Everyday many people have to make a decision on a type of water heater to purchase. How does one select a new water heater? Where do you start for selecting a brand, type, and size for a water heater? First you can go to a water heater reviews site and see what other people are saying about their water heaters.  This will help you zero in on a brand of water heater you can buy that should give you a quality product based on the water heater reviews and critiques of what other people are saying about their brand of water heater in the water heater review. After reading the water heater  reviews you will likely come up with a brand you may like from reading the water heater reviews and ratings.

Next you need to find out the type and size of water heater you need to install in your home. Most likely you want an exact replacement water heater for the size and type water heater you have in your home. This should be easily done and most likely if you are using a plumbing company the plumber will select the right size and type of water heater you need to replace the existing water heater you have in your home. If you are considering replacing the water heater yourself then you will need to make the selection. Is the water heater gas or electric? How many gallons are required to provide adequate hot water for the home? All the questions need to be answered before you run down to the hardware or plumbing store to buy a new water heater.  A good resource for this is High Performance HVAC Water Heater Pages. It is a good water selection guide and also detailed information on water heater types and even saving money with water heaters and water heater maintenace.

There is also information about tankless water heaters for you learn about the new tankless water heaters. Tankless water heaters are new to the average American but they are used extensively in Europe and Asia for residential and commercial hot water heating for domestic use and they give you an endless supply of hot water. With tankless hot water heater there are no worries about the tanks going bad in 5 or 10 years from corrosion as what typically happens with standard water heaters or traditional hot water heaters.

For reviews on hot water heaters you can go here – High Performance HVAC

or an alternate site you also go here for Hot Water Heater Reviews and Ratings

Important Points in New Boiler Installations

Depending on the installation, whether it is a new installation or a retrofit where the contractor is replacing an existing old boiler, it is very important that the boiler piping is correct or installed correctly especially the near boiler piping. Near boiler piping is the pipe near the boiler where most of major pipe components are located.  Near boiler piping components include:

• Flow valve
• Expansion tank
• Circulator pump
• Boiler air management and control devices
• Mixing valves (if the system is equipped with a mixing valve – usually a mixing valve is installed with a boiler that provides domestic hot water)
• Back flow preventer and pressure reducing valve on the make-up water supply
• Any zone valves if the hydronic loop is zoned

Near boiler piping is also where the water entering the boiler and leaving the boiler (boiler supply and return) make many turns and has elbows and a possible manifold installed. It is important that this system is set up and installed properly. If it is not then the poor installation can affect the efficiency of the boiler and sometimes it can cause problems with heating certain zones because a bad near boiler piping will cause a poor flowrate in the piping system. Additionally, pressure problems can occur and lead to noisy flow of the water. The whole boiler system will be problematic and cost you more in fuel to fire the boiler.

Probably the most important part of buying a new boiler is selecting the right contractor to install the boiler properly. A skilled contractor will save you a lot more money on a boiler installation than you will save on hiring someone who really does not know what they are doing and installs the boiler incorrectly. Find a good boiler installation contractor and spend some time selecting a good boiler that they recommend. It is advised because of the higher cost of fuels these days that you select a higher efficiency boiler as this will save you money in the future on your fule bills. Remember, even if you are selling the house in a few years select a higher efficiency boiler for the installation over a cheaper less efficient boiler. Why? Because it will add value to the sale of the home and it convinces the buyers they aren’t buying a house that will consume all their dollars in feeding a boiler fuel hog. Good luck on selecting the right boiler and boiler installtion contractor for your next boiler installation.

HVAC Systems and Boiler Information

There are many different types of thermostats available on the market today. There are just as many brands of thermostats available as there are models of thermostats. Honeywell Thermostats and White Rodgers Thermostats are the most popular brands that you will find at most suppliers. The variety of choices of thermostats can make it confusing for the average consumer who wants to replace their thermostat. The average consumer ends up going to the hardware store or local Lowes or Home Depot and they find the thermostats only to be intimidated by the selection of a thermostat that is suitable for their application of HVAC equipment they currently have installed for their home. Which type and brand of thermostat do you get when selecting a new thermostat? To do that you have to know what kind of HVAC system you have installed for your heating and cooling system.

Do you have a boiler with baseboard heating or radiators with the boiler combination? In addition to the boiler do you have an air conditioning system with duct work or a mini-split ductless system? Do you have a heat pump system? Do you have lectric baseboard heating? Do you have an air conditioner system with electric heat? It is important to know the answers to what kind of HVAC system you have installed in your home.

