HVAC BOB - Your Trusted HVAC Resource

Now that college is finally out, I am looking forward to spending time with my youngsters.

Typically, my associate and I would visit the amusement parks, the zoos, and museums in the area. Plus, I will throw in some beach days along the way. However, over the last couple of years, my youngsters have lost interest in these places, and not to mention that they complained about the heat when my associate and I decided to go to the amusement parks. I must disclose the heat can be quite brutal, especially when you’re sitting on a line for 2 or more hours for 1 ride. So of course, this year, I am skipping the amusement parks all together. Instead, I have found indoor playgrounds and amusement centers with climate control. There are no lines to wait on and since they will be indoors in an air conditioned space, there will be no complaining about the heat. Aside from having climate control, one of the best things about these indoor playgrounds and amusement centers is that they cost far less than a trip to amusement parks. Furthermore, the youngsters can play at their leisure with undoubtedly little supervision. Personally, I see this as a win for both my pockets in addition to for my sanity. I wish I would have made this switch to these climate controlled playgrounds years ago. While I am happy that I made the switch to climate controlled playgrounds, I would still like to take the youngsters to the beach. If only there was a portable climate controlled canopy on the market that would be a lifesaver. This is something I need to research because I actually don’t want to skip the beach as well.

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Now that the Summer is right around the corner, I have been thinking about preparing for the warmer months ahead.

Every year, I have a checklist of things that I do around this time of year to make sure that my Summer comes & goes without any hiccups. The one year that I neglected my checklist, I had the worst 48 hours that I could’ve imagined. Two years ago, I decided to skip getting my Heating & A/C component ran tests on. And unbeknownst to me, that Summer ended up being one of the hottest on record. If I knew that the Summer would be that brutal, I would’ve figured out a way to schedule my Heating & A/C repair appointment. Well, I chose not to & that year, my Heating & A/C component broke down in July on a afternoon where the hot & cold temperatures hit a high of 102 degrees. It was a record for the state that I live in & turns out, I wasn’t the only guy who ended up with a broken a/c on that afternoon. When I called my Heating & A/C provider for emergency service, I was told that it would take 48 hours before an Heating & A/C business could repair my unit, then due to the heat, I decided that I should sleep in a hotel, but nothing was available for a sufficient price. So, I did the next best thing & purchased a fan because I believe that it would’ve helped to bring some relief. It did not, & for 48 hours, I was irritated due to the heat. Needless to say, since then. I have never skipped my Heating & A/C appointment. In fact, aside from changing my air filter, scheduling an Heating & A/C repair is one of the first things I do to prepare for the warmer weather.

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I am grateful that I have a private backyard because it has become my current office space.

On nicer mornings, I grab my kindle in the morning & lay & work outside for hours.

I live in a pretty quiet neighborhood with mostly working class adults, so during the afternoon it’s pretty quiet which means I can get a lot done. Aside from the parakeets chirping, the only noise that interrupts the silence is the Heating & A/C units. I live in a townhome & all the Heating & A/C units for me & for my neighbors are located in the same spot in our backyards. So, when I lay here during the afternoon, I can hear when the a/cs cycle on & off. And when I pay attention to the noise, I have noticed that my a/c cycles on the least of all my neighbors. When I lay outside, I make sure to increase the temperature on my control component because there is no need to run my Heating & A/C component for long when I am not inside the house. My component is set on 76 & sometimes 73 degrees, & by the frequency of their Heating & A/C cycling on & off, I can tell that my neighbors have their control component set at lower hot & cold temperatures. I live in between 2 houses, which means I have neighbors to my left & to my right, & to my proficiency they are away during the afternoon. So, it would be to their benefit to increase the temperature on their control component because it would conserve energy & save them money on their electric bill. Moreover, it would mean that their A/Cs would cycle on less, which would be more peaceful for me.

 

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A few mornings ago, my cousin James from Britain called, & my buddy and I were randomly catching up with each other.

• Prior to that call, it had been a few months since my buddy and I talked, so there was lots for us to talk about.

At one point, my buddy and I had small talk about the weather, & I was telling him that it was 90 degrees here. After my buddy and I did the conversion, he exclaimed how hot that was. But I assured him that I was comfortable inside because I had the a/c running on high. I further explained that the heat isn’t a sizable deal here because most sites have a/cs & I run my a/c in my vehicle when I go out. Unlike our relatives across the pond, 90% of American households have some form of A/C. That number is far less for our European relatives, where the number is more like one out of every 10 households that have or use A/C. In their defense, the Summers are much milder than it is here, so in some cases, having A/C would be a waste of resources. However, over the last couple of years, they have experienced heat waves where the hot & cold temperatures became unbearable, & to be honest, I am not sure how they were able to survive without A/C. Personally, if I lived in Britain, I would install a window a/c in my home. I would rather have one handy & not need it, than need an a/c & not have it. To me that makes more sense in the grand ploy of things.

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My sibling finally decided to make the leap & live off-grid. This is something that he has been talking about for years. He prefers the idea of living outside of the neighborhood away from the hum & buzz of everyday life. He is also a minimalist who believes that my buddy and I don’t need much to survive. While I am not against a minimalist lifestyle, it is something that I would have to get used to. After all, there are particular luxuries that I have had for most of my life that I am not willing to supply up. One such luxury is central A/C. When I guess about living off-grid that’s the first thing that pops into my mind – no A/C. While discussing off-grid living with my sibling, he did mention that some of the homes are equipped with A/C. And though it’s not a full Heating & A/C unit, some homes do have easily comfortable weather conditions control. For instance, he installed a ductless mini split a/c inside his off-grid home. He powers it using solar panels, which he said runs the a/c well even on the hottest of mornings. Not that I don’t believe my sibling, but my worst fear is to be stuck inside one of these off-grid houses without a working a/c. It’s just one of those luxuries that I need to have for comfort. My sibling invited me to spend the evening inside his off-grid condo a few times, but I am yet to take him up on that invitation. Perhaps, I will wait until the weather gets a bit cooler outside, where my buddy and I won’t need the a/c to remain comfortable inside his off-grid home.

 

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