Air Conditioner Inverter Review

Posted on September 5, 2008 by Richard Ashworth

Many minisplit air conditioners and heat pumps use inverters for efficiency. Conventional split system air conditioner and heat pumps can now be purchased with inverters for ultra efficient heating and cooling.

Inverter air conditioners came to the USA in the form of ductless mini-split air conditioners and were later expanded to ductless mini-split heat pumps. Inverter air conditioners and inverter heat pumps are considered the most efficient air conditioners and heat pumps available on the market for conventional systems and for air source air conditioners and air source heat pumps the inverter air conditioners and inverter heat pumps come close to matching the efficiency of geothermal heat pump systems. In fact some inverter air conditioners and inverter heat pumps beat some geothermal heat pump systems when matched up for efficiency. If it is impractical to drill a well or do trenching for a geothermal system and you want very high efficiency the next best thing is an inverter air conditioner or an inverter heat pump. Of course with any air source heat pump geographical considerations must take precedence as air source heat pumps are not practical in the northern climates for technical reasons unless they are specially engineered heat pumps for operation in the Northern climate region.

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What Happens When My Boiler is Flooded

Posted on May 4, 2008 by Richard Ashworth

Richard,

Hurricane Irene was a disaster for us as we live in a Northern state that was hit by flooding from the rain of Hurricane Irene. As a result of the loss of power and the flooding our basement was flooded. Our boiler happens to be in the basement and we will soon need the heat. We have had a few contractors come by and look at the boiler with one contractor telling us we need to replace the boiler and another telling us we can rebuild the boiler. My husband is the do it yourself type and he wants to turn the boiler on and see if it will work and then go with it for the winter however I am concerned about the boiler and the safety issues. What do we do? My husband has agreed to follow your recommendation.

Thanks for you advice and you have a great site!

Beverly R.

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Geothermal Heat Pumps

Posted on August 5, 2007 by Richard Ashworth

Geothermal heat pumps use ground water or water circulated through pipes to exchange heat with the earth. Geothermal heat pumps, versus air heat pump systems, use the earths natural temperature to exchange heat and provide heating and cooling with a geothermal heat pump system. The temperature of the air varies widely with the weather whereas the temperature of the earth is nearly constant and makes the use of a geothermal heat pump system ideal for heating and cooling your home or business. It also costs less in energy use because of the constant earth temperature versus the widely varying temperature of the outside air. Geothermal heat pump systems make sense and can save lots of money in energy use. Continue reading “Geothermal Heat Pumps” »

Heat Pumps

Posted on June 5, 2007 by Richard Ashworth

Heat Pump Systems There are different types of Heat Pumps Systems in use in both the commercial HVAC heat pump markets and the residential HVAC heat pump markets. The two main types of heat pumps are the air to air heat pumps and the water to air heat pumps (or geothermal heat pumps). Within the water to air heat pump types there are several sub-categories. Mechanically and electrical speaking, they all work the same way but use different methods of moving the heat from one place to another. Regardless of the type of heat pump it is heat pumps are based on the theory of heat pumps that says heat can be moved from a warmer place to cooler place. Air to air heat pumps are popular in southern regions where the temperatures in the winter are considered to be mild while water to air heat pumps can be used in any climate as long as there is a moderate and reliable water source to move the heat from one place to another. Continue reading “Heat Pumps” »

Air Conditioning

Posted on January 4, 2007 by Richard Ashworth

No matter what name brand (York, Trane, Carrier, Goodman, Lennox, Rheem) of air conditioning and/or heating unit you purchase some time or the other you will need to have that air conditioning and heating equipment checked for a problem and repaired. Even if you have regular air conditioning maintenance done. While there are air conditioning and heating manufacturers that engineer quality into their air conditioning and heating equipment, that equipment is prone to breakdown simply because it is a mechanical/electrical device and will need repair sometime throughout its useful life. Most of the time diagnosing problems is simple and other times it can be a complicated process where the HVAC technician calls in another HVAC technician or even an HVAC manufacturer representative. Residential and commercial heating and cooling is important and you want the best possible HVAC air conditioning and heating service. It does not matter whether you have a Carrier Air Conditioner, Trane Air Conditioners, or need a replacement whatever the manufacturer, it is best to get a qualified technician to look at your system before a decision is made to repair or replace the air conditioner or heat pump systems. Continue reading “Air Conditioning” »

Heat Pump Types

Posted on January 5, 2006 by Richard Ashworth

Heat Pump Types

From Geothermal Heat Pumps to Air Source Heat Pump Systems

Trane Air Source Heat Pump Condenser

There are different types of heat pumps available on the market today. A heat pump is an air conditioning unit that cools when the temperature is hot and provides heat when the temperature is cold. There are many different types of these heat pump systems available. There is the geothermal heat pump which can either utilize a series of closed loop water pipes buried in the ground or other methods of heat exchange to remove or absorb heat for heating and cooling. There are air to air heat pumps and these types of heat pumps can be configured differently. One type of air to air heat will utilize electric heating for back heat while another may use a gas furnace for back up heating. These types of heat pump systems can also be split heat pump systems or package unit heat pumps. A description of the various types of heat pumps and how they work is below in this article on heat pumps types.

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