When you know the type of air conditioning and heating system you have then you can go to the local hardwarde store and purchase a new thermostat. Opinions varying as far as brand of thermostat is concerned but typically Honeywell thermostats and White Rodgers thermostats are the best with the author of this article leaning towards the Honeywell thermostats if I had the coice of thermostats.

Once you are in the hardware store and find the thermostat section you need to read the package and compre it to the type of HVAC air conditioning and heating system you have. All the information should be on back of the package and which system is appropriate for each particular thermostat. Be aware that a heat pump thermostat is different than a thermostat for an air conditioner with a gas furnace for heat.

Additionally electric baseboard heating usually requires a high voltage thermostat. If you have electric baseboard heating make sure you turn the power off before attempting to change the thermostat. It is a good idea to turn the power off to your HVAC system if you change any thermostat. Goodluck and happy thermostat shopping.

HVAC Systems and Thermostats

Amana AMH95 Gas Furnace Review

When we think of Amana we think about refrigerators and dishwashers. Amana broke into the HVAC market many years ago and they are going strong even after an ownership change. Amana offers the AMH95 Gas Furnace as part of their overall HVAC equipment line-up. It is a high efficiency gas furnace that is rated at 95% efficient which is very good for your gas bill and keeping you warm in the winter time. Amana offers a good warranty to go with the AMH95 Gas Furnace. A lifetime warranty (to the original owner only) on the heat exchanger and a 10 year parts limited warranty on all the functional parts. This makes it one of the best off the shelf warranties you can get unless you pay extra for an extended warranty.

Some of the features listed with the Amana AMH95 Gas Furnace are:

• Patented Stainless-Steel heat exchanger that is tubular. Tubular heat exchangers are different than the clamshell variety heat exchangers. Regardless the design, the important part is that the heat exchanger is efficient and safe. With a lifetime warranty on this heat exchanger Amana is backing up durability and safety.
• A silicon nitride igniter that has adaptive learning. The silicon nitride igniter is rugged and durable. Amana has tested this by trying to put through a piece of wood. They claim success without breaking the igniter. This not standard with most hot surface igniters as the break easily and require replacement. Whats more? The silicon nitride igniter in the Amana AMH95 has adaptive learning. It compensates for voltage variations in the line voltage and it learns to apply just the right amount of heat to ignite the gas. This is good and not standard for many manufacturers. On the surface it does save a little bit of money by reducing the power it consumes to light the gas but this is minimal compared to the overall scheme of energy savings. However, with the fuel crunch going on and rising power and energy costs it never hurts to save every little bit you can save.
• Electronic Control Board with Self-Diagnostics – this is standard among many manufacturers including the Amana Gas Furnace. Electronics or solid state components have replaced the use of relays and miles of wiring in a lot of things including HVAC equipment. Self-Diagnostics is also a common feature among many different HVAC equipment offered on the market today. Some Self-Diagnostic features are smarter than others but Amana is keeping up with the Jones by offering a self-diagnostic board with their equipment.
• Run-Tested at the Amana Gas Furnace factory before shipping – another common feature that is part of many manufacturers quality assurance departments. Amana would not look so good shipping 100 units without a thing-a-ma-jig plus it would cost them a lot of money to have the units fixed in the field versus checking to make sure everything works at the factory before shipping.
• Two-Stage firing rate for the Amana AMH95 Gas Furnace – This is becoming more and more common among manufacturers of gas fired furnaces. As technology advances gas furnaces will also modulate the firing rate based on demand rather than off just one or two firing rates. Another manufacturer already offers a modulating furnace that can fire between 40% to 100% based on demand. Amana has not offered this technology yet but rest assured as the competition adopts these new technologies and energy saving strategies Amana will offer them also in the future.

Overall the Amana AMH95 Gas Furnace gets high marks for their features and efficiency ratings. Add the better than average warranty and this makes it a go for the purchase of the Amana AMH95 Gas Furnace.

