Mechanical Solutions

Are Home Warranties Really Worth Buying?

2012-01-27T21:17:00.000-08:00

This is my objective opinion as a contractor. I have no experience from the contractee side. I have dealt with many different home warranty companies, and one seems to stand above the rest for me. First American Home Buyers Protection is my favorite because they seem to be the most fair for both the customer and the contractor. I have been doing more service calls for them than all of the others combined. You may ask why I can have an objective opinion since I work for them. Fair enough question and I am prepared to answer that. I have consistently tried to put myself in peoples positions when it comes to service companies.
This is, of course, because I am one but I want to always evaluate the value to the customer and not just to the contractor. I have been on many calls that only took two different sevice calls in one year and the whole year's premium would be used up. A home warranty generally protects your cost by the fact that you only have to pay a small service fee per call and the home warranty covers the rest. Often, the service fee is only about half of the smallest service call.
When choosing a home warranty, always consider their claim coverages by checking with someone who has the same company and call them and ask them their experience with the company and how well do they pay claims. From my side of things, as the contractor, "First American" pays in a very timely fashion. They also rarely turn down paying for repairs. I worked for the some of the other home warranty companies, and they seem to have tried everything to deny a claim. The fact is sometimes with certain home warranty companies, I wonder what they will cover. Home warranty companies are essentionally insurance companies and the same thing applies. It's not just how cheap is the premium, but also how well do they pay their claims. This is why I say that First American is one of the best home warranty companies and my favorite one to work with. The only thing that really bites about home warranty companies is: They are the ones to make the decision as to whether to repair or replace. Most often it is always to repair and repair and repair. Also though, when it comes to replace, you are at their mercy as to what type of component they will replace with. Most often they use the least expensive item they can buy. There is usually one option given you if you do not want to have the replacement item be chosen for you. Most companies offer what is called a buy out. This is the cost of the replacement item including the labor will be paid to you in a check and you can contract anyone you would like to put in whatever component you would like. Of course, you will likely be adding more than twice the buyout amount to put in a quality item including the labor. But one must remember, any amount that you get is more than what you would have to take off of the bill had you had no home warranty company. Often, I find that it is a very good deal to have a home warranty especially if it is a good company.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

Heat Pumps 101. A homeowner's guide.

2012-01-20T21:48:00.000-08:00

First let me say that homeownership brings enough with it without having to worry about the mechanical parts. Unfortunately, no one in the buying process sits you down for an education on the workings of the heating system. Most of the time they are quite simple, however in the case of a heat pump, (air source which is most common) there are things that you need to know. In fact on my first call to a heat pump owner, I generally give them this short little infomercial about how they operate. Most of them are appreciative to know how they work so... here is that class. The first thing you need to know is that a heat pump system is like two integrated heating systems in one. For us in the north at least. The first thing that happens is a call from the thermostat for first stage heat which is the heat pump. Now depending on the temperature, this will try to satisfy that call for heat. If it cannot because of the outside temperature or the heat loss being too great it will, after a one degree drop in temperature, call for second stage heat which is in most cases an electric strip heater. Similar to a toaster oven element. This is usually when it starts to blow much warmer air and this then satisfies the thermostat until the next call for heat. That is when the whole process starts over. One of the big myths that homeowners go for is the setback thermostats will save you money. This is true if you have a system that is not an air source heat pump. A heat pump has to run for a long time to add enough heat for the house and as the temperature drops outside, the heat pump produces less heat. This is why it needs a backup system. The electric strip heaters are that back up system. A setback thermostat attempts to drop the temperature for a specified amount of time and then suddenly brings the temperature up at a specific time. When the thermostat jumps up two degrees or more it skips right to the electric strip heaters bypassing the efficient heat that comes from the heat pump. One other part about heat pumps is that the thermostat often has both auxillary heat and emergency heat which are both confusing to homeowners and often give the wrong impression. Auxillary heat is simply the same strip heaters working as a backup after the heat pump could not get the job done. However, when you set the thermostat to emergency heat, it bypasses the running of the heat pump altogether and goes straight to the electric backup. Note: When the outdoor temperature is below 20 degrees you may as well set the thermostat to emergency if it is not setup to automatically do that, because at the temperature you are using more energy between the defrost cycles and running the heat pump than you would to just skip it and turn on the electric back up. But you will want to remember to turn the thermostat back to normal heat after it gets above 20 degrees again. The most common complaint with a heat pump is that they blow cold air for a long time. This is not technically true, but practically true, meaning the air temperature feels cold because it could be as cool as 75 to 80 degrees which certainly feels cold but technically is warm. Since you are only adding a small amount of heat to the house at a time at the lower temperatures a heat pump will run a very long time.
That is another complaint I get often especially when homeowners have grown up in a gas furnace heated home. It seems to run all the time. While this is not technically true again, it seems to them to be the case. The fact is that in order for heat pumps to do their job, they must run a long time. This does not mean that they are using more energy. Actually what uses more energy is to skip the heat pump running and turn on the strip heaters. Those will make your electric meter spin really fast. The heat pump is basically an air conditioner in reverse. Taking the heat from outside and bringing it inside. Even though there is not as much heat outside in the winter, a heat pump can use what is there down to a specific point. One more thing to keep in mind, keeping the thermostat at a constant level is the most effective way to use a heat pump. If you are constantly turning it up and down, you will be going in and out of auxillary heat instead of just using the heat pump.
As a side note: I personally like installing what I call a hybrid sytem. What that is- is a heat pump with a gas furnace as a back up. That way you get the efficiency with a less expensive backup. Of course everyone doesn't have that as an option if you do not have natural gas.

