FAQ

Additionally, new furnaces are designed to work with other high-efficiency HVAC products, such as air conditioners. The air conditioner blowers give your heating system an extra boost so it can deliver cool air around your home efficiently. Special features like variable speed motors will also help reduce noise associated with operating your equipment and easily meet your family’s airflow needs.

Heating and cooling makes up a significant portion of your monthly utility bill. Purchasing HVAC equipment with high efficiency ratings, such as SEER for air conditioners and AFUE for furnaces, is a simple step that can go a long way in decreasing energy output. Beyond these ratings, also think about:

• Routine maintenance – regularly having a professional tune-up your equipment will keep it operating at its peak potential.
• Adding a zoning system – by focusing your heating and cooling on the rooms you use most frequently, you won’t have to pay to heat or cool areas of your home that aren’t used regularly.
• Installing a programmable thermostat – the Department of Energy estimates that a programmable thermostat can decrease heating costs by up to 35 percent and cooling costs by up to 25 percent. Leave it up to your thermostat to turn down the heat when you’re not around and go back to your preferred temperature when you’re home.

• You know and trust the name – Trane is known around the world for its quality home comfort products.
• Innovation and high quality – Trane is an industry leader, providing a complete line of innovative solutions for your home comfort needs.
• Commitment to excellence – We are dedicated to offering customers not only quality products, but also quality service. You can trust Trane dealers, like those of us at Elite Comfort, to help you choose the right system for your home, expertly install it, and keep it operating smoothly every time.

Boosting your home’s indoor air quality starts with four basic strategies:

• Eliminate – poor indoor air quality leaves your home packed with air pollutants floating around your home, so to improve IAQ, the first step is to eliminate as many pollutants as possible. You can easily do this is by cleaning and vacuuming at least once a week, regularly washing linens and storing cleaning products safely.
• Ventilate – proper insulation is great for keeping your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, but it also makes it harder for airborne pollutants to escape. Products like our Healthy Climate® ventilation system help swap stale air for fresh, filtered outside air.
• Clean – good ventilation and routine cleaning are a start, but Healthy Climate® air filters, germicidal lights and PureAire™ purification systems take your IAQ to the next level by capturing microscopic particles, killing germs and removing particles and germs while destroying chemical vapors.
• Monitor – programmable thermostats will help you monitor the humidity levels and temperature to help prevent particles and germs from accumulating and keep your home comfortable.

At Elite Comfort, we do recommend replacing both your indoor and outdoor units at the same time because:

• Today, outdoor systems are built to work with their matching indoor system for the most efficiency. When you replace one system but not the other, you may not see the same energy efficiency levels as if you had replaced them together.
• Thanks to technological innovation, newer systems mean increased efficiency. This is also true for HVAC systems. While the advancements focus on greater heating and cooling efficiency, they also include benefits such as better air handling, filtering and noise reduction.
• If your heating and cooling systems are 10+ years old, they need to be replaced. Older models have outdated technology that is likely contributing to higher energy bills due to poor efficiency. So by replacing your indoor system at the same time as your outdoor equipment, both your systems will provide better energy efficiency that helps you decrease your energy bills and keep your home more comfortable.

Typically you should change the air filter in your home every 30 days when using less expensive fiberglass filters. Higher end pleated filters can last as long as 6 months, but guidelines assume average use and don’t take into account the size and type of filter. If the air filter looks dirty it’s good idea to change it, A dirty filter can cause higher than normal run times which can lead to high utility bills. It can also cause the grilles to be noisier than typical as the air flow across the surface of the grille varies.

Your A/C system is a sealed system. You should never need to add refrigerant. If you do that indicates 1. A leak or 2. That it wasn’t properly charged to begin with. Remember that if the unit is leaking and that is not addressed eventually any added refrigerant will leak out again. Most manufactures specifications require a charging method including super head and/or sub cooling methods. This is the most accurate method to charging the system. Remember that a contractor should be weighing the refrigerant is needed. Make sure it is weighed in. The EPA mandates specific guidelines regarding the replacement of leaking cooling equipment.

An heat Load Calculation is a mathematical process for measuring the construction aspects of a building in order to determine the best size, application and style of HVAC system. ACCA Manual J is the only acceptable method for this calculation. Be leery of contractors that use vague rules of thumb when determining the size of an HVAC system. Find a nationally recognized HVAC contractor by clicking here.

Your AC system is a sealed system. You should never need to add refrigerant. If you do that indicates 1. A leak or 2. That it wasn’t properly charged to begin with. Remember that if the unit is leaking and that is not addressed eventually any added refrigerant will leak out again. Most manufactures specifications require a charging method including super heat and / or sub cooling methods. This is the most accurate method to charging the system. Remember that a contractor should be weighing the refrigerant levels in the cylinder before and after charging the system. No contractor can accurately “guess” how much refrigerant is needed. Make sure it is weighed in. The EPA mandates specific guidelines regarding the replacement of leaking cooling equipment.

ACCA or The Air Conditioning Contractors of America is a non-profit association whose membership includes more than 60,000 professionals from businesses in the indoor environment and energy services community. We work together to promote professional contracting, energy efficiency, and healthy, comfortable indoor environments.

Choosing the right contractor means asking the right questions. This short video explains the basic questions you should always ask, and what the answers should be!