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Is your air conditioner more than two or three years old? If so, it almost certainly uses R-22 refrigerant (sometimes referred to as the brand name Freon). R-22 is being phased out due to its ozone-depleting properties, and as supplies dwindle over the next several years, its price will continue to skyrocket. Some experts expect that R-22 refrigerant prices this summer will be three times what they were a year ago.

If it seems that your home remains hot or stuffy even while your air conditioner is running, you may have a problem with inadequate return-air ducts. No matter how hot it is outside, there’s no reason that your climate control system should not keep your home sufficiently cool. When your home becomes uncomfortable, it’s probably a good time to ask an HVAC professional to undertake a ductwork evaluation.

Typically, when we think about air pollution, we think of outdoor air with smog and densely populated cities. The truth is that the air inside our home can be just as polluted and hazardous to our health as the air outside. Various chemicals and pollutants can negatively affect our indoor air quality. You can improve the air quality in your home by following these 10 easy steps:

This is the time of year when things really start to heat up outside. If your air conditioner had a hard time keeping up last year, a new unit could help you stay much more comfortable this year. Here are the features you should look for, in addition to the SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) rating, to help you make the most out of your investment.

The cooling months are here – is your air conditioning system ready? Maintenance for your air conditioner will ensure optimal home comfort, maximum energy efficiency, and help prevent unnecessary mishaps such as water damage.

Keeping the humidity in your home at a reasonable level is important to the comfort and health of your family. High humidity levels can encourage the growth of damaging and health-threatening mold spores. High humidity can also cause physical damage to your home, including peeling wallpaper and wall stains. The best way to prevent this is with a home dehumidifier. However, before you make this investment, you should determine if you actually need home dehumidification. There are several factors to consider:

After an unusually mild Minnesota winter, spring is warming up the Twin Cities area as we head into the summer. Why not make this the year that you really take charge of your energy bills?

The maximum day length during the Minneapolis and St. Paul summers is 15 hours, 37 minutes. That’s more than enough sunshine to make a solar installation a sensible way to generate some of your home’s energy. Summer is a good time of year to do the installation, since days are long and temperatures are moderate.

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a toxic gas produced as a by-product of combustion. It is especially dangerous because it is odorless, and has no taste or color. Therefore, if you don’t have CO detectors in your home, you and your loved ones could fall victim to dangerous levels of CO, without even knowing it.

Ensuring that your home-comfort system is working as efficiently and optimally as possible is the ultimate way to fight outdoor temperature extremes. But because most home’s heating and cooling ductwork is out of sight, and therefore out of mind, means that it sometimes gets overlooked when you’re looking for ways to improve your energy efficiency.