It seems every year energy costs go up; so it is distinguished to keep your energy bills down by increasing your air conditioning unit’s efficiency and decreasing the need for it. It is easy to test how efficient your air conditioner is. Simply run your unit for at least fifteen minutes when the outdoor temperature is above 80 degrees. Then, using an accurate thermometer, measure the difference in air temperature between the air exiting the supply ducts closest to the unit and the air drawn into the return ducts. The temperature difference should be between fifteen to twenty degrees.
If you obtain that your air conditioning unit is not as efficient as you like, consider trying some of the following steps that will either make it more efficient or decrease your home’s need for it.
1. Have your air conditioning unit inspected by a service technician. A technician can check the coolant levels, clean the coils, and check the airflow over the cooling coils, three things that can prick your unit’s efficiency by up to forty percent.
2. Change or desirable your filters monthly. Dirty filters restrict the airflow, making your air conditioners work harder to circulate air.
3. Clear away any obstructions and debris from around your appliance. This includes pruning any plant growth. There should be several feet of plot around the unit in order for it to effectively method air into its system.
4. Make certain that your clothes dryer is vented more than ten feet from your unit. Lint from your dryer will cling to the condensing coils and lower its efficiency.
5. Dapper the coils on your air conditioner’s coils. Dirty coils can reduce your air conditioners performance by up to ten percent. Make sure you consult the manufacturer’s recommendations before doing any work. However, many units can be cleaned with warm, soapy water and a garden hose (spray downward). If you have tough stains, try using a toothbrush. Always turn off the power before cleaning the unit and be careful not to damage the delicate coils.
6. Straighten any bent coil fins that might be blocking airflow. A “fin comb” can be purchased from any air conditioner wholesaler.
7. Shade your outdoor air conditioner unit. A shaded unit will stop cooler and have an easier time cooling the air. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, a properly shaded unit is up to ten percent more efficient then one that is not dark.
8. Insulate your ducts. Ducts can be sealed with mastic tape or sealer and then wrapped with low-cost, foil-faced, R08 rated fiberglass insulation. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the cost of insulating the ducts will be repaid in less than three years with the energy savings.
9. Have your ductwork professionally cleaned every few years. Obstructions in the ducts are almost as bad as leaks when it comes to reducing efficiency. Dirty ductwork can also clog evaporator coils, which will further reduce an air conditioner’s efficiency.
10. Do not block registers. This includes keeping furniture and drapes away from them as well as vacuuming them regularly.
11. Raise your temperature settings, especially when you are planning to be away for several hours. Each degree you raise your thermostat in the summer can lower your energy bill by up to nine percent.
12. Keep the unit fan set on “auto.” It is not necessary to run the fan constantly.
13. Use ceiling fans to keep air moving and circulate the air throughout your home.
14. Install a whole house fan. A whole house fan cools your house by drawing outdoor air inside through originate windows and exhausting the hotter air from your house outside through the attic. These can lower the indoor temperature by up to ten degrees in a few minutes.
15. Check that your attic is properly ventilated. An improperly vented attic can raise your cooling costs by up to ten percent.
16. Use blinds or drapes to shade any south or west facing windows during the hottest parts of the day. If you do not want to cover the window, consider solar shade screens, which have a special weave that blocks sunlight without necessarily blocking the conception.
17. Turn off lights that are not needed.
18. Do not use heat-producing appliances such as your oven, dishwasher, or clothes dryer until leisurely in the evening.
19. Use a dehumidifier to reduce the moisture level in your home.
20. Check your home for any unwanted air leaks. Air leaks usually account for thirty percent of a home’s cooling costs. Specifically check the holes around plumbing, wiring, doors, and windows.
Most of these suggestions will help you keep your home cool without raising your energy bill. After all, it is hard to halt cool when your blood is boiling every time you sit down to pay your bills.
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Filed under Whole House Water Filter Reviews by on Nov 20th, 2010. 
Last year, we needed to buy a replacement filter for our whole house water filtering system. After shopping around and doing price comparisons, both online and off, the cheapest plot turned out to be the FiltersFast.com website. We did our homework and found several satisfactory customer reviews about the site and felt comfortable ordering from them.
While browsing the site, we discovered they also carried the water filters we use in our Whirlpool refrigerator and decided to go ahead and get some of those too. We didn’t really need any fridge filters at the time, but figured it wouldn’t hurt to stock up and have some on hand when our others ran out.
The website is easy to navigate and very intuitive. It was easy to find the filters we needed using their intuitive product selection menu. They offer a wide range of filters for many different manufacturers, and their menu system makes it easy to determine which fraction is needed. At the time we placed the original order, the process went smoothly and we received the filters quickly. Note that this was early 2008.
We replaced the whole house filter and it worked perfectly. We didn’t have a need to utilize one of the fridge filters we had bought from FiltersFast.com until the first part of 2009 – almost a year after placing the order. We naively waited an entire year before using one of the filters we had bought from this website. It honestly never entered our mind that they would be defective.
