HVAC Repair Tips for Homeowners

I hated when my husband started bad mouthing people he didn’t know.

• He has slurs for people that I would wash my kids out with soap for using.

When he started talking about the HVAC technician, I had enough. He was telling me how HVAC technicians were no better than dentists. They put you through a lot of misery and charge you huge amounts of money for it. I told him they may charge money, but without either one, you wouldn’t be comfortable. I knew there was some pain that went with going to the dentist, but you were able to eat better, and have a nice smile. The HVAC technician worked on the air conditioning and furnace for you. He didn’t have anything to do with how much it was going to cost, but he had to go to school to learn what he was doing. That meant it was going to be a higher price for his fees, the parts on the HVAC system, and for a new HVAC when it is needed. He made a face, threw his hands up, and walked away from me. He didn’t want to hear it when he knew I was right. The thing that brought this argument was, when I told him we needed to call the HVAC technician. I guess I’m going to hear an argument again, when I call the HVAC technician and he arrives to look at the furnace. I’m pretty sure we’re going to need a new one before winter. I may not even tell my husband when the HVAC is supposed to arrive.

 

heated floors

We visited my mom after a long time away.

Ever since I got married my mom has not seen our three kids.

She could face-time and speak to the eldest kids but she still lined up to hold them like any grandma would. Unfortunately, due to the illness that restricted her mobility, my mom couldn’t travel as much as she wanted. Flying was out of the picture for her especially because we lived three cities away from her in a different state. My wife and I planned to surprise my mom this time round by going to her home without giving her notice. The look on her face was priceless as she hugged, kissed, and praised us for giving her beautiful grandchildren. We planned to stay with mom for two weeks as she got to enjoy the company of her grandkids. On the third day of our stay here, we noticed strange sounds coming from the basement. Our two older children were sleeping but my wife and I took turns to take care of the youngest. Ever since we visited mom, she had been fussy and we assumed that it was an issue of climate change. It was during this period that we heard strange sounds coming from the basement. At first we thought we had imagined it but when the sounds intensified at around 2pm, it became a concern. My wife was scared that the house could be haunted and ghosts were roaming around. When morning ame, we asked my mom what the issue was. She complained of how the boiler downstairs must have been making noise. I called the HVAC technician to come check out the heating system the next day. It turns out that some of the internal components in the HVAC equipment were breaking down hence the loud banging. On the directive of the HVAC professional, we decided to buy mom a new heating and cooling unit. After all, her grandkids will be visiting more often now and we wanted them to be comfortable.

 

air conditioning filter

The house needed a new furnace to help us through winter.

Covid hit hard and some of the people in my industry were affected. Working in the service industry,especially the hospitality industry has never been the same ever since the days of Covid pandemic. For instance, we lost a large percentage of our income because of losing hours during lockdowns. In an economy that is already hard, life hasn’t been easy to cope up with. Currently, we are only earning 70 percent of what we earned pre-covid season. Things became too tight for me and my family that I was struggling to pay rent. After discussing it with my wife, we agreed that it would be easier on us if we moved into the lakehouse she had inherited from her great aunt. Before her passing, my wife’s aunt willed her old lakehouse to her favorite niece who happens to be my wife. She wanted to leave her most prized possession to someone she knew would take proper care of it. My wife loved spending her younger days with her aunt in the lake house so it was an easy decision to see why she would will it to her. Before we opted to go live there, she had been renting the house for a year since her aunt’s passing. With things becoming tighter each passing day, we gave the tenants notice and planned to move in. Before then, though, we needed to work on improving the HVAC system. The house needed a new furnace to help us through winter. I called the HVAC business in town to help with the new furnace installation. We also got a few portable space heaters to supplement the wood stove and new furnace. The idea was to work on replacing both the heating and cooling system gradually until the house can run on proper air conditioning. For now we are happy to have somewhere to put our head.

indoor air cleaning system

Two days later, Ricky told me he was not in a position to pick me.

Ricky picked me from my work place one evening as usual. Winter was around the corner and it was beginning to get a bit chilly than normal. I didn’t worry about the cold since I knew Ricky’s car came with a perfect air conditioning unit. All I needed to do was switch on the heater and we will be good to go. To my surprise, when U settled into Rciky’s car, the heater couldn’t come on. I struggled to keep warm and kept rubbing my hands for a while. When I asked him what happened to his car heating system, he dismissed it as a minor issue that he is yet to fix. Apparently this has been going on for a while and he was waiting for the right time to take the car to the mechanic. Knowing Ricky, this may not happen any time soon. He has a bad habit of putting things off until it is almost too late to act. I didn’t push it further and decided to leave matters. My strategy to combat the cold weather was to dress warmly and keep myself comfortable despite the cold. After all, I was in the car for only 15 minutes each way. Two days later, Ricky told me he was not in a position to pick me. It turns out that the heater was completely broken. It was bad that some of the internal components of his car were freezing. The mechanic said that it would be dangerous to drive around without a new vehicle and a better HVAC unit.

smart thermostat