These are my thoughts and small educational quips. If you live in the North Indy area or anywhere in the Anderson area, I am a professional heating and air conditioning contractor that can service your system. My company is McConnell Plumbing, Heating, & Air Conditioning.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

A positive perspective on small business.

2011-11-16T17:06:00.000-08:00

One of the most positive things about owning a small business is the freedom to make decisions about how to accomplish whatever it is that you do and how you would like to structure payment and possibly give someone a special deal. With that said, I have considered all of the corporate structures taking over so many of the small businesses these days and the freedom to make those decisions goes out the window. The bottom line is the bottom line with a corporate structure. Now I do understand that this is how they keep the upper management happy but, this is not my biggest concern. I have my name on every invoice and truck and building and with that comes my reputation. I consider having a good name of more importance than the bottom line of my balance sheet. Don't get me wrong, I am not in this to loose money. You don't stay in business for 19 years without turning a profit. I love small businesses and love to take part in supporting them. Since both my wife and I run small businesses, it is very gratifying to see small business grow and be supported and not just for our sakes. This is the great thing about living in this country. We have the freedom to do whatever we want to support ourselves. I am very thankful to be in this country and hope that you too will consider supporting small businesses whenever and wherever you can. Thanks for reading.

Chuck McConnell

Now is the time to start thinking of getting your furnace cleaned and serviced for winter.

2011-10-04T18:55:00.000-07:00

Yes I know we hate to admit that winter is coming and we just are not quite ready. However, this is the time to have your furnace serviced and tuned up for the winter. You can save yourself the headache of having a nuasance service call in the middle of a cold night by having a service pro look at and check over your furnace. Although we don't often think it makes a difference, cleaning and servicing a furnace does allow a trained tech to detect a potential problem before it becomes a breakdown. You always benefit from having a cleaner furnace because it can cause reduced burning efficiency when it is really dirty. I love my service agreement customers because they always have cleaner and easier to maintain furnaces because they are cleaned once a year. Your furnace will last longer when it is cleaned regularly. There is only one down side to cleaning a furnace- it costs money. but right now I am going to offer a half price service agreement to anyone who mentions this blog post to my office. Just our way of saying thanks for following us on our blog site.

Chuck Mcconnel

Tax Credit facts for 2011. Not so grand!

2011-02-12T06:59:00.000-08:00

Well here we are in 2011. I can't believe that it's already February. The Federal tax credits for this year consist of 30% of the parts cost only and not the labor with a cap of $500.00. Last year the cap was $1500.00. Now let me qualify that if you have already claimed a tax credit in previous years this $500.00 dollars only applies to the amount left from previous years. So if you have taken $1200.00 of the tax credit you would only be eligible for $300.00 in this year. If you have taken $1500.00 in previous years you have $0.00 eligible for the tax credit this year. It, as you can see, is a very poor incentive program. These kinds of programs work to stimulate purchases and that is the type of stimulation this economy needs. On the other hand I don't think that people that owe $0.00 in tax and pay nothing should be allowed to be paid from our Federal treasury to buy something. This is where I find fault. As long as people are being allowed to lessen their tax burden, I think that is always a good plan since I think we all pay way too much in taxes anyway. I got just a little off track there with the opinions but I hope these things clerify the Federal tax credit guidlines for this year.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

Heat pump qualification.

2010-10-13T20:03:00.000-07:00

I have many customers ask me about their heat pumps. The questions often come from a lack of understanding of how they work. I am going to go through what may seem to be an oversimplified explaination of how a heat pump works. So here goes. The first thing that happens is there is a call for heat which means that the temperature has dropped to the point that the thermostat is "calling" for the heat to come on. This is what is called a first stage call for heat. At this point, depending upon the outside temperature the outdoor unit comes on in reverse of the air conditioner to bring the heat from the outside into the space. Now this is where the problem happens. Often a heat pump has no control on it to turn it off when it is too cold outside and the customer feels the "cold" air blowing on them. The air is not necessarily cold but is not very warm so it is referred to as cold. Because often there is nothing to stop the outdoor system from trying to heat even when there is not enough heat to be practical, the customer has to wait until the thermostat temperature falls 1 degree and at this point the backup heat is staged in. This is called a second stage call for heat. Depending upon the type of system you have the backup heat can be electric or gas. When this call happens, this is when the real heat begins to pour out of the register. Now for those of you who have no mechanism to shut off the heat pump when it gets too cold outside (That is a majority of people from what I have seen but not if you're one of my customers), you have a choice. At about 20 degrees outside, the heat pump is close to what is called it's balance point which simply means that it is using more energy to make heat than it is giving you. At that temperature and below you could simply go over to your themostat and turn it to emergency heat. There is a button on the thermostat that says exactly that. Just don't forget to turn it back to heat when the temperature gets above 20 degrees. Or you could have a professional come and install a new thermostat that can do that automatically. This is the way I now make all my systems operate. For those of you that are colder natured and have electric backup heat, we can also stage your backup heat in which simply means that at say 30 degrees we run not just the heat pump but one stage of electric heat to make the temperature warmer. Mind you this will cost you more to operate but it will make it run warmer. Just a note, when the electric backup heat comes on is when the meter really starts to spin so if you don't have to run that much, you will have a lower electric bill.
Now for those of you who have a hybrid which simply means that you have a gas furnace as your backup heat source, your system is a bit different in that you cannot stage this system on with the heat pump. These two systems never operate at the same time. Either the heat pump is on or the backup furnace is on. But you can and often will have a two stage gas furnace as your backup system. This means that the furnace does not come on at full at first. Most of the two stage furnaces come on at about 80% for first stage and then 100% at second. For us in Indiana, there are many days in the spring and fall that a heat pump is practical but in the winter, You will be using a lot of backup heat source. A hybrid system does qualify for the tax credit. If you have questions or would like to have an evaluation of your system for free, just give us a call.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Pumping systems that keep up with the times.

