Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Fri, Sep 03, 2010
A new energy-saving program aimed at improving the energy efficiency of Lorain County homes has recently been launched by Columbia Gas and Raymond Plumbing is here to help you take full advantage of the program. The program will take advantage of multiple rebates and federal tax credits now being offered for energy-efficient home improvements. Many of these money-saving rebates expire at the end of the year, so Lorain County residents are urged to sign up for the Home Performance Solutions program fast.
The Home Performance Solutions program begins with an energy audit to identify where your home is wasting energy – and your hard-earned money – and target improvement areas. Lorain County homeowners will receive a detailed energy use report that specifies energy-saving tips along with estimated energy savings and applicable rebates for implementing recommended energy-efficient home improvements. Owners of gas-heated homes who use 1,000 Ccf of natural gas or more per year will profit most from this program.
For a limited time, Columbia Gas is offering Lorain County residents a complete home energy audit for just $50, a fraction of its $500 value. Generous energy efficient home improvement rebates and tax credits available through December 31, 2010, can save Lorain County homeowners as much as 70% off the cost of installing recommended home improvements.
But the savings don’t stop there. Installation of energy-efficient gas furnaces and other home improvements can reduce your natural gas use by as much as 30%, a savings you will continue to enjoy year after year. Now is the time to take advantage of multiple money-saving offers to cut your energy use and your gas bill. Contact Raymond Plumbing today for more information.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Tue, Aug 31, 2010
The power of solar energy to change the world is being demonstrated in Portugal and could serve as a model for Lorain County and the U.S. Just five years ago, this small Mediterranean nation sandwiched between Spain and the Atlantic Ocean began a concerted nationwide effort to convert the majority of its energy supplies from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Today, solar, wind and hydropower provide 45% of the electricity used in the country’s homes, offices, retail centers and factories. In a country where electricity costs twice as much as we pay in Lorain County, solar arrays are now providing cheap electric power to major metropolitan areas like Lisbon, as well as small, remote mountain villages.
How Portugal Became a “Go Green” Country
In order to accomplish such a major national energy makeover in such a short time, Portugal had to restructure energy utilities to create a dependable power grid suited to renewable energy sources. New transmission lines were built to bring solar and wind energy from remote areas to city centers. Government subsidies, long-term contracts with price protections, and financial incentives were used to lure private firms to Portugal’s growing renewable energy industry. A complex computer system was created that tracks the weather systems that fuel much of the country’s renewable energy. The system constantly adjusts the flow of electricity from myriad energy sources, directing electricity where it is needed most.
Oil Spill Pushes U.S. Towards Using Renewable Energy
The incentive to replace fossil fuel consumption with renewable energy sources is admittedly higher in Europe where countries like Portugal have few fossil fuel natural resources. The disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has emphasized the risk of relying on fossil fuels and may encourage U.S. and Lorain County government officials to do more to develop sustainable power sources. Lorain County residents can take a personal stand and cut their personal energy bill by nearly 50% by installing an energy-efficient solar water heater.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Fri, Aug 27, 2010
August may be coming to a close but summer’s heat will be with us for a while longer, warn Lorain County weather forecasters. If you haven’t converted your energy-guzzling air conditioner to a new, energy-efficient Carrier air conditioning system, there’s still time to make the change and cash in on Uncle Sam’s Tax Credit for Energy-Efficient Home Improvements. Investing in an Energy Star-rated home comfort appliance is an excellent way to put a little of that federal stimulus money into your own pocket for a change. Click here to get Raymond’s free tax credit facts sheet.
Investing in an energy-efficient Carrier Infinity, Performance or Comfort air conditioner will do more than save money on next April’s federal income taxes. An energy-efficient A/C costs less to operate than older, less efficient models. When your Lorain County air conditioning professional installs an energy-sipping air conditioner in your home or business, you’ll begin to realize significant savings on your monthly utility bill immediately. And those savings will continue for the life of the unit. In just a few years, your new air conditioner will pay for itself.
