate your ducts

• Be sure to use a programmable thermostat

• Use Energy Star qualified equipment!