2010-09-15T21:09:00.000-07:00

"Environment One" is one of the most progressive companies that keep up with the pumping needs of this era. In fact they have been doing so for more years than most other pump companies out there. They have both their own fully packaged pumping stations complete with control panel. But they also offer an aftermarket grinder pump. You may be asking what that is. This is a pump that will replace your old centrifugal style grinder pump. This is the ones with the float switches in the pit. All of the junk that is in the pit comes out and a single pump simply sets down into your current pit. This simplifies the station and it comes as a complete package. One of the best things about Environment One is that they come with a two year warranty. Most all other pump companies only allow a limited one year warranty. The difference is that Environment One will pay me to come out and fix your pump and send me the parts free of charge. Try to get that from another pump company. My company has been servicing Envirnment One pumps for over 22 years. I like to think that we are the experts in working on Environment One Grinder Pumps. I would never tell you that their product is flawless, but of all of the grinder pump companies that have entered the market in the last few years its good to know that you are dealing with a pump company that has been doing it for many years. That is Environment One. Of course if you own a grinder pump that is operating in sewage everyday, you have to expect some degree of service being needed. This is where we come in. We are your local experts.

www.mcconnellphac.com

"Give us a chance to prove to you our excellent service"

McConnell Plumbing, Heating, & Air Conditioning.

Why Home Warranties Make Sense!

2010-09-15T20:42:00.000-07:00

Let me be the first to say that I have always hated extended warranties. But since I have been involved with a home warranty company, I have changed my mind. This is not just a prejudice developed by my cooperation with the warranty company. I have personally seen people have several items go bad and need replaced and the total bill of all of the replaced items including the labor out weighed the annual warranty premium. Of course, with all insurance plans there are risks and you take the gamble. One thing to remember, find a company that is very highly rated and has good reviews. There are some companies that I will not even work with. Some of the companies have so many loop holes in the contract that they can find a way not to pay the claim.
My experience with First American Home Warranty has been overall very positive both for me and my customers. I want a company that is treating my customers well and paying me without too much hassle. This is what I have found them to do. I'm sure there are those who have gripes and complaints with First American, but overall I would give them a favorable score. One of the down sides of using a warranty company is that you have very little control over what they use to replace items with. As you would expect they are going to use the least expensive items. In some cases, this is okay but when it comes to heating and cooling equipment, I hate to take out a first class piece of equipment and install a third class piece. This is what happens as part of the home warranty experience. First American will allow the homeowner the option of taking a buyout. This just means they assign a figure to what it would cost them to replace the equipment and you can make up the difference for better equipment. It is still a great deal of help compared to nothing. This way you get what you want. Many people do not know that this option is available to them. So the next time you have to deal with you home warranty company, keep in mind that there are options. You don't have to just take what is being offered. Ask the service provider about the possibilty of taking a buyout.

www.mcconnellphac.com

For more information or questions. Visit my website above. Thanks for reading.

Why switch to the new "R-410A" refrigerant?

2010-06-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

Many times we are asked to buy something that is a new product because "It is good for our environment" This always begs the question, is it really or are we just being told this for other reasons? Maybe I'm the only one that thinks this way, but I think that there are many more of you out there that thinks the same things. Well, this is one of those times when we are asked to think of the environment and suck it up. But the interesting fact is that the "R-22" refrigerant that we are letting be phased out has a greater ozone depletion potential than the "R-410A" but the "R-410A" has a greater carbon dioxide polution potential. Its funny how the unintended consequences of our many government laws cause use to wonder who is making these senseless rules that cost so much money to implement and for what purpose? Just my rambling thoughts.
On a side note, the R410A systems also run at much higher temperatures and pressures potentionally causing shorter life spans as compared with the old systems. Who am I to question these wizards that throw down the regulations. I guess I'm just some guy that is supposed to do what I am told. Oh well I guess I will have to conform. Finally to answer the question, why switch because its the only choice you now have and it works.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Where did all the business go?

2010-03-26T07:30:00.001-07:00

I have heard from many others that this economy has sucked the life out of small business. I am here to testify that this is what I have found to be true right now. But if we as small businesses are to survive we must continue to fight and cut our expenses and increase our productivity so that what we offer is the best product and/or service for the customer's money. I think that is really what we have always tried to do, but now it is critical that we do just that. My hope is that when we see the economy turning around we will be able to thrive because we will have a lean mean business machine. My customers have depended on my company for many years and I want them to be able to continue to depend on us for years into the future. I am not willing to roll over and play dead. Now is the time to fight for life. The lazy part of me wants to say, oh well I tried, but the other parts of me say, I'm not about to give up on so much hard work. If I am preaching to the choir just let me look like a fool here. I have the feeling, though, that there are many people out there who share my concerns as well as my hopes for the future. If you are a small businessman and are reading this, drop me a note and let me know your thoughts. For those of you who were hoping for mechanical solution, I am sorry but I took this opportunity to rant. Now that this is out of the way maybe I can clear my head and get back to writing about mechanical solutions. Thanks for taking the time to read this post.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Way more incentives available right now.

