B&E has a programmable thermostat that will automatically change from heat to cool within 2 degrees! To you, that means you no longer have to worry about coming from work in the afternoon to be reminded you left the heat on! The thermostat will take care of maintaining the right temp, all the time!

Gas Furnace & Heating System Tune Up Season!

Fall also means that it’s time for the furnace or heating system in your home to have a good fall cleaning!  While there are some basic things you can easily do yourself, like change the HVAC filter each month and changing batteries in the CO detector, there are many parts of the heating system that need to be looked at by a Pro! That’s where the Service Department at B&E comes to your rescue!

Heating System Peak Performance

Before you turn on the furnace call us to have a heating check up or better yet, look into one of our PPSA plans. (Peak Performance Service Agreement) An annual maintenance plan will keep your heating and cooling system operating at its Factory Peak settings all year round.  This will help keep your utility bills lower and your home safe and comfortable.

PPSA Customers Enjoy the Following Benefits:

• 2 to 4 Annual Maintenance Visits (Depends  on system)
• Reduced Energy Costs
• Heating and Cooling System last Longer before Needing Replacement
• Manufacturers Warranty Never Questioned due to lack of Maintenance
• Priority Dispatch if the System Needs Repair Service

What Can You Do Today?

Waiting until you need heat is not the way to test your heating system! Now, when the temps are still mild is the time to test the heating system yourself.

Turn on the system for 10 minutes and check to see if the supply vents are blowing warm air. You will probably smell the dust burning off the heat exchanger if you have a gas furnace. If you have a CO detector that shows the PPM reading, check it during this time! By all means, if it goes off, immediately turn off the furnace, open several doors and windows to vent the home and call us!

Call Lisa a t B&E for your heating check up. Lisa can email you a check list of our service we perform or get you on our dispatch board for the fall heating check.

Now is the time to Call B&E for your Fall Heating System Checkup!
Click Today or Call Us 704-333-0363

7 Ways to Save on Heating Costs

Always Keep Doors and Windows Closed!

Our fathers all used to ask the same question… Did you grow up in a barn? Keeping exterior doors closed all the time can save a considerable amount of your heat!

As far as windows… just because they appear closed, walk up and make sure both the Top and Bottom are firmly closed to the sash! Many time, the top window can slide down just a half-inch, and let a lot of your heat out the gap!

Install a Programmable Thermostat

Installing a programmable thermostat allows you to automatically program small temperature  swings, based on when you are home, awake, and need the heat! Reducing the inside temp just 5 degrees during the day when nobody is home can save a considerable amount on your heating bill!

Contact us today and we will gladly provide an estimate to install a programmable thermostat.

Replace Your Filters Every 30 Days

A heating system struggling to get air – well, it has to work harder! Working harder means less efficient!

Change your filters often!

Cover Drafty Windows with Plastic Window Kits in Winter

Run over to Lowe’s or Home Depot and pick up one of the Window Plastic kits! They install in 5 minutes per window, heat the edges with a blow dryer, and you have instantly sealed your windows for the winter!

Use Bathroom Ceiling Fans Sparingly!

The vent fan in your bathroom is nothing but a pump! If you leave it running when nobody is in the bathroom, you are simply pumping the warm air out of your home! Turn off your vent fans when the shower is not running!

Have a Heating System Tune Up Every Year

We cannot stress enough, the importance of keeping your heating system properly tuned with an annual heating system tune up!

An improperly running gas furnace or heat pump can run 30-40% longer than it needs to, wasting a lot of energy for no reason!

If your System Is Older – Replace It with a High Efficiency Unit

A gas furnace that’s just 15 years old is far less efficient than one made today! When you combine the Savings with a New Furnace to the Stimulus Tax Credits for HVAC, it just makes sense to install a new Trane or Carrier Gas Furnace or high efficiency Heat Pump System this year! Call us, or request a Free HVAC Quote today!

What Money Saving Tips do You Have?

Why Do Heat Exchangers Crack?

Cracks in metal surfaces are caused by stress and flexing of the metal. Each time your furnace heats up and cools down, this cycle will naturally cause the metal surfaces to contract and expand, applying more stress to the metal and ultimately resulting in a crack or failure of the heat exchanger. This is a natural process that happens to every furnace over time and the rate at which it happens to yours, just depends on how the unit is maintained, and the quality of your installation.