Here’s how the story plays out …
We installed one of the filters from FiltersFast and it didn’t work for some reason. The water coming out of our refrigerator had a strong chlorine smell and taste. We had never encountered this dilemma before. The water coming straight out of our tap did not smell or taste like chlorine, so we knew the scrape was with the filter. We removed the filter and the smell and taste went away.
Luckily, I had kept the receipt from the engage, otherwise we probably wouldn’t have remembered where the items had near from. I logged on to the company website and got their customer service phone number. I called and the phone rang and rang and rang … no one ever picked up. I then went to their contact us page and sent an e-mail complaint using their web form. A couple of days passed by and I got no response. I sent another message via their contact us page and waited a few more days and still got no response. I was beginning to think the company had gone out of business but decided to try calling them again. This time I was routed through an automated phone system and waited for about 30 minutes for a customer service rep to arrive on the line. Every few minutes an automated voice gave me the option to the leave a voicemail message and have a service find call me back. I finally gave up and left my name and number, expecting to never hear from them.
About two days later I got a call from the company. After explaining my predicament to the rep, who’s name was Alex, I was informed that since it had been a year since the products were purchased that there wasn’t much they could do for me. Poor Alex … I wasn’t going down that easily and asked him if I could speak to a supervisor.
After waiting on hold for about 10 minutes, a lady named Karen came on the line and identified herself as a supervisor. Amazingly, I didn’t have to rehash the story with her because Alex had explained everything before she got on the line. She explained the company policy of 90 day returns and said the only thing that could be done would be for me to send the bad parts assist and order a different allotment number, plus pay a 20% restocking fee and pay shipping costs.
To me, this was not a satisfactory solution for several reasons:
1) They had no other part numbers for my refrigerator model and this was the part number their merchandise selection menu system said was the correct one for my unit when I placed the order.
2) I should not have to pay a restocking fee just because they sent me defective merchandise.
3) I should not have to pay shipping costs to send back a defective product.
I nicely explained to Karen that while I could understand and appreciate their 90 day return policy, my circumstances were a bit unusual. We politely went back and forth for a few minutes on who, what, when, why, etc. Karen then asked me how I thought the situation should be resolved. I said I wanted the company to stand behind their product – and do do so without it costing me any more money. She again patiently quoted me the standard “company policy” reasons as to why my request could not be honored. I politely reminded her that the economy is very awful lawful now and the company might not want to have a terrible ticket against them from an unsatisfied customer. I told her I would be very grateful if she could work a bit of “customer service magic”.
I’m not sure if I just wore the nice lady down or if I said something meaningful, but finally she relented and agreed to send me one replacement for the filter I knew for certain was bad. She sent it via FedEx overnight and I did not have to send the bad product back or pay shipping fees or restocking fees. I’m not tickled that they wouldn’t replace all four of the parts I originally ordered but am happy that they at least replaced one unit. I will have to repeat this entire process six months from now when I replace the next filter if it turns out to be bad … but at least now I know how to get around their customer service department and how to explain my situation.
Bottom line: FilterFast.com came through for me in the end and I am a gratified customer for now – which is something all companies should strive for.
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Filed under Whirlpool Whole House Water Filters by on Nov 4th, 2010.
Whole house water filters are the perfect option for people that are interested in having a home that provides clean, drinkable water. Along with providing quality drinking water throughout the house, a whole house water filter also provides benefits such as removing impurities that cause spotting in water that is used to wash dishes. Unfiltered water can also cause problem such as corroding plumbing and appliances, ruining clothing that is washed and stain sinks or showers. Although whole house water filters are normally used in residential homes, they can also be an effective option for apartments or offices.
At first, it may seem that whole house water filters would be extremely expensive when compared to other filter options, but they are actually a very cost-effective option for water filtration. The price range of these water filters is large, starting at two hundred dollars and costing as much as one thousand dollars. The price of the filters is dependent upon their size, material and life span. This may seem like an extremely high price, but when compared with other filter options, it is actually very cost effective because of the amount of filtering that it provides.
Whole house water filters purify water in the same fashion that other filters, such as countertop or under sink filters, do. The difference is that it requires only one filter, which is attached to the main water source, instead of needing multiple water filters to be attached to different devices. As with the other filters, whole house water filters purify tap water by forcing it through several different stages of filtration. One of the stages is carbon filtration. Carbon is a effective method of filtering water because it is porous and has the ability to remove small and large impurities. Carbon is essential in removing volatile organic carbon compounds, which in some cases can cause serious damage to the liver, kidney or central nervous system. Carbon also removes dangerous substances such as pesticides, industrial solvents and insecticides.
Another essential step of the filtration process involves a process such as ionization or micron filtration. This step removes hundreds of contaminants found in tap water, and transforms the water to great tasting, healthy drinking water. As mentioned earlier, the main advantage of whole house water filters are that they provide filtered water throughout the house with the use of only one filter.
Another advantage of whole house water filters is the long life span that they offer. Many of these filters last between fifty and one hundred thousand gallons of water. For many, the main disadvantage of whole house filters is the higher than average price. Although these filters are very cost effective, they do require a large investment up front. Whole house water filters can also require a significant amount work to install.
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Filed under Uncategorized by on Aug 18th, 2010.