2010-03-04T19:44:00.000-08:00

This is definitely the time to think about your heating and cooling systems. There are sooo many incentives to do an upgrade right now. If you are on Vectren for natural gas, they are offering a $200.00 rebate for the installation of a new 95% furnace. Here is the link to their
rebates. https://www.vectrenenergy.com/selectState.do;jsessionid=xnncLQ2KVf8J1QtJm5BrxJFLtfpNn6rH1p7fjTY12xbvDFRPq4yH!2127972626
The state of Indiana is offering a tax credit of $300.00 for the installation of a new 95% furnace. And the Federal tax credit for the installation of a new 95% gas furnace is 30% of installation up to $1,500.00. These are some very enticing incentives to install a new high efficiency furnace. Along with these incentives, you get to save on your energy bills from now on. That is the biggest savings since it keeps on coming. If you have an old inefficient furnace, now is definitely the time to think about an upgrade.
One of the systems that often gets overlooked is geothermal. Right now there is a big state tax credit of $1,000.00 for the installation of a geothermal system and a Federal tax credit uncapped of 30% and a huge energy savings once the system is installed. Now one of the incentives that often gets overlooked on geothermal is the property tax exemption that is available once you have a system installed. That is a huge advantage since it keeps paying you year after year. I will not kid around about the first cost of installing a geothermal system. It is quite costly but the long term return is just as sweet. We are your professionals for installing a geothermal system. We are IGSHPA certified and Water Furnace trained. We also have our own boring equipment to install the loops.
Don't forget about tankless water heaters. They are also on the list for rebates and incentives. The tankless water heater that we handle is 98% efficient and is not like most of the others. It stands head and shoulders above the rest. Again they are not cheap to have installed, but the long term payback is sweet.
If you have questions about any of these systems, we have the answers. Please do not hesitate to call us at 765-644-5290 or 317-773-8495.
Check out our website at: http://www.mcconnellphac.com

Where are the professionals?

2009-09-14T05:34:00.000-07:00

The dictionary defines professional as "a person who is expert at his or her work." This would, i suppose be open to interpretation to what the definition of an expert is. In my mind, one who is an expert is a person who has had many years of experience in making mistakes and learning what to do and not to do. That is what makes someone an expert. So back to my question where are the professionals? I think as it has been easy to engage in something as a business and claim that you were a professional as whatever, that is exactly what many people have done. This seems especially true in the mechanical areas of expertise. I find many home owners who have moved into a "professionally built" home and the plumbing or heating and cooling system does not operate anywhere close to acceptable. It is my frustration to have to report to them that unless they want to tear out walls and sometimes ceilings, they are stuck with a system that simply will not do the job that it was supposed to do. On occasion I can salvage the system but the fact that the home is only a few years old and they are having to totally revamp the system is beyond frustrating both to me and to them. So again having a professional install your mechanicals in your house is to me of paramount importance. Often to a builder, however, only the cost is weighed and not whether the contractor is a true professional who knows what they are doing. We are professionals who come in many times and fix what has been inadequately installed. This is what we have done for many years. It is what sets us apart from the other contractors out there. It has long been my hope to find a builder that I could work with that cared more about the quality and professionalism of the mechanical contractor than about the cost. I am not saying they are not out there, I am just saying that I have not found one yet. If you are looking to build a custom home I would suggest that you as least meet with the mechanical contractor and discuss the systems with him before just allowing the builder to pick
the mechanical contractor for you. Professionals are out there but they do cost more to have them install a job. My opinion is that it is worth the cost to get a quality system that does what it is supposed to do.
One other point that I forgot to mention, often those "professionals" that leave a home with an inadequate system are often not in business a few years later when all of the problems begin to show up. So look for a contractor that is not just builder focused but is also service focused and has been in business for a number of years.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

There are few things more important than clean air and water to our health.

2009-08-03T10:36:00.000-07:00

Often we don't think about the air we breathe and the water we drink when thinking about our health. But we deal with both of these things in our business on a daily basis. Having clean water, especially when its well water, can be acheived by the use of proper filtration. This does not happen by adding a simple water softener. We have systems that filter iron, sulfer, and many other water pollutants out. When coupled with a water softener this system can provide much cleaner and more healthy water for your family. If you want to go a step further, you can add a system for drinking water called an Reverse Osmosis Purification System. This system can make the water up to 99% pure. This water is fairly tasteless since nearly all of the minerals have been removed and it is simply water left.
On the clean air side of things, as an American Standard dealer, we have a whole house system that purifies the air. This system is slightly better than a HEPA filter but purifies the air for the entire house as the furnace or air conditioner is running. One of the challenges of air filtration is that the filters air restrictive to the air flow causing the air delivery system to work harder to deliver the same amout of air to the space. Often a really good filter becomes a really bad air restriction. This is not the case with an American Standard Accu-Clean whole house air purifier.
One other side benefit is that the system is totally cleanable and does not need parts or filters replaced periodically, only regular cleaning schedules should be followed. This saves the homeowner money as a good filter is expensive to replace again and again over many years.
Having clean air inside your house is very important as much of the contaminants that we breathe come from air that is stagnant such as that which is inside your home. Most systems are not very difficult to install and provide years of protection. I have many home owners that will testify that they love their Accu-Clean whole house system.

Questions?

765-617-4206

www.mcconnellphac.com

Common leak spots for air conditioners.

2009-06-17T05:43:00.000-07:00

One of my most common spots that I find leaking is the indoor evaporator coil. If you find that you are having to add refrigerant every year and that addition is more than a pound, you might want to have a professional check the system. As stated above the indoor coil is a common spot, however, sometimes we find that the systems are left without caps at the condenser too. This is also a likely spot to have refrigerant leaking.
If your system takes R-22 refrigerant, you may want to consider that this refrigerant is only going to be manufactured until the end of this year and this means that it will become very expensive because the only refrigerant that will be available will be recovered from old systems and returned to like new condition. Leaks on R-22 systems will likely cost a lot more next year.
Sorry for the bad news, but knowing about this now may help to avoid a more costly repair in the future.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Just What Do I Need a Home Warranty For?