The savings generated by energy-efficient air conditioners are not just monetary. When you use energy-efficient appliances, you reduce your carbon footprint and help save the environment. All Carrier energy-efficient air conditioners use eco-friendly Puron refrigerant, not the ozone-damaging Freon used by older A/C units. With global warming increasing, record-breaking heat waves are predicted to become the summertime norm in Lorain County. Reducing your personal carbon footprint is one of the most productive personal actions you can take to protect the environment.
Energy-efficient appliances save money and save the environment. Sounds like a win-win for Lorain County residents!
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Wed, Aug 25, 2010
Want to instantly cut your annual hot water costs in half? Ask your Lorain County plumbing professional to install a solar water heater in your home or business. It’s that easy.
Improve Your Carbon Footprint with a Solar Water Heater
Solar water heaters are one of the exciting, new green-energy appliances coming onto the market today. Powered by the sun, Energy Star-qualified solar water heating systems are an eco-conscious way to reduce your carbon footprint and help protect the environment. And because sunshine is free, solar water heaters are as budget-friendly as they are eco-friendly. According to statistics posted on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Star website, installing a solar water heater can cut your Lorain County water bills by 50% or more.
Despite what you may think, Lorain County gets plenty of sunshine to make installation of a solar water heater cost effective. Our gloomy winters do mean that you’ll need a backup gas or electric water heater, but the savings are still considerable. According to the Department of Energy, a typical 4-person family will save $190 annually by combining a solar water heater with a backup gas-storage water heater. Backup your solar water heater with an electric water heater and you’ll save $250 per year. Larger families that use more than the average amount of water will realize even greater savings. Over the average 20-year life of a solar water heating system, you’ll save thousands of dollars on your energy bills!
Solar Water Heaters Qualify for the Federal Tax Credit
The purchase of a solar water heating system pays for itself in 7 to 10 years. Lorain County home and business owners can recoup their investment even faster by taking advantage of Federal tax credits.
While the monetary savings are a powerful incentive to purchase a solar water heater, many Lorain County residents invest in solar power to protect the environment. Use of an energy-efficient solar-powered water heating system can cut carbon dioxide emissions in half, reducing your carbon footprint by 4,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. That’s like garaging your car for 4 months!
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Tue, Aug 24, 2010
It’s hayfever season. For allergy sufferers, hayfever season is a misery of running, sneezy noses, itchy, watering eyes and scratchy throats. Fall flowering plants and weeds like goldenrod and ragweed waft pollen into the air, creating havoc with the sinus systems of hayfever sufferers. The simple act of taking a breath fills their sinus cavities with pollen-laced air, triggering an allergic reaction that causes sinus tissues to swell and itch, making breathing difficult. In defense, the body produces copious amounts of mucous in an attempt to wash away the offending pollens, causing constant sniffling, sneezing and nose blowing. For hayfever sufferers, the misery lasts through the first frost when the cold kills the offending plants, halting pollen production.
Pollen counts in Lorain County have ranged from moderately to extremely high since the start of hayfever season at the beginning of August. Unfortunately for Lorain County hayfever sufferers, weather forecasters expect pollen counts to remain in the very high range for the duration of the hayfever season. Pollen production is affected by weather, and our higher than normal summer temperatures, coupled with strong winds have created ideal conditions for pollen production and distribution in Lorain County.
Installation of a Carrier Infinity Air Purifier is the Most Efficient Way to Remove Pollen from the Air
The only effective way to alleviate hayfever symptoms is to remove pollen particles from the air. Installation of a Carrier Infinity Air Purifier by your Lorain County heating and air conditioning professional is the most effective and most efficient way to remove pollen particulate from the air and create a healthy, breathable environment for Lorain County allergy sufferers. Adding an air purifier to the HVAC system in your Lorain County home is far more effective in cleaning pollen from the air than purchasing a portable room air purifier as it removes pollen from your entire home, not just a single room. Click here to find out more.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Fri, Aug 20, 2010
Do you have Thermostat Wars in Your Home?
