Is your HVAC ready for the Summer?

Summer is fast approaching. Add the fact that we are all encouraged to stay at home right now for our safety, you want to make sure your Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) unit is ready for high usage. Here are the things that you need to check to see if your HVAC is ready for the summer:

Check the Filter: Checking your filter is a must as far as the readiness of your HVAC unit is concerned. HVAC repair Attleboro MA company Sinclaire Home Services, advises homeowners to replace their filter at least once a month. If it is a permanent one, cleaning it thoroughly at least once a month is essential. If you have pets inside your house and smoking inside the house is a norm, cleaning or replacing the filter is a must.

Install a Programmable Thermostat: Using your HVAC unit can add to your electricity bill big time, and a programmable thermostat can be a big lifesaver. With a programmable thermostat, you can schedule when your HVAC needs to be working hard or not. Scheduling will not only save you money but it can prevent your HVAC unit from working too hard.

         

Clear the Vents: Your HVAC will run smoothly and efficiently if there are no obstructions to the airflow. You can check the vents by yourself and see if dust and debris are obstructing your vents. This is basic HVAC maintenance that you can do by yourself. If unsure, calling for professional help won’t hurt.

Install Fans to Maximize Air Flow: Installing fans can maximize the comfort your HVAC unit provides your home. There are several types of fans sold in the market: ceiling fans, tabletop fans, and floor fans. Setting the ceiling fan to rotate clockwise during summer is ideal as the air will flow downwards. The downward flow of air can prevent excess heat to rise up into the higher levels of your house and make your HVAC work less. If possible, have the smaller tabletop and floor fans running throughout the house to maximize the cool air flowing throughout the house.

Reduce Heat from other Appliances: To help your HVAC unit work less, it might be smart to avoid using big appliances that generate heat throughout the day. Using the grill instead of the oven to prepare a big dinner will help in lessening the heat your HVAC unit has to battle. Similarly, hang your clothes outside instead of using the laundry dryer.

Replace Your HVAC Unit: If your current HVAC unit is not running smoothly and efficiently, even with basic maintenance and energy-saving tips, maybe it’s time to replace your HVAC unit. Keeping your current HVAC might be more costly than you think. Most newer HVAC units are designed to be more efficient and less costly.

These tips can help you summer-proof your HVAC unit. If all else fails, seek help from a professional.

Landscaping Trends for Summer 2020

Summer is fast approaching. It’s time to head outdoors and prepare your garden for summer’s bountiful blooms and appealing produce.

In the past few years, we’ve seen homeowners looking for new ways to “smarten up” their landscaping with eco-friendly features. Today, sustainability is more of a lifestyle goal rather than an esoteric idea.

If you’re looking for ways to improve your landscaping, here are some of this year’s trends that might work for you.

Outdoor Living Spaces

Outdoor kitchens appear to be the next best thing this 2020. Apart from being an extension of your house, it can also be a place where the whole family can bond and have fun during the summer months.

Aside from its functionality, outdoor kitchens can also bring a touch of luxury to your property. Years back, outdoor kitchens meant just having a good grill. But now, homeowners are looking into integrating a full-functioning kitchen outside of their homes to include sinks, countertops, storage, and more.

Hardscape Patterns

Homeowners are going beyond the shape, size, and location of their walkways and patios in 2020. They are looking into intricate designs, detailing, and patterns on their pavements. Bricks or permeable pavers laid in basket-weave, herringbone, or lattice patterns -- as well as other complicated patterns -- are now warming up and softening the hardscaping of outdoor living spaces.

Vertical Gardening

Vertical gardening is a great solution for those who are living in high rise apartments or homes with very minimal outdoor space. Growing your own food does not only save you money but also keeps you confident that your food is fresh.

More homeowners are using creative approaches like wall-mounted containers and trellising to soften walls with vining plants to grow their veggies and herbs near the kitchen.

Companion Planting

Companion planting has been a huge hit with gardeners for many years. It’s known to have several benefits including increasing soil nutrients and healthier plants, preventing weeds, reducing pests, and attracting pollinators.

It looks like this trend continues in 2020. Companion planting provides organic and natural solutions to your garden problems.

Pollinator Gardens

Pollinator plant populations are decreasing, and pollinators are left with no choice but to travel greater distances in order to find plants they need to complete their life cycles.

To help them out, homeowners are adding flowers that attract helpful pollinators like milkweed, known to be the only host plant for the monarch butterfly larvae. Additionally, Joe Pye weed, coneflower, and bee balm are nectar rich flowers which are great for attracting for adult monarchs, birds, bees, and countless other beneficial pollinators.

Sustainable, Multi-Use, Eco-Friendly Solutions

According to Atlanta landscape design company, Oasis Landscaping, Sustainable landscaping is more of a necessity these days than a trend. More homeowners are realizing its benefits, which include saving money, supporting the local ecosystems, and reducing waste.