2009-06-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

I am a contractor that does a lot of home warranty service calls. I have many people ask me this question. Since I am a service provider for a home warranty company, I could be considered biased. I don't think that I am but that is not what this article is about. Home Warranties, at least the company that I work for cover all of the home's mechanical devices. Obviously this is a long list of things that could and likely will fail in any given time. Your responsibility is to pay the premium which can be aout $500.00 to $1,000.00 annually and each service call placed you must pay a service fee of about $55.00 to $100.00. I have had many customers tell me that they have had two or three service calls a year and some have been substantially expensive repairs. As a rule, I think they are a very good deal. I know from my end most of my sevice calls range from $150.00 to $350.00. But let's say that your furnace goes out and needs to be replaced. They will replace it for just your service fee. This saves your budget. You will have to assess this for yourself, however, I can't see how this doesn't work in the homeowner's favor. On the other hand, the home warranty company has to make money so it must work out for their benefit as well. Let me end this article by saying that all home warranty companies are not as good as the one that I work for. In fact I deny taking calls for most of the others since they are too much trouble to deal with and they seem to want to deny as many calls as possible. This is not the case with the one I deal with. There you have it. My very opinionated opinion.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Clear the air about the tax credit

2009-06-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

First let me state the obvious. This tax credit should not be so ambiguous, but it is so I will attempt to set the record straight. A furnace must be 95% efficient or better and an air conditioner must be 16 SEER or better. A heat pump must meet 15 SEER or better. Now I realize that these terms are not familiar to most people so I will attempt to explain them. Seasonal energy efficiency rating or SEER. This is the rating of energy that is used in order to cool or heat depending on whether you have an air conditioner or heat pump. Note here that just because a piece of equipment has a particular SEER rating, does not mean that it makes the rating by itself. What I mean is that each piece of equipment must be referenced through the ARI.org site to find out which pieces coupled with others meet that rating. Saying this another way by giving an example: I can take a 16 SEER condenser and pair it with a perfectly matched cased coil made by the same company but it will not reach 16 SEER unless it is paired with a variable speed blower unit. Therefore, even if I sell you a "16 SSER" system it will not reach 16 SEER unless I install a variable speed blower unit as well. These things have to be approved through the ARI website and matched up. Don't try to do this yourself. It is hard enough for us professionals. Call a pro and they should be happy to pair up a system for you or better yet, call me and I can help.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

The Most Important Call.

2009-05-03T13:27:00.000-07:00

It seems that many of you out there won't call me until you have a major break down. Now I am not unlike you in that I would probably put off calling me until then too. But this is your encouragement to call me about your air conditioner before that major break down. We can work in a service call and clean and check and charge (if needed) very quickly and have you set for the season. All it takes is a call. If you mention that you read about this on my blog, I am offering a $49.00 discount. That is a great deal and makes it worth reading this from time to time. I also offer some of the best deals going. Preferred Client Club memberships. Basically this is what I call my service agreements. Rather than bore you with the details, you can go to my website and read about all of the benefits of being a Preferred Client Club member. This is a very good deal. Check it out.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Random Thoughts.

2009-05-01T19:18:00.000-07:00

This post does not really fit my profile per se but I am going to post it anyway. Being in business for yourself can sometimes be very disheartening. Especially in times like these when the government is dishing out bad judgement call after bad judgement call. But what can we do?
I know that the only way to stay the course and win is to keep your head up and dig in. This is what all of the inspiring Americans do. They don't throw their hands up and quit. We can make it if we continue to fight. Life is not easy. I have concluded that long before all of the economic downturns. But allowing discouragement, has no place in a sucessful person's head. Push forward and create. Think new thoughts. Ask different questions. Never loose hope. I know that this post is really about a pep talk to myself. I hope that if you are reading this maybe in some way it will help you too. When I listen, God always inspires me. He has never told me to lay down and play dead. He is my glory and the lifter of my head. He speaks in the most encouraging ways. At times when I am trying to sit down like a donkey, He is always out in front pulling- no yanking the rope and calling me to get up and move forward. Forward motion seems to be the prefered direction. Why does sitting down and staying where you are always seem like a good idea at first?
These are just my random thoughts and if you are reading them, then you must not have much else to do. Thanks for listening to me blather on and on.

Summer time blues with your frost-free hydrants.

2009-04-27T18:06:00.000-07:00

So often in the spring, I get many calls about frost-free hydrants that have frozen and burst. The reason is because they had left either their hose on or an quick couple adaptor causing ice to back up into the hydrant and cause it to burst in the wall. Many of my clients call me year after year having the same thing happen. Fortunately, Woodford Hydrants has now made available a hydrant with a spring in it to absorb the ice expansion. It is guaranteed not to freeze and burst. The bad news is that it costs about $15.00 more than a regular one. For those of you who cannot seem to remember to remove your hose in the fall, now we have your solution. One other problem that crops up is that we sometimes has a false start to spring and people get their hoses out and then we have a freeze. You know what comes next. Don't forget to remove your hoses in the early spring or the fall.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

Those who own the classic new two story house built on a concrete slab.

2009-04-26T20:23:00.000-07:00

I have been asked many times about how a client can improve the comfort of the heating and cooling system found in so many of these new homes that are built on a concrete slab and are two story. In most cases these duct systems are very poorly designed and cannot easily be changed, however, this does not mean that we are powerless to help you be more comfortable.
Most of the problems are with the great deal of temperature found between upstairs and downstairs. The easiest way to correct this problem is to install vacuum/pressure actuated computer controlled dampers and separate the upstairs from the downstairs. We could then add an upstairs thermostat to control it separately. We can generally get the temperature closer to 2-3 degrees instead of 10 degrees difference. Each house is different but we would be glad to assess your specific house and give you a free estimate. Let us know what we can do to serve you.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

What about these no salt water conditioners?

