Max Sr & Paul Schoenwalder Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning, A Corp. Blog: Archive for the ‘Heating’ Category

4 Ways to Get the Most from Your Heater

Monday, February 8th, 2021

jets-of-a-furnaceWe heard it from Punxsutawney Phil himself—we have six more weeks of winter ahead! Okay, whether or not you believe in Groundhog Day predictions, the fact of the matter is that temperatures are probably going to stay chilly for a while, and you’re definitely going to need a fully functional heater to continue to keep you warm.

When we say fully functional, we mean just as powerful as it should be, in addition to as efficient as it should be. How efficiently your heater operates informs how much you spend on your heating from month to month, and who wants to pay more than necessary? The bad and the good news is, you might not be using your heater as efficiently as possible. Read on to learn 4 ways to potentially change that!

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Tips for Staying Warm When Your Furnace Breaks Down

Monday, December 28th, 2020

woman-huddled-with-blanket-drinking-from-mugWhen your furnace breaks down, the last thing you want to do is think of fun or creative ways to stay warm, right? You just want your furnace fixed, and fast.

We get it! In an ideal world, you’d call up a heating professional and have your heater back up and running within 10 or 15 minutes. But even with our emergency services, this just isn’t the case.

Now, you can prevent an unpleasant surprise like this. It’s possible with professional services like preventive maintenance. Whether you have a gas or electric furnace system, you should be scheduling this maintenance service once a year. It allows our professionals to comprehensively clean, inspect, and adjust the components of your heater to make sure it operates as best it can. Maintenance tune-ups also extend the lifespan of the equipment and make it less likely that you’ll have a surprise breakdown to begin with.

But, we’re going to assume that if you came across this blog post, you weren’t able to prevent your breakdown. We’re definitely the team to call! However, in the meantime, we do want to offer some creative and potentially even fun ways to stay warm until we show up.

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Give Yourself the Gift of Safety with This One Winter Tip

Monday, December 14th, 2020

furnace-jetsSafety is on everyone’s minds this year. More specifically, the health and safety of our families is a top priority, as it should be. Because of this, you may be looking for ways to ensure good health hygiene in your home. You probably have everyone washing their hands, you likely are keeping surfaces as clean as possible, and then hopefully you have the right indoor air quality products in place to boost immunity and make your home more comfortable in general.

But there is one thing that often escapes homeowners’ minds this time of year, and it can be a pretty important one—get your furnace maintained!

This is a service we typically recommend in the fall, before you need the system the most. It’s important for all heating systems, but especially gas-powered furnaces, and especially gas-powered furnaces that are 10-15 years of age. Read on to learn why!

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4 Signs That It’s Time to Call for Heater Repairs!

Monday, November 30th, 2020

mans-hand-holding-cell-phoneThe last thing you possibly need in our area is a furnace or heater failure during the coldest time of the year, right? In fact, you need a powerful and efficient heating system to get you through our winters. And you can have that so long as you trust an experienced and skilled team for your heater installation and services, like maintenance and repairs.

Maintenance actually helps you avoid up to 85% of the repairs your furnace may ever need in its lifespan! Of course, even if you diligently keep up on your annual heating maintenance (or biannual, if you’re using a heat pump) there’s always a chance you will need repairs between tune-ups. Good news! We can help. First, we want to fill you in on what signs to watch out for that even indicate it’s time for heater repairs. Read on!

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How to Prep Your Heater for Winter

Monday, October 19th, 2020

woman-looking-comfortable-in-home-in-winterThe official start of winter may still be a ways off, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t in for some chilly temperatures pretty soon. You deserve to be as comfortable as possible when they come! One way to ensure this is the case is by prepping your heater for winter. What do we mean by this? Oh, scheduling routine heating maintenance, of course!

The thing is, heater maintenance is not a luxury service for a select few. Heating maintenance is absolutely vital to the efficiency, efficacy, and longevity of your heating system. Don’t believe us? Read on as we uncover the numerous benefits of this service and why it’s the leading way to prepare your heater for winter.

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Heater Troubles: When to Repair Vs. When to Replace

Monday, April 6th, 2020

gas-jets-of-furnaceAre you worried about your heater breaking down at any given moment? If you aren’t aware of the signs that your furnace or heat pump system may need a repair, you probably are right to be concerned. It’s never fun to need heating repair, but it’s even worse when your heater just stops working altogether when you need it the most.

Sure, it may be spring and warmer temperatures are on their way, but for now, you still need your heater, which means you need it to function! So, how can you tell if yours needs repair? And at what point should you consider replacing the system altogether?

Read on as we uncover some insights into this.

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Don’t Ignore These Late Season Furnace Needs

Monday, March 23rd, 2020

technician-servicing-furnaceWe suppose you could say our weather is fairly predictable throughout the year. But as we transition into spring, you know as well as we do we can be surprised by very warm weather, or a couple more weeks of chilly temperatures. If the former happens, you’ll likely be tempted to shut off your gas furnace for the season and not think about it again. But if you have any heating repair needs that require attention, we really urge against ignoring them or delaying them.

Delaying any sort of heating system repair need can cause it to turn into a much bigger problem, leaving you with a broken down heater next year when you need it, or, depending on the circumstances, a malfunctioning air conditioner too! And especially in the case of a gas-powered system, delaying repairs can lead to safety issues. But how do you know if you even have heating problems that need managing? Read on as we uncover some of the symptoms of heater problems.

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The Problem with a Cracked Heat Exchanger

Monday, February 10th, 2020

gas-jets-of-furnaceDo you use a gas-powered furnace? If you do, you’re certainly not alone—many homeowners in our area use these powerful and efficient heating systems to keep warm all winter long. But if you are one of these homeowners, there is one potential safety risk you should be aware of—a cracked heat exchanger.

Like any other powerful appliance or equipment that creates combustion gases, an ill-maintained furnace could potentially create health and safety hazards. This is true whether you skip maintenance or delay a necessary repair, especially if that repair is to a cracked heat exchanger! This isn’t a problem that typically occurs in newer heating systems, but rather those that are aging—around 10-15 years old.

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Noises You Never Want to Hear from Your Furnace

Monday, January 13th, 2020

woman-covering-her-earsThe thing about household noises is sometimes they can be easy to ignore or brushed off. It’s easy to deny that anything is wrong, and often desirable to do so since nobody wants to pay for unnecessary repairs.

However, there are some noises that just shouldn’t be ignored, and often they come from your furnace. Now, not all are serious. For instance, a rattle from your furnace might indicate a loose panel that needs to be tightened. But it may instead suggest you have a cracked heat exchanger, which can lead to a hazardous carbon monoxide leak.

On our team, we understand how important it is to protect yourself and your family. If you hear suspicious noises coming from your heating system, please don’t hesitate to give us a call or schedule service on our website. Read on as we uncover some of the noises you never want to hear coming from your furnace.

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Is Your Boiler Experiencing Problems?

Monday, December 16th, 2019

pressure-gauge-on-boilerThe only way your boiler can be as efficient as you need it to be is if you properly care for it. This means having it professionally installed, repaired, and expertly maintained by experienced technicians who will help it perform at its best.

Another important factor to remember is that even with quality heating services from a company that has been around for over a century like ours, your boiler or any heating system can experience problems from time to time. Eventually, your boiler will wear down to the point that replacement will be imminent.

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