Air Mechanical, Inc. Blog: Posts Tagged  'Ham Lake'

No, Merv is not your grandfather’s new best friend. MERV (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) is a rating system for the effectiveness of an air or furnace filter. In other words, how well is your air being filtered? This rating is measured by how small and how many particles the filter catches. As you can see on the ...

Humidity levels in the air make us feel uncomfortably hot, clammy, or sticky, but you can take control over humidity levels throughout your home.

Just because it's the end of the season, it doesn't mean you should neglect your heater.

It’s a new year, and it’s time for you to assess your home and figure out how to make some positive changes. A new water treatment system brings fresh, clean water to your whole home.

We’re on a mission: to keep local homeowners as comfortable as possible this winter while helping them spend less. Efficient heating is as easy as knowing how to set your thermostat the right way.

Winter is a time when a lot can go wrong within your house, and you may not even notice until the fall. We want to help prevent disasters and improve efficiency and safety, so follow our tips for a happier, healthier home.

It’s that time of year again. You have to start preparing your home for the cold in whatever way you can if you want to have an easier winter—and spring.

When you need service for your heating and air conditioning system, call technicians who have the proper training for the job—and can prove it. Contact NATE-certified technicians to know that you have hired some of the finest contractors in the industry.

It’s that time of year again! We know fall isn’t quite here yet, and that you’re probably still using your air conditioning system to stay comfortable. But for heating and air conditioning technicians, it’s an important time of year—the time when we remind homeowners to tune-up their heating systems.

In our service area, homeowners don’t really need their air conditioners for very long, using them only for a few months out of the year. So it’s surprising to homeowners to learn that an air conditioner they may have purchased less than a decade ago is failing.

So you want a more efficient air conditioning system. Your air conditioner accounts for a large portion of your monthly bills for the summer, and the costs can add up quickly. But you’re not quite ready for a whole new AC system. What can you do?

When people think of humidifiers and dehumidifiers, they often picture those small plug-in units people sometimes keep by their beds or in a central location. But this just won’t do if you’re trying to improve the air quality in your home and keep your family members more comfortable.

Early on in the air conditioning season, it’s a surprise when something goes wrong. But there are several issues that we are often called about early on in the cooling season. Remember that annual maintenance visits can help out immensely, preventing that surprise element with a thorough inspection and getting the system into peak condition.

When your air conditioning system turns on for the summer, you might start to notice your bills going up and up. You want to save money on air conditioning, but you don’t want to turn off your system for the season or sacrifice any of your comfort. So what else can you do?

Your air conditioning system is not hooked up to your plumbing system—unless you have an evaporative cooler (which most people in our area do not). So why would water develop in an air conditioner? What happens to the water it produces?

AFUE is an acronym for Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency, and it measures how efficiently your furnace can utilize its fuel. Essentially, the more efficient your furnace is, the more heat you will get per unit of fuel. When it comes to getting a new heater, it’s essential to learn how to properly read AFUE ratings.

If you own a home in Ham Lake, MN you understand how vital proper heating is to the comfort of your home and your family. So when you can’t feel any heat, it’s only natural that you want to solve this situation quickly.

There are a lot of steps you can take to help keep your home from flooding. Fixing leaks in your plumbing, on the roof, and around the home can help, as can clearing out gutters and downspouts.

A clogged drains is one of the most annoying problems a homeowner has to deal with from time to time, and also one of the most frequent plumbing issues. Here’s how you can prevent your drains from ever clogging in the first place.

We know that calling an HVAC company for a holiday gift for your loved ones probably isn’t at the top of your list of ideas. But just wait until you hear about the features of a professionally-installed Honeywell Wi-Fi thermostat.

Here at Air Mechanical, Inc., we know that installing a new furnace can be a difficult decision with a lot of new terminology to decipher. Choosing a system may mean learning a little bit about heat loads and sizing, but we recommend you let a technician figure out those parts for you.

Many homeowners look for ways to save money during a heating installation, but hiring an amateur to put in the system is not the way to do this. There are other ways to save money—financing your system, for example, and choosing an efficient unit that saves you money each month so that the total cost of operation is low.

Dusting the bookshelves, scrubbing the refrigerator, and vacuuming the rug are cleaning tasks that make your living space neat and can help remove contaminants like bacteria. While you scrub and organize your home regularly, there’s one cleaning task many homeowners skip over that could save a lot of money.

It’s a fairly stressful time when an air conditioning system breaks down. A hot, humid summer is difficult to get through for very long without a good air conditioner in place. You definitely won’t want to deal with any more AC problems for a long time after you go through the trouble of replacing the unit.

A brand new air conditioning system can provide you with greater comfort, more energy savings, and advanced features which your older unit did not have. But an improperly installed air conditioning system will not do you any good at all.

If you feel that your home is not at risk of flooding, think again. A flood can happen anywhere and at any time, and, as it turns out, is the most common natural disaster in the country.

In an effort to be energy efficient, many homes have become as air-tight as possible. This is good for maintaining energy efficiency, but not so good for healthy ventilation. It can be hard to find ways to properly ventilate your home during winter without losing heat...

Modern building codes, security standards, and health codes emphasize safety, which is why we have locks on the doors of our homes, vents over the oven, and handrails in public restrooms. Without modern advancements in technology and government regulations in manufacturing and construction...