If you have ever owned a gas grill, you have seen the cracks that develop around the edges of the metal burner surface. These are very similar to heat exchanger cracks, in the way the metal burner goes through many heating and cooling cycles, eventually developing small hairline cracks. Over longer periods of time, those small cracks eventually turn into bigger cracks.

Premature Cracks in the Heat Exchanger

As previously mentioned, natural expansion and contraction of the metal surfaces will create cracks in the heat exchanger over several years of normal operation. Premature cracks however, can also occur very early in the life of your furnace without proper maintenance or an improper installation.

Common Causes of Premature Heat Exchanger Cracks

• Improper Air Flow
  Dirty filters, closed off vents and furniture blocking return vents can contribute to improper air flow to your unit, causing the the system to work harder than it was designed!
• Improper Combustion of Gases
  Hand in hand with the airflow restrictions, when your burners are not firing properly, they can run hotter, or at lower efficiency than the unit is designed to work.
• Improper Displacement of Condensation
  Most common in furnaces that have not been run (heat or cool) in a long time, condensation accumulates in the heat exchanger, eventually rusting out the system.

The life of a heat exchanger is about 20 years with regular gas furnace maintenance.  Gas packs, or Gas Package Units, are known to wear out faster than other units, since they are exposed to the weather and susceptible to the heating, cooling and most importantly, condensation cycle more often.

In the current heating season of 2009-2010, roughly 65% of all cracked heat exchangers we have replaced were on gas packs, less than 10 years old!

Do You Have a Cracked Heat Exchanger?

In most cases, the heat exchanger repair is simply not worth the cost on a furnace more than 8-10 years old! Other parts may have been exposed to the same conditions that caused the heat exchanger to fail, and you end up in a cycle of repairing several parts within a short time frame.

Call us or request a repair quote today – we are always happy to provide a second opinion, and recommend what we feel is best for your specific situation.

In most cases, unless you have scheduled routine furnace maintenance, you may not even know you have cracks or holes in the unit, until the heating system fails!

This article aims to help you understand the functions of your furnace heat exchanger and the life threatening dangers of running your system with a cracked heat exchanger.

What Is The Furnace Heat Exchanger?

The non-technical definition is that the heat exchanger is a series of tubes or ribbons inside your furnace that form a chamber of sorts, designed to separate the hot gases and flames of the heating system from the forced air passing over it, and being spread throughout your home.

When you furnace ignites, a flame is generated. That flame and the hot gases are routed into the heat exchanger, and eventually out the flue, or exhaust system. The tubes or ribbons naturally heat up as the unit runs. When the blower turns on, the air is forced to pass through or over the heat exchanger, thus warming the air and sending it through your home in the form of heat!

The Dangers of a Bad Heat Exchanger!

While natural gas or propane burns very clean, the combustion process can produce small amounts of CO, or Carbon Monoxide. CO is known as the deadly killer, because it is odorless, colorless and tasteless. In other words, you would never know if there is CO being put into your home without a CO Detector.

When your heat exchanger has holes, cracks, or rusted out sections, the air passing over it can actually spread those dangerous gases into your home! Having your heating system inspected annually can detect heat exchanger problems before they get out of hand and put your or your family at risk!

If you have been told you have a bad heat exchanger, we are always happy to provide a second opinion, or an estimate to repair or replace the furnace. Contact us today!

Short Video of a Bad Heat Exchanger

We have been through many of these winter freezes over the last 25+ years of serving Charlotte customers, and wanted to offer 5 simple tips to make sure you are ready for the freezing temperatures!

5 Ways To Prepare for Freezing Temps in Charlotte

It goes without saying – Being Prepared for the Worse, Will Always Yield the Best Results! By following these simple steps below, you can rest assured you are prepared in case of a freezing emergency!

Make Sure Your Heating & Plumbing Systems are Ready!

More than just turning them on to be sure they operate correctly – Your heating system is going to be asked to do quite a bit of added work over the next week, a few precautions now could save you a service call, and keep you warm when others fail!

