One of the best ways to improve your system’s performance is to frequently clean or replace air filters. Other ways include purchasing a programmable thermostat, keeping curtains drawn or installing shades in rooms that are more exposed to sunlight, and not blocking airflow by closing vents in multiple rooms.

Simply resetting the thermostat when you are asleep or away from home can save money on heating and cooling bills. By adjusting the thermostat four-to-six degrees either up (in the summer) or down (in the winter) reduces the total run time of the heating and air system, leading to a reduction on the energy bill. A programmable thermostat can aid in money-saving measures by allowing you to set the temperature on a daily and seasonal basis.

In order for your HVAC system to operate at its best, filters should be changed once they start to look discolored. If the filter looks dirty, it is dirty. Filters should be changed on a monthly basis when the system is in high use, such as during winter and summer months, and every other month during lower-use times in the spring and fall. If you want a smarter way to determine when it needs replacing, install an air filter gauge.

Your system is designed to take a specific size of filter, so that is always a good place to start. Consider each filter’s minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV). A higher-grade filter typically is best for homes with asthma or allergy sufferers. Pleated air filters are great for reducing allergens, but they cannot be left in the unit for too long or they become clogged.

Maintain air flow by keeping dust, dirt, and debris away from any system. Keep air filters clean and heat exchangers and coils free of restrictions. Ideally, a system should be serviced twice a year — once before the summer cooling season and once before the winter heating season.

Change your filters on a regular basis, and clean your outside coils once a month during the cooling season.

Yes. You should do something to grow bacteria in your septic system, because that’s what makes it work.

Depending on what kind of plumbing it is, the most effective way to winterize plumbing is to turn the water off, open the plumbing faucet/valve/etc., and use air to blow the water out of the line. If you don’t use air, then water will likely get stuck in the line, eventually freezing and bursting during the cold weather. That will invalidate all your work.

This is a big one, and it doesn’t necessarily apply to only plumbing. You should never receive a price sight unseen. If a plumber is able to tell you how much something costs before they even look at the problem, I wouldn’t trust the price they gave you.

At the very peak of the mountain, plumbing can appear to be very simple. However, there’s a lot of liability when you’re dealing with things like water. It’s easy for something to be done wrong if the person doesn’t know what they’re doing or if they don’t take the time to do the work correctly. All of a sudden, everything blows apart and causes a huge (and expensive) mess. Hire a professional if you want the job done right. A professional does cost more than a non-professional.

This is something that’s definitely variable. It depends on many different factors. For example, water quality and how much the system is used will make a difference on how long it lasts. We typically say that a water heater installed today will last around 8-12 years. That’s very different from a water heater that was installed 25 years ago. Things just don’t last as long as they used to.

We do not recommend hot water to be any hotter than 120 degrees. Anything higher than that temperature could become dangerous for small children or elderly people.

It could be because of your water heater. The first thing we do is look at your water heating needs. Then we look to see if the water heater is working properly and delivering the water that it’s supposed to. If it is, it may just not be sized properly.

You’re standing at the sink, waiting for hot water to come out but it takes practically forever. That’s because the hot water has to get from the heater to the faucet. If the water heater is physically located a long distance away from the faucet, it’s going to take a long time to get there. There are solutions to this problem. It would probably save you money in the long run to install a recirculation system to keep hot water at the faucet.

When most people ask for water pressure, they’re really asking for water volume. It could be caused by a number of factors. The street pressure that’s being provided to you might be low. You may be using a well that doesn’t have much water. Maybe you have old pipes that are like clogged arteries. The way to increase volume is to install booster pumps, fix the well situation, or replace the pipe to get rid of the clogged arteries in the plumbing system.