HVAC Repair Tips for Homeowners

Some of our kids were aggravated when I had to cancel their summer plans and extracurriculars, but I reminded them that getting the a/c fixed would be such a relief and a return to normalcy! Everyone has had trouble sleeping, since every one of us likes to keep the temperature control at a genuinely cold sixty-two degrees at night, so I was also able to use that promise to calm them down

My husband and I have a very large family. Life can get crazy with all the responsibilities that I have to juggle. Most of the time, I can handle things, but every now and then a real wrench is thrown into the works. This time around it was our air conditioner completely breaking down. When I tell you that this couldn’t have happened at a worse time, I mean it. It’s the middle of August and we live in a very hot part of the country. As a result, the cost to update an a/c is exponentially higher than it would be due to the busy season. Me and my family were planning a lot of mini getaways, so having our HVAC system break was definitely not a part of the plan. I even had a difficult time scheduling an HVAC mechanic to come out and examine our broken a/c. I am rarely home, plus the HVAC supplier was almost entirely booked. Some of our kids were aggravated when I had to cancel their summer plans and extracurriculars, but I reminded them that getting the a/c fixed would be such a relief and a return to normalcy! Everyone has had trouble sleeping, since every one of us likes to keep the temperature control at a genuinely cold sixty-two degrees at night, so I was also able to use that promise to calm them down. It was a headache, but everyone was happy when we were able to get that taken care of.

Heating tune up

My great aunt has been in and out of the hospital for several weeks.

• It’s been pretty difficult because the hospital staff is having difficulty diagnosing her illness.

I am sure that the whole process has been trying on her mind, body, and soul. I have been going to see her about every other day since I work near the hospital. One of the things I can’t stand about going to see her is that the hospital air conditioning is way over the top. It brings back bad memories of how chilly the air conditioning was in the hospital when my grandpa was dying. My great aunt hates it and asks the nurse every single day to adjust the thermostat. Her nurse consistently tells her no, because the a/c has to be set at a particular temperature for the entire hospital. It is impossible to change the personal temperature control in each room. Perhaps the hospital should invest in zone controlled heating and air. They should also implement smart temperature controls so that the patients can have access to the thermostat from their bed, since some of them are immobile. I suppose this might be very expensive for the hospital, so instead, I bring my great aunt extra blankets that she can use to get as warm as she needs to get. I entirely hope that they find the cause of her condition soon, because this is a trying situation for me and my great-aunt.

 

Space heater

I have the world’s worst allergies.

Sometimes I get hit with allergy attacks that are so bad I have to call out of work.

I have become adept at fighting my allergy symptoms with all sorts of home remedies, but ultimately I have to wait for my body to recover. Something that I found especially helpful is to offer my body heat by prostrating myself directly in front of a gas furnace or using a heated water technique. I believe it’s beneficial for our bodies to sweat things out when they aren’t feeling well, so at times, I sit in front of our portable gas furnace for relief. If it isn’t too hot outside and my allergies are being particularly annoying, I will really turn up the temperature control so that the whole house becomes deliciously warm. I can’t say that my energy bill benefits from this practice, but I am thankful that I have an energy-saving heater. Another way one could help his or her allergies is to set up a portable gas furnace and sit in front of it for a bit. I’d only propose doing this for a couple of hours at a time because those oil furnaces get incredibly hot and having that direct heat on your face for too long can be unkind to your skin. The last method of relieving an allergy attack is to use the gas furnace from a steam inhaler, which is kind of like a water gas furnace that opens up the sinus passages. I like finding weird, but effective ways to take care of my body.

 

central heater

My parents finally paid off their home after 30 years.

Over those years, they had made several renovations to the point that I barely recognize my childhood home.

As I returned to visit them, my sense of nostalgia began to fade as the house changed. I still question their most recent renovation, which was to replace their central air conditioning device with a multi split air conditioning unit. From what I can see, a multi split air conditioning device involves multiple small units that are spread throughout the house, which provide cool air in the same way that a window A/C device might. In contrast, a central air conditioning unit has air vents spread throughout the house that push out air that comes from a central air conditioning unit, usually stored in some sort of closet or other such closed-off space. The house has made due with a central air conditioning device for all its existence, so I was shocked that they decided to downgrade it to an inferior approach. Their rationale was that they don’t often go upstairs, because their family room is on the first floor, so having a central air conditioning device providing air for up there was a waste. I still feel that making the switch to a multi split air conditioning device likely decreased the value of the home. I remain unconvinced it was a sound long-term decision. I wish they had consulted me before making such a significant decision like this, but maybe they knew I would disapprove.

 

New air conditioning information