Carney All Seasons Blog: Posts Tagged ‘Lansdale’

Do Low-Flow Toilets Work?

Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

Low flush toilets have been available since 1994 and are highly recommended both by the government and multiple green organizations to help reduce the water use in your home. But, the big question you probably have is whether these highly popular alternatives to regular toilets in fact work.

The Numbers

To start with, low flush toilets use less than half as much water to flush as a normal toilet. The average standard toilet uses 3.5 gallons per flush, while a low flush toilet uses only 1.6 gallons per flush. Some new toilets even use less – with the new High Efficiency Toilet (HET) standards setting the maximum flush capacity at 1.3 gpf.

While those toilets did not always perform to optimal standards when they were first released 17 years ago, they have come a long way and now operate almost identically to standard toilets. In fact, most public and restaurant restrooms built in the last 15 years now use these types of toilets instead to save money.

Choosing a Model that Will Work

There are a number of ways to measure different toilets. Just like almost any fixture, the manufacturer, design, and construction of a low flush toilet will determine how well it works. So, while for the most part low flush toilets work like normal toilets, you should take some things into consideration.

To start with, you must choose between either a siphonic or wash-down style toilet. The siphonic toilet uses much more water in the bowl, but as a result has a lot higher chance of clogging. The wash down method uses far less water in the bowl and does not clog as much, but the result is a somewhat tougher to clean interior of the toilet.

Pricing

The lowest prices may not represent the best low flush toilets on the market, but neither do the highest prices. Look for mid-range prices from competitive manufacturers. For less than $300, you can often buy a solid low flush toilet that will not clog any more often than a standard toilet and will save a tremendous amount of water and energy each year by reducing the amount of water flushed.

Low flush toilets are effective, inexpensive and largely popular for a good reason – they work. So, if you are remodelling a bathroom or simply want to make a change to the toilet you currently have, consider installing a low flush toilet to take advantage of green energy technology that is freely available for your bathroom.

Continue Reading

Tags:
Posted in Plumbing | Comments Off on Do Low-Flow Toilets Work?

Why Install a Ductless Air Conditioner?

Wednesday, April 27th, 2011

As you explore your options in terms of a new home air conditioning system, you will probably have to decide whether you want a system that uses ducts to get the cooled air around the house or one that is considered ductless. Each type of air conditioning system is appropriate in certain situations, so it is important to understand the benefits of each before you can make a decision.

Duct air conditioning systems are the more traditional type on the market today. They generally consist of an outdoor compressor and condenser unit and an indoor air handler. The outdoor unit passes the cooled air through ducts to the air handler, which then takes over circulating the air through the house and back out to the condenser again.

It makes sense to install this type of air conditioning system if you have a large house or if you have ducts already in place. Duct air conditioners can cool a moderate to large sized house quite effectively and they can also be coupled with zone control systems to give you multiple climate zones within your house.

Ductless air conditioners, as their name suggests, do not rely on a system of air ducts to get cooled air distributed throughout your house. Instead, these types of systems use refrigerant lines to transfer coolant from the outdoor compressor to the indoor, wall mounted units. Each of these indoor units can take care of cooling one or two rooms, but in order to cool an entire house with one of these systems, you will need to install multiple indoor units.

However, these multiple indoor units can all be connected to the same outdoor compressor, and they can also be controlled independently. That gives you much greater control over which parts of your house are cooled and how much energy you are using to cool areas that may or may not be occupied.

Ductless air conditioners are generally more energy efficient than ducted ones, but their real advantage comes from the facts that they can be installed even in places where air ducts do not exist or cannot go. If you do not already have ductwork in your house, installing a duct system will add considerably to the price of installing a ducted air conditioning system. In a case like this, a ductless system is much easier and cheaper to install and certainly makes more sense.

Continue Reading

Tags:
Posted in Air Conditioning | Comments Off on Why Install a Ductless Air Conditioner?

What Is the Most Efficient Way to Heat My Home?

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011

When it comes to home heating, efficiency is one of the main factors most people take into consideration. There are quite a few different options in terms of home heating, including oil, gas and electric furnaces, heat pumps, and boilers, and each of these have their own set of advantages and disadvantages depending on your own particular situation.

For better or worse, there is no one system that is universally more energy efficient and effective than the others. The one that will turn out to be the best choice for you is the one that fits best with your specific heating needs, the climate you live in and the relative price of the fuel sources available to you.

For instance, if you live in a relatively moderate climate, a heat pump may very well be a good option for you. These systems are able to operate much more efficiently than furnaces because they extract heat from the air rather than generating it themselves. That means that in the winter, a heat pump can take heat from the outdoor air and pump it indoors to heat your home. In the summer, the heat pump can actually do the opposite, taking the excess heat from indoors and transferring it out to provide you with a yearlong temperature control solution.

Heat pumps generally run on electricity which can be expensive, but since they use so much less energy than something like an electric furnace, they can still be a very energy efficient home heating option. However, these systems are not as effective in areas with harsh, long winters, and so would likely require a supplemental heating system as well. Also, the lower the outside temperature, the less efficient a heat pump is going to be.

Furnaces, on the other hand, are quite effective at heating homes no matter how harsh or cold the climate. Gas furnaces are generally the most popular of the models available now, mostly because the cost of natural gas is lower in most areas compared to the cost of other potential fuels.

