With the temperatures on the rise here in the Twin Cities, keeping cool without wasting energy and money is a top-of-mind occupation. One of the things you can do to keep your energy costs to a minimum over the summer is to make sure you’re using a programmable thermostat to regulate temperature changes in your home. A programmable thermostat gives you hassle-free control over how much cold air the A/C produces and when, which saves time, energy and money. These devices offer the same benefits in the winter. There are three basic types of schedules for programmable thermostats:

When it’s hot and humid in the Twin Cities area, you need your A/C to keep your home’s climate cool and dry. If your system isn’t working as well as it used to, or is having performance issues, it’s time to find out why. Besides needing regular maintenance, your air conditioner needs some help from you to work properly and efficiently. 

Forced-air HVAC installations filter air as it’s recirculated, but standard filters can’t significantly reduce levels of chemical contamination in the air, if it exists as a gas or a vapor. This is a concern here in the Twin Cities Metro Area, where airborne chemicals are common. Fortunately, homeowners have an easy remedy available, an activated carbon filter.

An HVAC contractor is more than just a technician who works on your heating, ventilation and cooling systems. You invite this person into your home and trust him or her to get the job done right the first time at a fair price. In lieu of choosing a contractor based on the appeal of the business’s ad, do a bit of homework to find one that will solve problems instead of create headaches.

Keeping your air conditioner running in good shape is imperative during the hot summer months in the Twin Cities area. Sometimes you can forget about taking care of simple maintenance issues around your home as you go about your busy daily activities. It’s no different with skipped A/C maintenance.

After our lengthy, brutal winter in the upper Midwest, Twin Cities homeowners were certainly relieved by summer’s arrival. However, summer can bring its own high bills, with cooling costs rising as the weather gets warmer. One of the main ways you can reduce cooling bills in the summer is to take measures to prevent heat gain in your home. There are many simple ways to cool down your home and reduce the load on your air conditioner. Here are a few tips to get you started with reducing heat gain:

One of the most perplexing problems a homeowner can experience is odd A/C noises. Detecting the cause of the problem can be difficult without experience or mechanical knowledge of how an air conditioner works. To complicate the issue, many sounds an air conditioner can make actually indicate a problem that is dangerous for an untrained individual to fix.

Your HVAC system is a major part of your home, and you want to be protected in case of a breakdown. There are typically two strategies to protect yourself, either with warranties or a regular HVAC maintenance plan. If you can’t do both, for most homes, an HVAC system maintenance plan is the best option.

While programmable thermostats are a great way to cut down on energy waste and maximize your home comfort, they do break down on occasion. While replacement may be necessary, there are a few common problems that are easy to fix that you should check for first. Here’s what you should do if your programmable thermostat is giving you grief:

When it comes to your Twin Cities area home’s air conditioning system, there are a ton of frequently told energy-savings myths about how to best cool your indoors during the summer season. Some of these myths promise to save you energy and money, but in reality they can force you to spend a lot more on cooling your home. Prevent yourself from wasting both energy and money by disregarding the following energy-savings myths: