Bob Mims Heating & Air Conditioning Blog : Archive for the ‘Heating’ Category

Heater Starting to Lose Heating Power? Some Possible Reasons Why

Monday, February 11th, 2019

dog-under-blanketYou just want your heating system to get through the rest of the winter and into spring—but now it’s showing signs that something is wrong. You’re not getting the amount of heating you expect or need from the system, and you find yourself pushing up the thermostat higher and higher than normal to try to make up for it.

First—stop adjusting the thermostat. If you’re doing that, something is wrong with your heater that needs heating repair in Staten Island, NY. Trying to force it to work harder by changing the thermostat setting will probably just worsen the problem, even leading to a full breakdown. There are some checks you can make regarding the heater’s drop in power, but often you’ll end up needing to call for HVAC pros to come to your house to see what’s wrong and then fix it.

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How an HVAC Contractor Can Help You in Late Winter

Monday, January 28th, 2019

heating-cooling-iconsWe’re in the second half of the winter, which may feel like, uhm, cold comfort when you consider how many more days are ahead before the true spring weather settles in. We hope you started out the winter with any necessary professional HVAC services for your heating system, such as having it professionally maintained and scheduling any repairs that may have lingered from the previous winter. You may have even taken the big plunge and replaced an over-the-hill heater with a new one. That’s great—you’re planning ahead.

But you can still benefit from the help of an HVAC contractor in Staten Island, NY in the second half of the winter. Below are some of our suggestions for ways our team can assist you at this time of the year.

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Ways a Faulty Thermostat Can Lead to Furnace Problems

Monday, January 14th, 2019

Technician-testing-thermostatWe’re going to talk about a part of the home heating system that often goes ignored: the climate controls, i.e. the thermostat. Often when our customers call of furnace repair in Staten Island, NY, we discover the trouble with the heating comes from an issue with the thermostat rather than inside the furnace itself. That’s no trouble for us, since fixing and replacing broken thermostats is part of our job. We would like to shine a light on how a thermostat gone wrong can lead to a furnace gone wrong. This way, you’ll be alerted to the comfort issues when you call us and we can get straight to the problem when we arrive.

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Rooms Too Hot, Rooms Too Cold? Why Uneven Heating Happens

Monday, December 17th, 2018

cold-man-with-thermostatYou’re settling in to the winter weather in your home, and the furnace, heat pump, or boiler is working away at keeping everyone comfortable.

Except something is not right … the heater is putting out heat, but some rooms feel colder than they should. And maybe some rooms feel far hotter. Your house has a case of uneven heating, which is one of the more common comfort problems that can afflict households.

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How a New Gas Furnace Can Make Heating Improvements

Monday, December 3rd, 2018

Furnace-standardThere are many advantages of installing a new gas furnace in your home. Today’s furnaces are more efficient than ever before, and efficiency matters. Here in Staten Island, the winters can get icy, so you’ll most definitely run your furnace regularly. Having an efficient furnace system means keeping your heating bills as low as possible.  

Natural gas is the fuel of choice for homeowners. Not only is it affordable, it’s clean, safe, and highly efficient. Installing a natural gas furnace in your home allows you to save money and go green. There are so many advantages of owning a natural gas furnace.

However, before you decide to purchase one, you need to first figure out if it is the best choice for your home. A qualified technician can help you make this decision. Bob Mims Heating & Air Conditioning is a Staten Island, NY, HVAC contractor that is ready to help you!

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Furnace Isn’t Starting? A Few Things You Can Do Before Calling Us

Monday, November 19th, 2018

furnace-oldDuring a rough winter day or night in New York, a busted furnace is one of the last things you want to deal with. If you adjust your thermostat to turn on the furnace when the temperatures drop, and the furnace doesn’t start up, a feeling of panic might strike.

This is a normal reaction, but you can easily get help: call our experts for furnace repair services in Staten Island, NY, and we’ll be out to you as fast as we can to restore the heater.

However, there are some steps we recommend you take before you pick up the phone. There are cases where a small issue or a misunderstanding is behind a non-responsive furnace. Although you should never attempt to repair a furnace on your own (even an electric one), making a couple of quick checks may save you a service call.

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Why Is My Boiler Making Strange Sounds?

Monday, November 5th, 2018

shocked-by-loud-noiseOctober is over, but we want to mention something about “haunted houses”—most hauntings are really noises coming from pipes and plumbing. These noises can be pretty startling sometimes, and they can be more frightening when you know where they’re really coming from.

For example, what if you find your boiler making bizarre sounds you’ve never heard from it before? It’ll probably cause you to worry that something is wrong with it, or that it might burst.

You shouldn’t panic over boiler noises—bursting is extremely rare—but you should be concerned. Call for boiler repair in Staten Island, NY to have the problem investigated and any necessary fixes performed.

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3 Big Rewards of Heating Maintenance

Monday, October 8th, 2018

technician-looking-at-gas-furnaceThere is no better time than October to schedule heating maintenance in Staten Island, NY. We’re in the ideal balancing point of fall, when weather is often still warm and the true cold hasn’t hit. HVAC technicians have fewer emergency calls to handle, making it more convenient to arrange for a time for heating maintenance with them.

But you may wonder if it’s worth it to schedule heating maintenance this year. Are you thinking maybe you can skip it, since you had it done last year? We want to change your mind about this! Every HVAC technician, as well as the US Department of Energy, recommends annual professional inspections and tune-ups for residential central heaters. This includes furnaces, boilers, and heat pumps. Maintenance helps a household avoid many different troubles with their heating during the winter. The benefits far outweigh the small cost of scheduling this job. Here are three of the biggest rewards of having your heater maintained:

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Should I Install an Electric or Gas Furnace?

Monday, February 26th, 2018

big-blue-question-markFurnaces have a long history, and over that time they have run from a variety of energy sources. The earliest furnaces burned wood and coal. Today a furnace can run from oil, propane, and even condensed wood pellets. However, the most common energy sources are electricity and natural gas.

If you are thinking about having a furnace installed for your home, you’ll probably be making the choice between going gas or going electric. (You may have already had to deal with a similar decision regarding your kitchen oven and stove.)

Is there a best choice? No—because each home is different and each homeowner is different. We can break down some of the benefits and drawbacks of the two furnace types to help you start thinking about which one will meet your needs.

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Signs You Need to Replace Your Boiler

Monday, February 12th, 2018

pressure-on-boilerThere are many advantages to using a boiler for home heating rather than a forced-air system like a furnace. A boiler provides cleaner air and works at high energy efficiency to keep down the high cost of staying warm in a New York winter. The best long-term advantage of a boiler is that a boiler is … long-term! On average, a boiler will outlast a furnace by five or more years.

Your boiler isn’t immortal, of course! If you live in your home long enough, the boiler will wear down to the point where paying for repair after repair is no longer worth it. Putting in a new boiler stops those extra costs and helps you avoid an emergency winter breakdown.

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