However, it may be worth considering an oil or electric furnace if these types of energy sources are relatively inexpensive in your area. No matter what type of furnace you get, you’ll be able to choose how energy efficient you want it to be as well, with lower efficiency 80% AFUE furnaces costing substantially less than those with an AFUE of 90% or more.

Continue Reading

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Heating | Comments Off on What Is the Most Efficient Way to Heat My Home?

Touch-Free Faucets: Green Plumbing That’s Fun and Easy!

Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

One fun, high-tech, and relatively inexpensive way to go green is to install a touch-free faucet in your kitchen or bathroom. Touch-free faucets work on a very simple principle: when you’re not actively using them, they shut off. There are a lot of times when you leave a normal faucet on simply because your hands are full (i.e. when you’re washing something), or soapy. With a touch-free faucet, the water turns off during all these gaps in your actual water usage. According to industry estimates, the result can be a water savings of up to 70%.

Of course, most of us have encountered touch-free faucets in public restrooms, and they can be frustrating. You can end up waving your hands around wildly, hoping a faucet somewhere in the room will turn on, and then the water cuts off mid-stream, just when your hands are full of soap. However, new sensor technology is making touch-free faucets much easier to use. These sensors are “omni-directional”, meaning that when your hands are anywhere within a given radius around the tap, the water will turn on and stay on.

Top-of-the-line models can dispense filtered water for drinking, and one designer model has a digital LED screen that allows you to adjust the water temperature, fill a glass with drinking water, or dispense dishwashing detergent, soap, or even hand lotion – all by waving your hand in front of the desired function. Some models also have manual override, which enables you to push a button so that the faucet will stay on for a certain time period without shutting off, even if you move your hands away.

Alternatively, if you like your current faucet and want to keep it, you can add a touch-free faucet adaptor to your existing faucet. Adaptors start at about $50.

Touch-free faucets and adaptors are surprisingly easy to install – no more difficult than conventional faucets. They can be powered by an AC adaptor or batteries, so you can install them almost anywhere.

In addition to the water savings, there are other benefits to touch-free faucets as well:

  • Touch-free faucets are much easier to use than regular faucets – especially if your hands are dirty, soapy, or full.
  • Touch-free faucets are much more sanitary than conventional faucets. With conventional faucets, you turn them on with dirty hands, wash your hands carefully, and then immediately touch the dirty handles again to turn off the faucet.
  • Touch-free faucets allow you to set the water temperature precisely for improved comfort and safety.
  • Touch-free faucets are ADA compliant for people with disabilities.
  • Touch-free faucets are helpful for older people or small children who may forget to turn off the faucet when they are finished
  • Kids love touch-free faucets – no more arguments about hand-washing!

Touch-free faucets make your bathroom or kitchen look really cool and high-tech.

Continue Reading

Tags: , ,
Posted in Energy Savings, Plumbing, Water Conservation | Comments Off on Touch-Free Faucets: Green Plumbing That’s Fun and Easy!

Air Conditioner Repair Tiips and Suggestions

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Three Carney Plumbing, Heating & Cooling employees work together to save 4 year old’s birthday party in Lansdale PA!

In the past few weeks, we’ve performed several hundred air conditioning repairs in Lansdale, North Wales, Doylestown, Ambler, Warrington and Chalfont.  The following is a note that we received from a new customer in who needed an air conditioner repair in Lansdale, PA:

Dear Mr. Carney,

I just wanted to take a moment to write to you and share a recent experience with your company.  Two weeks ago, our air conditioner stopped working a couple of hours before we were about to have over 50 people over for my 4 year old daughter’s birthday party!

Air conditioners in Bucks and Montgomery Counties are working hard this time of year!

Air conditioners in Bucks and Montgomery Counties are working hard this time of year!

I tried calling several air conditioning repair companies in the Lansdale area and no one was able to help, most didn’t even answer their phones. It was hotter inside my house than outside so I went outside to make phone calls to every company I could find in the phone book when I noticed one of your trucks and yard signs at my neighbor’s house a few doors down.

I walked over to get the phone number and as I approached the sign, one of your men was walking to his truck. I explained my situation to him and asked him if he could come over when he was done and look at our air conditioner. He explained that he worked on air conditioner replacements and that he did not have repair parts on his truck, but he offered to take a minute to call your office and see if you could help. When he hung up, he told me to call your office and ask for Lisa and that she would “make it happen”!  I was so relieved!  I called your office and asked for Lisa. As promised, she was expecting my call and assured me that she would get a repair man to my home as soon as she could.

About an hour later, your air conditioning service man, Jim arrived at our home – at this point, I was really worried and almost in a panic. He assured me that he would do everything he could to get it working and asked me a few questions about when it stopped working and if I had noticed any patterns or noises from the system before it broke. After that he went to work, back and forth from the basement to the outside unit. About 45 minutes later, he got it working again and we had cold air coming from the vents! It took a little while for the house to get cool again, but everyone was comfortable and the birthday party was a big hit!
Thank you so much for having such great people in your company, everyone that I talked to was so friendly and accommodating and they did everything they could to help.
We know that we need to get a new air conditioner soon, and we’ll definitely be calling Carney to replace it – my neighbors are so happy with the new one you just installed in their home.

Thank you again and please pass along my thanks to Lisa, Jim and the replacement technician that made the phone call for me in the first place – they were all great!

-Michelle S, Lansdale, PA

Continue Reading

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Air Conditioning, Air Conditioning Repair | Comments Off on Air Conditioner Repair Tiips and Suggestions