2009-04-22T13:32:00.003-07:00

I know many people have asked me about the ads that they have heard about a no salt water conditioner. They are wonderful in certain conditions. First, you must understand that they remover nothing from your water. They are not to be confused with a water softener which removes through ion exchange particles and minerals of certain types. A water softener uses the salt to rechage the resin bed while then attracting those minerals to the resin and flushing them out during regeneration. The "Easy Water" system on the other hand does nothing to remove anything but it does a very good job of changing the mineral structure so that if you are only dealing with hardness, they do a great job of making those minerals not stick to pipes or fixtures.

If your only concern is hardness, then an "Easy Water" is a great choice. However, if you have iron or other issues, those would need to be addressed by a different type of system. I think an "Easy Water" system is a great way to protect a water heater and your fixtures. The other obvious benefit is that they use no salt and require no maintenance. The cost of an "Easy Water" is about the same as a water softener.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

Why Should I Buy a Service Agreement?

2009-04-19T14:55:00.000-07:00

Service agreements (at least my service agreements) don't just provide our customers with two cleanings, one in the spring for the air conditioner and one in the fall for your furnace, but they also provide our customers with priority service status and a 15% discount on any service performed on your equipment. But let's set aside the priority status and the 15% discount for a minute and examine the other benefits. First, a service agreement is priced at a very discounted rate for the services performed. That means that if you were to call me for a furnace cleaning and not have a service agreement, it could cost as much as the price of the entire one year service agreement but would only get a furnace cleaning. On top of that you get the other benefits. Why would we offer this discount? Because we can schedule the cleanings on our time and keep our schedule full when we have off times. Plus the service agreement ties us to our customers and gives us the opportunity to serve our customers better. I would invite you to visit my website and click on the Preferred Client Club tab. That explains our service agreements in detail. As always feel free to contact me through my website.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

What happened to the days when your word meant something?

2009-04-18T20:43:00.000-07:00

I often get mistified by the fact that some clients of mine are so appreciative of the fact that I simply return a phone call. I just have to think, that that is what you are supposed to do, isn't it?
Well obviously these days that is a rarity. I have always treated people the way I wanted to be treated. And I don't want to have a call not returned. But what about doing what you say you will do?
Well, this too seems to be something that is harder to find. When I tell someone that we will do something, we will do it. I don't make false promises. Now this seems to be simple common sense and of course, something that everyone should do but, I find this too to be not so common.
If you struggle to find someone that you can trust with your mechanical systems, there should be no question who to call. We will treat you like we would want to be treated. Our word is as good as gold and you can take it to the bank.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

I fixed that furnace myself!!

2009-04-15T17:54:00.000-07:00

One of the most common problems I see is that the flame sensor needs cleaning. What is a flame sensor, you ask? The flame sensor is a stainless steel rod that has a ceramic base and on one side is the rod and the other is a wire that runs to the ignition board. This wire tells the board if there is a flame or not. Often the only thing needed is to take some sandpaper and clean the SS rod until it is shiny again. You can't hurt it by cleaning it because it is just a piece of stainless rod.

The syptom to tell you that that is the problem is: The furnace will cycle on and off several times and eventually will go into lockout (a state where the furnace will no longer try to light until it is reset). If you are experiencing this problem, try those steps. You just might save yourself a service call and be able to say: I fixed that furnace myself!

Old school fixtures in a throw away era.

2009-04-15T17:31:00.000-07:00

Many of us hate to throw anything useful away. If you are like me (and you may not be) you hate to see something that seems to have a lot of life left in it be just thrown away. Unfortunately, we live in an era when the labor involed to fix something old and outdated is so expensive that you are better off just buying a new ---fill in the blank. Now before you give me a well duh, about this post, let me give you an example. I frequently run across old faucets that a customer wants repaired. Now depending on where the faucet is installed and how difficult it is to replace, it could be cheaper to put in new ones than to repair the old. This, of course, depends on how old they are. Often I am asked to repair an old toilet. The thing about toilets that many people do not realize is that they get minerals built up inside the china and around the trapway and just because you replace every component on the toilet, it may not flush well. This is especially true if you have hard water and no softener. There are many other examples of throw away products these days. I hate to see it be like that but for the sake of you the client, I have to keep in mind that often it is better to suggest replacement rather than repair. Now, if you are one of the kinds of clients that just wants it fixed. We can and will do that even if it costs more. You are our boss.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

Tough economic times call for better solutions.

2009-04-13T20:58:00.000-07:00

Those of you who are in need of a water heater but can't afford it. This is a win win solution made just for you.

I know that there are times in all of our lives when we just don't have the upfront cash to buy what we really need. If that is you, and you need a new water heater, this is the deal for you.

I can install a new water heater for as little as $15.00 a month with only a two year contract. After that you can give it back or continue to rent, it is up to you. There are no upfront costs and no maintenance fees. All you need is good credit and the monthly fee. That should take care of your water heater blues. This is a simple program and it can save you a lot of out of pocket cash.

Give me a shout and I can give you a mechanical solution.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Problems with well water?