Other gas furnace articles:

• Gas Furnace Electronic Ignition Systems
• Amana Gas Furnace Reviews
• Furnace Electronic Ignition Systems: Hot Surface Igniter
• How to Light a Pilot Light
• Types of Gas Furnaces
• Gas Furnace Reviews

HVAC Systems

Window units come in a variety of sizes both dimensionally and in BTU output ratings. Many people do not know that window units also come in different types. There are windows units that offer air conditioning and heating. Some window units have electric heat back up for the heat but there are also heat pump window units available for heating and cooling. The window unit heat pump is a little more expensive to purchase than a straight air conditioner window unit or an air conditioner window unit with electric heat strips but the additional cost with the purchase of a window unit heat pump is usually offset by the savings realized in heating with a heat pump versus heating with electric heat strips. Electric heat strips are 100% efficient but the consume a lot of electricity to generate the heat while a heat pump is all electric also the ration of energy input is better than the ratio of energy input for electric heat strips and what you get back for heat. That is as long as the temperature outside is not less than 38 degrees F. Nearly all heat pumps have back-up heat and this back-up heat is normally electric heat strips. In windows unit heat pumps it always electric heat strips used for the back-up heat. In many air to air heat pump applications when the temperature outside drops below 38 degrees F. it becomes necessary to supplement the heat pump with a back-up source of heat because the heat pump will stop producing enough heat to keep the space heated to set point. Heat pumps use the refrigeration cycle to generate heat. In the process of refrigeration the machine uses a medium (usually refrigerant) to move heat from one place to another. With a heat pump the process of refrigeration works by pulling heat from the outside air in the winter and moving it indoors and in the summer it pulls heat from the air inside the space and rejects this heat outside. This makes the use of heat pumps ideal in geographical regions where the temperature does not go below 38 degrees F. too often. If you live in a geographical region where the climate is not so harsh in the winter and you need a window unit that can also provide heating then a window unit heat pump is a better option than purchasing a window unit with only electric heating capabilities.

HVAC Manufacturers that make window unit heat pumps are many. General Electric, Carrier, Friedrich, Amana, LG Electronics, Pace and many others all compete by offering window unit heat pumps. If you are looking for a window unit heat pump you may want to shop around first. You can also check out some HVAC equipment reviews for reviews on window unit heat pumps or other heating and cooling options available for heating and cooling single zones. By studying the options available to you you can make a good solid and wise decision that will lead to many years of comfort provided by your new HVAC air conditioner or heat pump system. Good Luck to you!

HVAC Systems

Ductless Air Conditioner Design

Mini-Splits for the Ideal Situation

Ductless Air Conditioner Advantages

Mini Split Air Conditioner Installation

Window Unit Air Conditioners are a popular way of providing cooling in small to medium sized rooms. Window unit air conditioners are easy to install and usually only require someone with the strength to lift the unit into a window and secure it. Then you plug it in and turn it on. Its that simple and is the closest thing to plug and play air conditioning you can find.

Types of Window Units

Window units also come in heat pump configurations so you can also use it for heating. Another type of window unit that will provide heating are window units with electric heat strips inside for heating in heat winter time. If you are going to pruchase a window unit and you want the heating option make sure you look for specifically for a window unit that provides heating as well as air conditioning. If you live in the north climates it will be better to get a window unit with electric heat. If you live in the southern regions the better and more cost efficient system would be a heat pump window unit.

Available Electric Power for the Window Unit Air Conditioner

When installing a window unit there are some considerations to factor when selecting a new air conditioner window unit. The first factor is think about available electric outlet near the window. If you have to run an extension cord across the room to power your new air conditioner it is probably not a good factor for locating a window unit there. You can either run the extension cord to power the unit or have an outlet installed in that location. A good electrician can install a new outlet for you efficienctly and quickly. It will a good thing to have basic information for the elctrician like the size of the unit, the required amperage of the unit, and the volts of the unit. Most modern window units are 120 volt units so a standard wall outlet will satisfy the job but it is important that the amp draw of the unit be factored in this decision. Most wall outlets are simply 15 amp circuits and a window unit can exceed that 15 amps depending on the size of the unit. It is important to do some research before pruchasing the unit of the amps and volts necessary for the window unit air conditioner you intend on buying so that the proper outlet is available before you install the window unit.

Sizing the Window Unit Air Conditioner

The rule of thumb for sizing HVAC Systems including window units is that you need one ton for every five hundred square feet. If the home is tight with little heat loss or heat gain the size can go to one ton for every six hundred square feet. This is only a rule of thumb and does not take into account several factors for properly sizing air conditioning systems. Many unit units are fractional ton units but there are some manufacturers that produce window unit air conditioners up to three tons. 12,000 BTU’s equal one ton so break out the calculator and figure out the approximate size of window unit you need to cool the intended space where the window unit air conditioner will be located.

HVAC System