Every person feels heat and cold differently. Setting your air conditioner’s thermostat at an energy-saving 75 degrees may feel pleasantly comfortable to you when you’re sitting in your Lorain County family room watching the game, but it can feel overly warm when you start running the vacuum and absolutely freezing to your visiting granny. Thermostat wars are the stuff of family legends. Who doesn’t have a grandmother who keeps cranking the heat up to 86 when she visits or an overweight Uncle Ray who sends the house into the deep freeze when he stops by? Lorain County parents are forever nagging at their kids to keep their hands off the thermostat. Hormonally-charged teens who believe in instant comfort are forever bumping the controls up or down as they go from hot to cold in what parents swear are 10 minute intervals.
Programmable Thermostats Decreases Home Energy Use, Saves You Money and Restores Peace in your Home!
Thermostat wars have been known to upset family harmony and spark more than a few unpleasant family disagreements. Programmable thermostats can put an end to your family’s thermostat wars and allow peace to reign in your Lorain County home. If you have your Lorain County heating and air conditioning professional install a programmable thermostat to regain control of your home’s temperature controls, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find that installing a programmable thermostat also decreases home energy use which lowers monthly utility bills and saves you money -- a pretty nice bonus for restoring peace to your home!
Programmable thermostats allow you to set specific temperatures during different hours of the day. To save on heating bills, set the thermostat to a cooler nighttime temperature while you sleep. Save on air conditioning bills by setting the thermostat to a higher temperature when you’re away from home at work or away for the weekend. Programmable thermostats put you back in control of your home’s temperature and end thermostat wars.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Thu, Aug 19, 2010
More Lorain County residents are tuning into the benefits of installing a solar water heater in their home. Solar water heaters offer attractive environmental and financial benefits. Electric and gas water heaters are notorious producers of environmentally-destructive carbon dioxide (CO2), Environmentalists say the amount of CO2 produced each year by residential water heaters is equal to the total CO2 produced by cars and light trucks. If just half of U.S. residents switched to solar water heaters, America’s CO2 emissions could be cut in half.
Let’s compare the energy use and cost of electric and gas-powered water heaters to solar water heaters.
Energy use
- Electric water heaters require 6,400 kilowatt hours of electricity per year to heat the water used by a family of four.
- Gas water heaters do not use electricity.
- Solar water heaters do not use electricity. They get their energy from the sun.
Carbon dioxide output
- Water heaters that use electricity generated by a typical U.S. power plant with an average 30% efficiency create 8 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year, twice that emitted by a car.
- Gas water heaters emit about 2 tons of CO2 per year.
- Solar water heaters emit no CO2 and do not harm the environment in any way.
Cost
- The purchase price of an electric or gas water heater ranges from $150 to $450, but you also have to figure in monthly fuel costs for the life of the appliance.
- Solar water heaters cost from $1,500 to $3,500 but pay for themselves in fuel savings in 4 to 8 years. After that, all your hot water is free. Considering the average 20-year life of solar water heaters, that’s quite a savings.
More than 1.5 million savvy U.S. consumers already use solar water heaters. To find out more, contact Raymond Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning today.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Wed, Aug 18, 2010
Pollen counts have been abnormally high since spring which doesn’t bode well for hay fever sufferers. Lorain County allergy sufferers are already stocking up on Kleenex and Benadryl in preparation for the sneezing fits, watery eyes and itchy noses that bedevil them in August and September until frost brings relief.
Prolific Greenhouse Gas Emissions Have Increased the Amount of Carbon Dioxide in the Air
Allergists say the warmer than usual winter and heavy spring rains encouraged explosive plant growth in Lorain County, allowing the pollen-bearing weeds and flowers that bother allergy sufferers to cover the landscape. As these plants go to seed in the fall, they are releasing copious quantities of pollen into the air. The problem is exacerbated by global warming, say environmentalists. Prolific greenhouse gas emissions have increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the air, spurring plant growth and pollen production and fungal spores. The bad news for allergy sufferers is that if left unchecked, rising carbon dioxide levels could increase air-borne allergens threefold within the next 30 years.
