This blog offers proven solutions for the efficient running of the HVAC systems in your home.  We discuss how proper heating, cooling, and ventilation create home comfort and energy efficiency.

Our name, Comfort Heating Systems, is aptly fitting as it summarizes our main goal which is to focus on maximum comfort and efficiency within your HVAC systems.

 

 

 

HVAC Systems in your Home

 

There is a lot you want to know about the HVAC systems in your home.  We are here to answer your most pressing questions.

Why are my windows ‘sweating’ in the winter?  What are the best temperature settings?  Why is my AC freezing?

 

What Does HVAC mean?

 

Your HVAC is not just one unit or system.  It is a network of systems working together, hence the term, HVAC systems.  HVAC is an abbreviation commonly used to mean heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.

 

Heating

 

The ‘H’ in HVAC stands for heating.  This includes your furnace and all its parts and components or other heating sources.

 

Air Conditioning

 

The ‘AC’ in HVAC is short for AC or Air conditioning.  Your AC is typically connected to and works in tandem with your furnace.

 

Ventilation

 

‘V’ is for ventilation.  And we are not talking just duct work.  Ventilation includes everything from windows, to the soffits in your eaves, your air returns, your studs and framing boards, your rim joists a.k.a. band joists or band boards, the type of insulation in your walls, and more.

 

 

The Main Component of your HVAC Systems

 

Most people think of HVAC as only their heat and AC units.  They often forget that the ‘v’ stands for ventilation.  Forgetting the ‘v’ in HVAC is a huge mistake.

Without the proper ventilation, your furnace and AC will struggle to perform effectively.  Ventilation is the largest and most important component of your HVAC systems and it includes way more than just your duct work.

Our main goal is to help you think of ventilation in another way.  Understanding ventilation is the main key to solving 90% of your heating and cooling problems, in our opinion.  

 

 

For the purposes of this blog, we will define ventilation as every fix, fixture, and fitting necessary for the effective running of your furnace and AC.  It all has to do with something called ‘airflow’.

Even your high end furnace and AC will struggle to effectively heat and cool your home, if there is not proper air flow.  Your entire HVAC system hinges on ventilation and airflow.

The following is a list of some of the topics we will cover with regard to the HVAC systems in your home:

 

Table of Contents

 

Heating and Cooling

• • • • • • Net zero – How I Built an Almost Net Zero home
          • Choosing the Right Thermostat
            • Best thermostat for home
          • Why is my Home Cold
          • Places in our home where heat loss occurs
          • Space Heaters
            • How to Choose an Indoor Space Heater
            • Space Heaters vs. Central Heat: Which is Better
            • Discovering the Cheapest Electric Heaters to Run
            • Best Indoor and Outdoor Space Heaters for Comfort
          • Heated Mats
          • Humidifiers
          • Types of Furnaces
            • Which is better Modulation or Stage Two
          • Thermal Bridging
          • Types of air conditioners
          • Factors affecting how well your AC runs
            • Hard water and how it affects your AC
          • How to set your thermostat

Ventilation

• • • • • • Types of Insulation
            • Basement Insulation
            • Attic Insulation – A Conditioned Space
          • Humidity
          • Windows
          • What is a Netzero Home
            • My Netzero Story
          • Air Ducts and Air Returns
            • Washing machine and dryer ducts
          • Ventilation and Air Flow
            • Places where air can escape or leak into your home
          • Fans
            • How long should you run your bathroom fan
            • Your stove fan

 

 

 

Disclaimer:  We are neither HVAC professionals nor HVAC engineers.  However, we have discovered answers to HVAC problems that the professionals were either not willing or able to give us.

The information we share, here, is based on our own personal research and experience.  At times, we will offer our opinions based on our own experience and at times we will share factual information based on research.