2009-04-10T12:17:00.000-07:00

Many people who live with well water encounter varying types of mineral contents. Many deal with not just one type of mineral but, at least two. We will start with iron since that seems to be the most annoying and the most common. Iron can be dealt with by using a standard softener if it is in very low concentrations. However, rarely do I see in small enough concentrations to be dealt with by using a water softener. Most of the time it must be aerated and filtered. By using air you oxygenate the water and the iron drops into a filterable state. We then have a special type media in a filter container that separates the iron back out of the water. From there the water is usually run through a standard water softener to remove the hardness from it.

Let's talk about some of the other things that are commonly found in well water. Magnesium, the black mineral that usually comes out in small pieces and makes the water smell. Magnesium takes a special filter to remove it and a water softener will do some good with it but it also is best dealt with by designing a system specifically for magnesium removal.

One more contaminating mineral or should I say gas: Sulfur. Sulfur is a nasty gas and makes the water smell like rotten eggs. Often when you have magnesium, you also have sulfur. Sulfur must be also aerated to remove the gas and then run through a special filter to remove the sulfur gas. As you can see, having well water can cause differing types of problems but properly addressed and having your water thoroughly tested, we can design a system that will have you using well water as if it were softened city water. The bad news is that the first cost of such a system can be somewhat pricy. We can handle any challenging well water problems. Just give us a call.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Just exactly what is a hybrid heating system?

2009-04-08T06:43:00.000-07:00

Just what is a hybrid heating system? Well for this article, it is a heat pump coupled with a standard high efficiency gas furnace. In the midwest we have enough days that the heat pump will provide a fairly good amount of the heat needed during the spring and fall months. By using the heat pump during these times one can save a lot of energy cost, since the heat pump at mid-temperatures is producing most, if not all the heat needed for the conditioned space. For an example, in this area you could save as much as $800.00 annually by using a hybrid system.

If you do the math that is: $4,000.00 in 5 years. This will more than pay for the upgrade to a hybrid system. It is

Where the gas furnace comes in is when those temperatures fall below the point that the heat pump can produce the space heating. The gas furnace is then turned on and the heat pump switched off. This type of system is very efficent and does not double the cost of the total package. We are seeing very good results from this type of system. If you have a need to lower your heating bills, this might be the solution you are looking for. We are available to arrange a free estimate.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com/

Help with no strings attached.

2009-04-07T13:02:00.000-07:00

I have people call me frequently and ask questions. I often end up coaching them through fixing the problem if they are mechanical at all. Having this type of open door policy adds value to using my company. I hope that when they have something that they cannot handle they will remember that I was the one who helped them and call me for service.
I have been in this business about 20 years and 20 years in this type of service business gives me a vast array of experiences. I am often reminded that I haven't seen it all. And I am continually humbled by the continual learning that I must do to keep on top of my game. We have new products all the time and we are expected to learn them and be able to fix them. Now I will not tell you that I know everything, but I can find out from somewhere the info needed to fix your problem. You have to be like a hound dog on a scent when it comes to fixing peoples problems. That is why they call you. They don't want to think about it. That is exactly what we do. Fix problems!!

www.mcconnellphac.com

Why should anyone use First Class Heating and Air Conditioning Equipment?

2009-04-07T06:13:00.000-07:00

This is an important question. Using first class equipment may cost a little more up front, but in the long run, you receive longer service and greater comfort due to the design. American Standard has made cutting edge developments in the heating and air conditioning equipment markets. They continue to be on the edge with new products that will shape the industry. We have chosen to carry their product because it has served our customers extremely well. We are very proud of history of service that American Standard Products have given us.

One of the many reasons we prefer their products is: They use standardized parts and not something that is special and hard to find. We also have found that their extended warranties are extremely inexpensive proving that they have a very impressive track record of low warranty claims. American Standard has a very full product line which gives us flexibility to offer many various types of equipment from one great manufacturer. American Standard is the same equipment as Trane they have had a great track record for manufacturing for many years.
American Standard uses their own patented and tested compressor which has been around and been proven since Trane bought the General Electric Equipment line. Other manufacturers use third party venders to supply their compressors but American Standard has their own.

Grinder Pumps: Love-Hate relationship

2009-04-07T04:19:00.000-07:00

Those of you who own a grinder pump and I know you know who you are. This is a very necessary item for you but one that has with it, many frustrations. First of all, any mechanical device that runs in sewage is going to have some difficulty. That being said, I open this subject not to be a place for you to whine, but to be a point for questions to be answered. I have worked on all different types of grinder pumps and the one for residential use that I recommend is Environment One. www.eone.com. This company has been around for more years than most of the other companies put together.
Now for the tech stuff. Most of these systems are installed on what is called a force main. That simply means the main sewer line is pressurized by the pumps that are pumping into them. These force mains are sized by the target load expected. The problem is that once a system is installed more people want to tie into the system than originally planned. This happens all the time in my town. That becomes a problem because the system was designed for "x" amount of gallons per minute and when that amount is exceeded, the pumps (if they are cetrifugal in design) begin to stop working. This is where an Environment One Pump comes in. An E-one pump does not use centrifugal force to pump. It uses a stator and rotor which creates a positive pressure pumping system. What that means is that it will pump up to a mile straight up into the air or a very long way horizontal or against a somewhat high force main pressure. The other advantage is that they only produce 10-12 gallons a minute when pumping. This means that you can install many more of these systems on a smaller force main without overloading it. With standard grinder pumps (the ones that use centrifugal force to pump) you have any where from 30 to 50 gpm or more with a pretty small amount of head pressure. (Head pressure is the pressure exerted against a pump totaled from all friction losses and inches of water column pressure on the outlet side of the pump.) After you reach the limit with standard grinder pumps they will no longer pump. This is what leads to pump stations not pumping during peak times and then when the peak time passes they will then begin pumping again. There is another problem with these pumps that many do not see as a problem. That is that they pump so much so fast that they load the system quickly. The more of these pumps that you put on the system the quicker it is fully loaded. Now you may be able to see why I prefer and use E-one pumps.
There is another reason that I prefer E-one pumps. I will explain, but first I will talk about the other systems. Other grinder pump stations use what are called float switches. (if you have them you know what a pain they are) These types of switches are very prone to getting junk, grease whatever balled up on them and cause them to not operater properly. They also often get tangled up on things inside the pit like piping and the pump. In short they create nuisance failures. This is where an environment one pump outshines them all. They have a very reliable pressure switch that uses a natural air column built into the pump to switch on and off the pump and the alarm. This proves to be a very reliable system. I have had pumps that have gone 15 years without ever being touched. Now tell me that isn't impressive. A mechanical device that functions in sewage for 15 years and never needs service.
Now I am not saying that every one will do that but I have had several that have.
There are some precautions that many owners do not know about. If you own an E-one pump, never run egg shells through it. Do not wash paint or drywall mud down the drain. Do not put fish tank gravel, sand, kitty litter or anything that creates a sandy gritty slurry. The pumping action is made from rubber and will quickly deteriorate. All other types of normal sewer things can be put through them. They do quite well at the grinding and making slurry of it for disposal.
If there are comments or questions, feel free to post them.