Install an Air Cleaner on Your Heating and Cooling System to Improve Indoor Air Quality
Home comfort appliances that trap or kill pollen, mold spores and other allergens from indoor air can make a significant difference in the lives of allergy sufferers. Today’s energy-efficient air conditioners are equipped with highly efficient filters that trap and remove allergens from indoor air. Allergy sufferers will profit from constantly running the air conditioner fan. This keeps air circulating through A/C filters, continuously removing newly introduced allergens from the air.
A particularly successful way to improve indoor air quality is to have your Lorain County heating and air conditioning professional install an electronic air cleaner on your heating and cooling system. Standard fiberglass mesh furnace filters trap only 15% of problematic air particles. Energy-efficient electric air cleaners can trap up to 95% of airborne allergens and other particles, including smoke, grease, bacteria and many viruses. Contact your Lorain County heating and cooling professional today about installing an air cleaner and start breathing easy!
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Fri, Aug 13, 2010
Northern Ohio is Becoming a Mecca for Green Energy Initiatives
Less than 10% of America’s energy needs are supplied by renewable resources, but a growing number of Lorain County heating, cooling and plumbing professionals, home builders, individual residents and newly-minted alternative energy companies are working to increase that figure. Northern Ohio is becoming a Mecca for the state’s green energy initiatives. A solar cell power grid is replacing corn in farm fields near Upper Sandusky. Wind turbines are rising along Lake Erie’s shores to catch the winds crossing the lake. The state’s energy-efficient appliance rebate program has encouraged countless Lorain County residents to invest in Energy Star air conditioners and furnaces, heat pumps and solar-powered water heaters.
A Green House has Sprouted at the Ohio State Fair
Showcasing many of the new energy-efficient technologies and products now available to Lorain County residents, a “green” house has sprouted at this year’s Ohio State Fair in Columbus. Constructed from 21-inch thick earthen blocks that provide natural insulation, the home was designed to minimize heating and cooling requirements. Solar panels adorn the building’s roof to provide electricity. A radiant heat system was built into the floor to keep the home warm in winter while reducing furnace use. And those are just a few of the fascinating technologies on display at the green house.
After the fair, the green house is slated to become a permanent site fixture on the fairgrounds that will be used to promote renewable energy sources and eco-friendly products. In its current demonstration mode (some wall and floor areas have been exposed to reveal the energy-saving technology behind them) the home may not be move-in ready, but add few energy-efficient appliances like an Energy Star air conditioner and a solar-powered hot water heater and it could create a cozy home for a Lorain County family.
Posted by Raymond Plumbing Heating and Air Conditioning on Wed, Aug 11, 2010
Dog are Having Trouble with the Heat too this Summer!
It’s not just people who are suffering in what has become Lorain County’s hottest summer on record. Dogs are having trouble with the heat too. The brutal heat has been tough on our furry friends. Our friends at the Lorain County Humane Society recommend pet owners take the following steps to keep their animal companions cool during the dog days of August:
- Outdoors, make sure your dog has a shady place to cool off.
- Keep pet water dishes filled with fresh, cold water. You can even add a few ice cubes to keep water cold longer.
- Fill a shallow kiddie pool with water so your dog has a place to cool off.
- Hot asphalt and concrete can burn a dog’s foot pads. If it’s too hot for you to walk barefoot on concrete or asphalt, it’s too hot for your dog. Take Rover to the dog park and let him run on the grass.
- Light colored pets can get sunburn just like people do. Rub a little sunscreen on your pet’s ears and nose.
- Exercise your dog during the coolest parts of the day, early morning or evening. Don’t let your pet get overheated during the hot parts of the day.
- Watch for signs of heat exhaustion: excessive panting, listlessness or vomiting. If your dog exhibits any of these symptoms, apply cool wet towels to his head and body, give your pet cool water and call your vet immediately.
- Never leave your pet in a parked car on hot days. Even if you park in the shade or leave the windows cracked, on a 90-degree day the heat inside a car can quickly rise past 100, killing your pet.
- Give Fido a break and bring your dog inside to cool off in air conditioned comfort.
You can keep your dog cool and save money by installing an energy-efficient air conditioner. Schedule a Free estimate on all installations.