• If you have an oil heating system, make sure you have oil and a clean filter on hand!
• If yours is a Heat Pump System, make sure the outdoor condenser is clear of all debris, and the fan motor starts properly!
• Heat Pump owners should also switch the thermostat to emergency heat, to be sure it works properly!
• Any forced air systems should change their filters now, if not done in the last 3 weeks!
• All outdoor water pipes should be wrapped in insulation!
• If your kitchen sink is on an outside wall, leave the cabinet doors under the sink open! This will keep the pipes a bit warmer and help prevent freezing.

If You Have a Fireplace – Prepare it for Use!

Your fireplace can be a great source of backup heat when all else fails! In the ice storm of 2002, fireplaces kept many of the 1.3 million without power, warm until it was restored!

• Make sure your flue is clean!
• Make sure the damper operates!
• Set your stockpile of firewood closer to where you need it!
• Stack wood in the fireplace, ready to light!
• Make sure you have matches or a long-tip lighter ready to go!

Visit the ATM and Get Some Cash in Hand!

Nothing works like cash! While we are not expecting any ice during this cold blast, there may still be trees that fall onto power lines and render ATM and charge card terminals useless! If you lose power or your heating system fails, you may need to get to a motel in a hurry! Having some cash in your hand will be the easiest way to make sure you get a warm place to sleep!

Fill Your Car with Gas, and Check the Antifreeze!

Gas stations always have a little bit of water that accumulates within their tanks & the same holds true for your own car! When you go below 1/8th tank of gas, the fuel to water ratio is greatly increased and when freezing temps come around, you risk freezing. By keeping your tank full of gas, you can sleep at night knowing the car will start in the morning!

If your vehicle has nothing but water in the radiator, you should look for a way to park it in a garage in severe cold temps, or face the thought that the water may just freeze! The easiest solution is to make sure you run a 50/50 mix of coolant in yur radiator. It will not only help the car run cooler in the summer months, but prevent freezing in the winter!

Always Have a Backup Plan!

Regardless of how prepared you are, there is always the risk of failure of one or more of the preparations you take. Use the following list below to make sure you have a backup plan!

• Put the Phone Number of your Emergency Heating Repair and Plumber on the Refrigerator! B&E has put all of our heating technicians on call for the next week, and we will always have a service tech within 1 hour of your home! Our 24 Hour Emergency Heat number is 704-333-0363
• Unpack your Spare Blankets, and make sure they are handy and ready for use!
• Have your flashlight and spare batteries ready to go!
• If you have space heaters, get them out today and make sure they work!
• Make sure you always have a Fire Extinguisher in your home and readily charged for use!

Share Your Own Tips Below!

There is an endless supply of emergency preparation tips – why don’t you share some of those you find to be the best? Here are some additional resources you can read.

• About.com – Extreme Cold Weather Planning
• Ready.gov – Storms and Extreme Cold

Carbon Monoxide

Millions of homeowners are exposed to Carbon Monoxide and do not know it until the family is exposed to a harmful amount at or about 70 ppm (parts per million) for over 3.5 hours. International limits for unsafe levels are between 15 and 35 ppm.

Carbon Monoxide can come from additional sources in your home besides your heating equipment. These sources include: Hot Water Heater, Gas Range Stove, Gas Logs, Space Heaters, Boilers, and even attached garages. B&E Air Conditioning & Heating can test CO levels in any building, identify the source, and correct the problem.

The following are steps to take to reduce Carbon Monoxide exposure at home

• Carbon Monoxide by vehicle is deadly. Move it outside and out of the garage to warm up
• Do not use a gas oven to heat your home. It can produce high CO levels when doors are open
• Double check gas furnace and water heater for damaged or disconnected flue pipe
• Double check that the fire place flue is open when in use
• Keep combustion appliances clear to allow combustion air from entering the room
• Do not burn charcoal or gas BBQs in a garage or enclosed area
• Do not use unvented kerosene or gas space heaters indoors for long periods of time
• Do not start a lawn mower or other gas powered appliances in the garage or shed
• Be aware of CO poison and act immediately if symptoms are realized
• Have a low level CO monitor in your home