Atlantic Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, Inc. Blog: Archive for February, 2015

Which Air Purification System Do I Need?

Friday, February 27th, 2015

In a perfect world, you wouldn’t have to worry about the pollutants that can drag down the quality of the air in your home. This is not a perfect world, though, and if you are waiting for your indoor air quality to clean itself, we don’t suggest holding your breath. Instead, dial our number and work with one of our fine air purification technicians. Not only can we help you to choose the most appropriate air purifier for your needs, but the Milford, DE air purification professionals on our staff will ensure that you get the very best performance possible from your new equipment. Here are a few tips to consider when determining which air purification system best suits your needs, courtesy of the IAQ specialists here at Atlantic Refrigeration.

First of all, know that different air purification systems are appropriate for different air quality problems. For many homeowners, using the right mechanical air filter is all that they need in order to resolve problems with airborne pollutants. Mechanical air filters are installed into your HVAC air distribution system. As air passes through the filters, a media filter traps pollutants while letting the air pass through. In some homes, though, more specialized equipment is necessary.

Electronic air purifiers are another great way in which to remove airborne pollutants from the air in your home, but they are not passive in the manner of mechanical air filters. Instead, these systems draw air into an ionization chamber. In this chamber, the pollutants within the air are given an electric charge. They are then trapped on oppositely charged collector plates. These plates are easily removed and must be cleaned from time to time. When the air leaves the ionization chamber, it is of a much higher quality and purity than when it went in. Not all pollutants can simply be removed from the with the utilization of such techniques, though.

Biological pollutants are of much concern to homeowners, as these pollutants can have seriously negative implications for one’s health and even a home itself. Mold, viruses, and bacteria all fall into this category. These living organisms must be destroyed, not simply trapped on a filter where they can continue to reproduce. With the use of a UV air purifier, which uses small amounts of UV radiation in order to destroy such pollutants, you can protect your property and the health of everyone therein from the adverse effects of such pollutants.

Schedule your air purification services in Milford, DE with the professional indoor air quality technicians on the Atlantic Refrigeration team.

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Repairs a Geothermal Heating System May Need

Friday, February 20th, 2015

Geothermal systems are built to last – after all, they do have an average lifespan of up to 50 years – but that doesn’t mean they won’t ever have repair issues. There can be some concern over geothermal repairs because parts of the system are so different from more traditional heating systems, but when you hire trained experts, like the ones from Atlantic Refrigeration, you can rest assured that your geothermal heating repairs in Dover, DE, are in good hands.

Types of Repairs

Here are some of the repairs that can develop with a geothermal system:

Issues with the Heat Pump

Geothermal systems use a heat pump to transfer the heat back and forth. The heat pumps will either be water-source or ground-source, depending on the type of geothermal system you’ve installed. One of the most common problems with heat pumps is compressor issues. The compressor pressurizes the anti-freeze in the system, so problems with the compressor can create heating issues. Other issues that can develop are problems with the coils and issues with the condenser.

Scaling

There are a number of minerals in water, and sometimes these minerals can form a build-up in piping called “scale”. The ground loop of geothermal systems, and even the heat pump, can develop scale, which, if significant enough, can restrict the flow of the anti-freeze in the system. An acid flush performed by a trained professional can remove the scale build-up easily.

Ground Loop Leak

The ground loop developing a leak is one of the top concerns about geothermal systems, but it doesn’t have to be. First, leaks rarely develop and second, technicians use a specific process to pinpoint the leak location before digging. The process involves injecting non-toxic dye into the ground loop and waiting for the dye to bubble to the ground’s surface; the location of the dye on the ground’s surface indicates where the leak has developed. Once the dye appears, digging can begin and the leak can be repaired.

Geothermal systems are the most energy efficient systems available and their long lifespan can mean years of comfortable, very environmentally-friendly heating and cooling.

If you have concerns about geothermal repair in Dover, DE, call the experts at Atlantic Refrigeration today!