Smart Irrigation

High-tech irrigation systems are transforming the way homeowners use water in the landscape. No more sprinklers watering a yard during a rainstorm! Smart irrigation allows homeowners to save money and conserve water with just a touch of a button on their phones. Some systems have scheduling features which helps remind homeowners to water their yards right on time.

These are just some of the trends you can apply to your garden this 2020. Whether you’re a novice gardener or a seasoned one, these will definitely help you breathe new life to your garden and improve landscaping work.

Apex NC Tips For Hiring A Lawn Drainage Expert

If your lawn drainage is not proper you can experience a lot of issues. The most common issue would be water pooling in a particular area or water pooling in many areas, erosion of plant soil, muddy lawns and so on. To solve these issues you need a lawn drainage expert. A lawn drainage expert or company will be able to solve these issues really quickly. They will ensure that the problem is rectified and it does not recur. However, hiring a lawn drainage expert can be difficult because of the plethora of options available. Recently I hired Drain Solutions in Apex NC to redo the lawn drainage. They did a wonderful job and they can be found at https://www.draindesigns.com/apex-drainage-solutions/. To hire them I had to do a lot of research. The following are the tips to help you hire a lawn drainage expert, tips that I actually used.

• The first tip is to search online for a lawn drainage expert or company. You will get a lot of search results, just research properly and make a list of 3 or so companies. You can hire any one from this list. However, you need to do more research.
•  Ask your friends and relatives if they know anything about the company. If any of your relatives or friends provide a good review or rate them highly, you can place that lawn drainage expert on top of your list.
• Check local reviews and ratings from many websites such as Angie’s list. People provide real reviews and ratings, so you can easily decide if they are good or not.
• Next call the company and arrange a meet.
• At the meet ask them to provide a quote. Usually you get a free quote, do not pay for a quote. The representative of the company should ask you questions about the problems, he should take a tour of the property and look at all the issues. A good drainage expert will find out the problems immediately and let you know. The representative who visited my house pointed the exact place where the water was seeping into the foundation of my home and advised me on solutions. So the representative should point out such things.
• Ask the representative about licences, insurance etc. This is very important, you cannot have an accident claim on your hands, because you hired a company that did not have insurance for their workers.
• Find out how long the company has been in existence and how many people work in the company. If a company has been in existence for a long period, such as 5 years or more, it means they have the expertise as well as the experience. If there are a lot of employees, it means the company can take care of your problems soon, less number of employees means your problem could be last on their list.

Based on the evaluation of the above mentioned tips you can make an informed decision.

Image source: https://pixabay.com/photos/sewer-cover-iron-grate-steel-cover-178443/

Is 12 Mil Vapor Barrier Ideal For Crawl Spaces?

I was alerted to the vulnerabilities of a home due to the crawl space not being maintained properly. I regularly take care of my home and I consider myself a DIY person. I mow the lawn myself, I do repairs wherever I can, I take care of the drainage in my home, I paint the walls when needed and so on. However, I have not been to the crawl space because I did not think about it at all. I stay in Raleigh and when my friend told me that he had his crawl space encapsulated, that was when it hit me, I had neglected the crawl space. He was the one who alerted me to the dangers. He also told me that I should not look at saving money by doing it myself; rather I should hire a Raleigh crawlspace encapsulation expert and get the job done.

However, my DIY instincts kicked in and I started researching online about crawl space encapsulation, the material used, the way to do it etc. After the research I was sure that I needed an expert to do the job, but I had a few questions for him.

The first question I asked the encapsulation expert was whether I needed crawl space encapsulation in the first place. I wanted a detailed answer and the Raleigh expert did not fail me. He pointed out the problem areas, he showed me where mold and mildew had grown, and he showed spots with fungus growth. I was amazed to see that a few rodents had made the crawl space their home and a termite colony had sprung up recently. He advised me that I had no other option but to encapsulate the crawl space and that too immediately.

The next question I asked was, what mil vapor barrier is ideal for crawl spaces? He was taken aback, because not many people know about the material that is used and most do not even want to know, they just need a quote and a deadline to complete the task. He then told me that vapour barriers are available from 6 Mil to 20 Mil and 6 is thin material whereas 20 is the thickest material. He did not advocate 6 Mil as it was too thin and could get damaged soon, 20 Mil was too thick, after looking at our crawl space he suggested 12 Mil. I was fine with it, but I asked him whether 12 Mil vapor barrier was the ideal one for all crawl spaces. The expert told me we could go for 10 Mil too but if you want the crawl space encapsulation to last for years then 12 Mil was the ideal one. He further told me that he had years of experience in the field and 12 Mil vapor barriers with reinforced string was the best and lasted long.

I heeded his advice and I had the crawl space encapsulated with 12 mil vapour barriers and I can say that I am really happy and I need not think about my crawl space at all, after all I have a lot of other DIY options at home.

Image source: https://pixabay.com/photos/cityscape-downtown-night-photograph-2096730/