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

Losing Grid Power.

2009-04-06T06:21:00.000-07:00

There are a number of things to consider when you lose power. Most of the obvious I will skip. I want this to be about more technical aspects.
1:Your sump pump (if you have one)
Most of the time when a power outage happens it is also raining, which leads to a greater need to have your sump pump. Many people have finished basements that need to be protected so they opt to install a battery back up sump pump. Here is where the technical comes in. Most (or should I say many) of the battery back up sump pumps out there have very poor gallons per minute pumping ablility. But this is very important since the standard (115v) plug in sump pumps pump about 22-60 gallons per minute. On the other hand, the battery back up systems rarely come close to that.
The backup systems range from about 7 gpm (gallons per minute) at 10' of head to 36 gpm at 10' of head. This, as you can see, is a large disparity between pumps. When you also factor in that this comes at a time when the rain is falling and the power is out, this is a big problem. There is yet another problem in that most all of the battery back up systems only run for about a maximum of 8 hours on a battery charge.
This brings me to the next solution: Buy a standby generator.
I have brought on the Generac Guardian line of generators to resolve this problem and it is often a solution to many other situations at the same time. Not to mention the fact that it is extremely convienent. Guardian Generators come in many different sizes and can be easily fitted to each ones needs. The best part about using these systems is that they are completely automatic and switch from grid power to backup power without you having to do a thing. And then when the power returns they switch back. This is to me is the best of all solutions because with a guardian generator you get not just a sump pump that works but also most of the rest of the house or at least the vital systems.
I have had customers that have been on vacation and didn't know the power went out and returned to find their basement flooded. This is when you can see the benefit of an automatic system to protect your basement.

www.mcconnellphac.com

Tired of running out of hot water?

2009-04-06T04:27:00.000-07:00

The top 3 reasons to own a Navien Tankless Water Heater

1: Save Money Every Year!

Did you know that the average savings for a tankless water heater is $160 annually. A Navien tankless water heater is an “Energy Star” approved device and qualifies for a federal tax credit of 30% or up to $1500 on your taxes. Even better, if you have Vectren Energy as your natural gas provider they offer $150 rebate for installing this device.

2: Never Run Out of Hot Water!

No matter how much hot water you need a tankless water heater is up to the challenge. Large family or small, you will have all the hot water you ever want. You will never need to take a cold shower again…ever!

3: Tankless Water Heaters are Better For the Environment!

Because the Navien tankless water heater is 98% efficient, that means only 2% of the gas used is vented as exhaust. This requires less use of our natural resources to do a better job of heating the water for your home. The reason Navien is more efficient than other tankless water heaters is because it uses dual stainless steel heat exchangers instead of copper. Stainless steel is much more efficient and last longer which means less maintenance and expense for you.

These are the reasons I only carry the Navien brand.

A couple of other pieces of information about installing a tankless water heater.

Most of the time when changing from a tank type water heater to a tankless water heater a new vent will have to be run and the gas line will have to be checked and often upsized. A 115v. power supply will have to be run to the tankless as most tank type water heaters do not need power. These are the factors that add to the cost of switching to a tankless water heater and cause the "first cost" to be so high. After installation, however, the benefits start kicking in and you will never want to go back.

One more thing that is very important to add here. If you live with hard water and lime build up is a problem, you will want some type of protection for your new water heater, otherwise it will lime up very quickly. Because a tankless water heater heats the water quickly in one pass the lime precipitates out of the water in a much greater way. In fact anytime you heat water, the faster you heat it the more lime becomes a problem. This is why I recommend adding at the very least a softner, or a Freije water conditioner to keep your new water heater clean and operational.

Don't forget to have fun living with endless hot water.

For more information about this and other products see my website

http://www.mcconnellphac.com

Introduction of this blogsite.

2009-04-05T16:05:00.000-07:00

This being the first installment of my brand new blog site, I thought I would start by introducing myself. First, My name is Chuck McConnell. I am the owner of McConnell Plumbing, Heating, & Air Conditioning. I have been in the mechanical skills area for about 21 years. Of those years I have had my own company for 17 years. This purpose of this is to post mechanical solutions that I have encountered. I will attempt to be as informative as possible. I am not the best teacher so I will give it my best to make answers as simple but informative. If there are questions, I intend to answer them quickly and completely. Thanks for visiting and I hope this will prove to be a place for answers to your questions.