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Some of the Unusual Movies Released for Valentine’s Day

Saturday, February 14th, 2015

Hollywood has always tried to match movies up to the seasons to draw droves of viewers to the theaters: October is packed with fright-offerings, while the winter holidays skew toward warm and pleasing family films (as well as Oscar hopefuls). Valentine’s Day falls in an odd spot when it comes to the movie release calendar, however, since February tends to be a slower time for the film industry. The studios are as likely to slot strange movies that don’t fit anywhere else in their annual schedules into the Valentine’s Day weekend as they are films with powerful romantic appeal.

So, while the second weekend of February has featured hugely successful romantic comedies like Hitch, The Wedding Singer, and (of course) Valentine’s Day, some truly weird choices have debuted in this weekend as well. And a few have even gone on to tremendous success despite the bizarre match with the holiday. Here are a couple of the odder Valentine’s Day movie releases:

  • Dracula (1931): Yes, this Halloween perennial and the start of Universal Studio’s Classic Monsters actually came out on Valentine’s Day! But perhaps this makes some sense, as the Dracula legend has often received a “doomed lover” approach in the many years since Bela Lugosi made the aristocratic vampire a screen icon.
  • The Silence of the Lambs (1991): Does any film seem less appropriate for Valentine’s Day than this unnerving and sometimes very violent psychological thriller? What’s even more astonishing than the film’s release date is that The Silence of the Lambs eventually nabbed the Oscar for Best Picture, an almost unheard of occurrence for a movie released so early in the year.
  • Daredevil (2003): This Marvel comic adaptation featuring Ben Affleck as a blind superhero does contain a romantic subplot, but the stronger connection to Valentine’s Day may just be that Daredevil wears a bright red costume.
  • A Good Day to Die Hard (2013): The least successful of the Die Hard film franchise, this is an excellent example of a studio dropping a film into a weekend where it doesn’t fit in the hopes that it works as counter-programming. (It didn’t.)
  • Wayne’s World (1992): Now here is an example of counter-programming that clicked with audiences. This comedy based on a Saturday Night Live sketch turned into one of that year’s biggest hits and spawned a sequel.

Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day with a trip to the movie theater, or you have your own special plans, everyone here at Atlantic Refrigeration hopes you and your loved ones have a wonderful weekend.

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What’s Included in a Quality HVAC Maintenance Program?

Thursday, February 5th, 2015

Your heating and air conditioning systems go through a lot in the course of a year. Air conditioning systems contain many mechanical components that require quite a bit of electricity to operate. And on a particularly warm day, these parts can begin to wear down, which means they must work even harder to cool your home. Heating systems may contain burners and ignition equipment that can malfunction from just a little bit of dirt. Keeping parts in top shape is key to the performance of your heating and air conditioning system, which is why technicians usually recommend that you enroll in an HVAC maintenance program.

If you’d like to sign up for a complete, quality HVAC maintenance program in Georgetown, DE, call the professional maintenance team at Atlantic Refrigeration today. Here’s what you’ll get from a maintenance plan:

  • Twice Annual Inspection: If you so choose, you could skip enrolling in a maintenance program and just schedule maintenance when you feel it is necessary. However, this means you’re not getting all of the additional benefits of an HVAC maintenance program (such as special offers and discounts), and you may forget to schedule appointments.
  • Adjustment and Cleaning: Over time, parts are bound to become a little bit dirty, especially the outside portion of your air conditioning system or heat pump and the exposed, dusty areas of your air handler.  Technicians will clean several of the key components, such as the indoor and outdoor coils and the blower fan, and they’ll make any adjustments that may be necessary.
  • Additional Benefits: Most HVAC maintenance programs also include additional benefits that may actually compensate for the annual fee. At Atlantic Refrigeration, for example, we offer priority service to all customers enrolled in our twice yearly maintenance program, so that is a sudden repair need does come up, they’re moved to the top of the service list. We also give discounts to these customers for parts and labor.

Call Atlantic Refrigeration today to enroll in an HVAC maintenance program that can help to save you money, reduce repairs, and potentially extend the life of your heating and AC equipment.

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