Kilowatt Heating, Air Conditioning and Electrical Blog: Archive for the ‘Air Conditioning’ Category

Does Your AC Have Enough Space to “Breathe”?

Monday, September 6th, 2021

Most homes with central air conditioners have split systems. These are air conditioners with a set of indoor and outdoor units. The indoor unit contains the evaporator coil and the air handler that sends cooled air into the ventilation system. The outdoor unit, also known as the condenser, is a cabinet that holds the compressor, evaporator coil, and exhaust fan.

Any resident of Southern California knows the sight of these outdoor condenser units. They’re usually located along the side of a house or in the backyard, sometimes disguised behind a fence because people generally don’t find them the most beautiful part of the outside decor. Homeowners sometimes try to hide condensers behind shrubs or other plants, making them disappear into the landscaping. Unfortunately, this can lead to serious AC problems! The condenser of a central air conditioner must have a clear area around it to give it room to “breathe,” as we’ll explain below.

Tags: Air Conditioning Maintenance, Air Conditioning Repair, Burbank
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Should I Shut Off My AC When I’m Away From Home?

Monday, August 23rd, 2021

The central air conditioning system is one of the biggest consumers of electricity in a house. When the AC goes into active cooling mode and powers the compressor, it can use on average 3,500 watts per hour. The only appliance that might use more is an electric water heater.

Because AC’s can take up such a significant chunk of your electrical budget during a hot So. Cal summer, it makes sense to limit how much you have it running. This is why we recommend keeping the thermostat at around 78°F during the day: it’s a comfortable temperature that won’t force the air conditioner to run too long.

What about when you’re away from home? It sounds like it makes sense to just turn the AC off so it won’t use any power. The situation isn’t so simple, however. Unless you plan to be away from home for several weeks, we advise you to keep the air conditioner on—but not necessarily at the same settings.

Tags: Air Conditioning Repair, Air Conditioning Tips, Van Nuys
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Think You Need a Bigger AC? You Might … Or You Might Not

Monday, August 9th, 2021

A common misconception about air conditioning systems we often encounter is that if an AC isn’t providing enough cooling for a home, the best solution is to upgrade to a bigger air conditioner. On the surface, this seems like a rational basic choice. Sometimes it is the best step: an air conditioning system that’s too small for the house it’s supposed to cool is the wrong AC for the house.

However, if you’ve had the same AC working in your home for several years and have only recently encountered the problem with poor cooling, going to a bigger air conditioner is a mistake. The air conditioner is the correct size to meet your cooling needs, but something else has gone wrong. You might need repairs for the system, or perhaps a new air conditioning installation in Los Angeles, CA—but not necessarily a bigger new air conditioner.

Tags: Air Conditioning Repair, Air Conditioning Replacement, Los Angeles
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Can an Air Conditioner Ever Become Dangerous?

Monday, July 12th, 2021

If you use a gas furnace to heat your home, there is some potential for the furnace to become dangerous. Toxic gas and combustion dangers can occur if the furnace isn’t given proper regular care. It’s not difficult to avoid these hazards with a gas furnace, but it’s important to know about the possibilities.

What about air conditioning systems? Can an AC malfunction in a way that creates hazards for your home? The answer is yes, but they’re different from natural gas concerns. They occur with extremely old ACs, and the best way to avoid these problems is to make sure you don’t keep an air conditioner that’s long past its estimated service life, i.e. more than 15 years.

We’ll take a look at how an old air conditioning system can create health concerns.

Tags: Air Conditioning Maintenance, Air Conditioning Replacement, Burbank
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Still Have an R-22 Air Conditioner? It’s Time to Replace It

Monday, June 28th, 2021

You can look for many different signs that you have an over-the-hill air conditioner ready for a replacement. General age is a good measure: most ACs don’t last far beyond 15 years. You can also watch for declines in efficiency that create higher electric bills, or a run of expensive repairs that indicate a system approaching the end of the line.

One sign it’s time to repair your AC that is absolute is if it’s an R-22 unit. If you have an R-22 air conditioning system, arrange to have a replacement put in as soon as you can—otherwise, it will force you to replace it at some point when it’s much less convenient for you.

Tags: Air Conditioning Repair, Air Conditioning Replacement, Burbank
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Understanding How Much Electricity an Air Conditioner Uses

Monday, May 17th, 2021

When the summer starts, you know to expect a rise in monthly electric bills. Air conditioning systems require large amounts of electricity to run, and as soon as you start to regularly turn on the AC, you’ll see an increase in electrical usage.

In this post, we’re going to look closer at the amount of electricity your AC consumes and the difference in electrical consumption compared to other appliances. If you’ve ever wondered what’s the difference between “cooling” and “fan only” mode on your AC, this is the post for you.

Tags: Air Conditioning System Installation, ceiling fans, Los Angeles
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Get Ready for Summer Weather With AC Maintenance

Monday, May 3rd, 2021

Do you want to bring your home life to a halt this summer because you need an emergency AC repair in Van Nuys, CA—or elsewhere in our service area? Of course you don’t, although you can always rely on our technicians to come through for you in case this happens.

But we’re here to talk about repair prevention today, and that’s only part of what you’ll get when you have your AC maintained before the summer heat arrives.

Tags: Air Conditioning Maintenance, Van Nuys
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Can I Save Money By Getting a Used AC System?

Monday, October 5th, 2020

This is a question that occasionally crops up because people are used to hunting for bargains with used items. Often, buying “pre-owned” is great. Used books still have the same text, most used CDs and Blu-rays will run fine, and the used car is a classic.

But a used central air conditioner? Is that a possibility?

No. No it is not. No HVAC professional recommends purchasing used air conditioning systems. It won’t save money and will probably cost far more than getting a new system. It’s also simply not practical. Below we’ll go through the reasons why a “pre-owned” AC belongs in the recycling yard, not your house.

Tags: Air Conditioning Installation, Air Conditioning Replacement, Van Nuys
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The Older Home AC Solution

Monday, September 21st, 2020

We’re a full-service air conditioning contractor for Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. But we go beyond full service to specialize in areas other contractors don’t. One of our specializations is older homes. Vintage homes have specific requirements when it comes to comfort because they were constructed in times when central air conditioning was uncommon in Southern California. For decades, window AC units were the only effective way to deliver any type of electro-mechanical cooling to these houses.

But we can add air conditioning to older homes that are much better than window units. We would love to offer you the air conditioning service in Van Nuys, CA that allows you to get rid of those ugly and inefficient window ACs and enjoy quality cooling around the house. We know how to bring older homes up to modern air conditioning standards.

Tags: Ductless Air Conditioning, older home specialists, Van Nuys
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Has Your AC Come to the End of the Line at the End of Summer?

Monday, September 7th, 2020

The heat has subsided in Southern California after an intense heatwave. It’s still hot, but we’ve eased down to temperatures that require less work from air conditioning systems.

(Friendly reminder: Your AC can lower the temperature indoors by a maximum of 20°F. You never want to push it to lower the temperature farther than this. So if it’s 95°F, don’t set the thermostat lower than 75°F. In fact, aim for 78°F for best energy savings.)

Now that we’re moving toward cooler temperatures, it’s a good time to look at your AC and consider if it’s ready to retire. Planning an AC installation in Van Nuys, CA during October or November is an ideal time for the job.

But is your AC ready to go? You don’t want to replace it if it still has a few years of solid and efficient performance left.

Tags: Air Conditioning Installation, Air Conditioning Repair, Air Conditioning Replacement, Van Nuys
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