Professionally installed air cleaners are one of the most effective methods to provide higher quality indoor air for a house. There is a wide variety of air cleaners currently available, and it is important that you make the choice for your home with the assistance of indoor air quality specialists.

You know that there are pollutants in the air outside, but did you know the indoor air may be just as bad? Investing in an air purifying system for your house is the best way to prevent family members from developing health problems and keep from aggravating any existing allergies or respiratory problems.

Installing a ductless mini split heat pump or air conditioner in your home offers a number of excellent advantages. These comfort systems are especially useful if you live in a houses that lacks room for ductwork (such as an older or historic house), or if you plan on new home construction...

No spot in your house uses more water on a daily basis than the bathroom(s). The stress put on the drains and waste water and freshwater lines in a bathroom are immense, and even the best cared-for bathroom will eventually run into plumbing issues.

All air conditioners rely on the same basic components to run, but only a select few can deliver air to your home without requiring the use of ducts. In many homes without ductwork, homeowners choose to install a ductwork system so they can take advantage of central air conditioning.

Thermostats have always been an important tool by which to manage your indoor air comfort. With recent technological advances, they have also become important tools for energy efficiency. There have been a number of new types of thermostats to hit the market...

The greatest enemy of comfort during the summer is heat. But humidity is a close second. A dry day can make high temperatures much more bearable. But when the moisture level of the air rises, it blocks your body from effectively releasing...

You should schedule professional duct cleaning for your ventilation system every one or two years, depending on how rapidly your system gathers dust and other pollutants. A team of duct cleaning specialists will come to your home and use power...

Despite the name, an expansion tank isn’t a device you purchase when you want to add more water to your home boiler. (Unless you’ve lost water from a leak, you don’t want to add additional water to your boiler anyway.) You already have an expansion tank on your boiler: it’s one of the most crucial parts of your boiler’s regular operation. Expansion tanks are an important part of any closed water heating system in use today.

Boilers have a lengthy history as popular home heating options. With continual advancements in their technology, they will likely provide many more decades of service to homeowners who want efficient and dependable heat for the winter. Our Air Mechanical Inc technicians perform numerous boiler installations, and we’re accustomed to advising clients about why installing a boiler in Ham Lake, MN is often an excellent idea. Our customers are usually curious during the process: they want to know how a boiler operates, since they often haven’t put much thought into it.

Keeping your home comfortable should be a top priority for any homeowner. The high costs of energy, though, can dissuade many people from keeping their homes as comfortable as they would like. With the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system in Ham Lake you can greatly reduce the amount of energy you consume while still keeping your home effectively heated and cooled.

If you think you may have a frozen water line leading to your Ham Lake area home, call Air Mechanical ASAP. A frozen water line can burst and cause a major leak and expense...

Looking for a new heating system or upgrade for your Ham Lake area home? Before you choose a new furnace or boiler system, be sure that you understand how to compare the costs of fuel in your area. While you may thing that natural gas is the best choice for a furnace...

We use our home plumbing systems every day of the year. Dependable indoor plumbing is one of the greatest luxuries that modern life has to offer, and your kitchen plumbing allows you to cook and clean conveniently and hygienically...

Do you know the humidity levels in your home? We can easily check the humidity levels of the outdoor air by looking on the internet or in the newspaper. But few people are actually aware of the humidity levels in their own home.

We get a lot of Ham Lake plumbing questions from our customers, and one we get frequently is about pressure vacuum breakers. The plumbing experts at Air Mechanical Heating, Cooling & Plumbing want to help answer all your questions...

Are you wondering what type of maintenance service to schedule for your geothermal heating system before winter arrives? While geothermal systems do require regular maintenance just like any other HVAC system...

The Ham Lake heating technicians at Air Mechanical have a few tips to help you save on heating costs this winter! Here are some small upgrades and changes you can make that really add up in the long run...

Heating is expensive in Ham Lake. Probably the largest expense you have related to the comfort control of your home. So, why would you consider installing a heating system for your garage ...

A leaky faucet can be a real annoyance. The rate at which the drips come out can determine how much water you are actually losing on a given day, week, or even year. For a home that has one leaky faucet which drips only once a minute...

In a society with an increasing an eye on reducing waste and creating energy-efficient spaces, it might not be as surprising to know that the green building market has been steadily increasing over the past few years, and in years...

With energy costs rising and supplies dwindling, people are taking much more serious looks at alternatives that in the past have seemed unfeasible and too "weird" to realistically contemplate. After recent upgrades in efficiency, geothermal energy in Ham Lake, is a terrific option.

Many Blaine homes are heated with furnaces, since they generally provide safe and efficient heat. Furnaces have also improved dramatically over the years as manufacturers find ways to make them more efficient.

Life would be great if we could just depend on things to work in and last without requiring any sort maintenance or upkeep in Golden Valley. Unfortunately, that is not the case. As good as modern manufacturing...

If you are looking for ways to save water in your Mounds View home, a low-flow shower head is a great place to start. There are many different types of low-flow shower heads on the market right now, so you should have no trouble finding one that suits both your needs and your budget.

The core component of any good air quality system is the filter. A good air filter removes almost all of the particles that inundate your home every day – from the pet dander that flakes off of your cats or dogs to the pollen released by plants both indoors and out.