AffordaBull Heat & Air Blog

A Brief History of Air Conditioning

Thu, 10 Feb 2022 21:48:33 GMT

FROM THEN TO NOW, AFFORDABULL HEAT & AIR OF RUSSELLVILLE WALKS YOU THROUGH A BASIC HISTORY OF IN-HOME AIR CONDITIONING.

We’re still a few months away from needing to fire up our air conditioning (although this is Arkansas, so you never know!) but as we get closer to spring and summer, you might be interested to learn how we humans developed the technology needed to keep our dwellings cool and comfortable when it’s anything but outside. After all, A/C is something we often take for granted until it goes out and then we realize just how critical that technology really is!

In the days of yore, long before today’s cooling technology, folks would go to amazing lengths to keep themselves cooling during those ancient dog days of summer. In fact, in ancient Rome, those who could afford it would tap into the city’s massive aqueduct system in order to let the cool water circulate through the walls of their home. Also competing for the award for most innovative/overwrought air cooling techniques was Ancient China, which, inspired by hand fans, created the first room-size powered rotary fan, manually operated by a lot of unfortunate peasants, of course. Early architects, living prior to the advent of modern AC technology, realized early on that room design and construction planning could make a major difference in the temperature of a room, so they started placing windows away from the sun and designed them to catch breezes in order to circulate cooler air throughout the structure. Of course, all of those cooling options were reserved for the very, very, very rich. If you were among the common folk, you were pretty much on your own when the weather was hot and humid.

While a lot of us can’t imagine a life without indoor AC, it actually wasn’t until well after the industrial revolution that the first air conditioner was invented by a man whose last name might sound familiar to you, Willis Carrier, in 1902. While working at a New York printing company, the young engineer noticed that when the weather got hot it wreaked havoc on their printing process by causing the printing paper to wrinkle, and sought a way to keep the humid air out while bringing cool air in. That year he invented the first true air conditioner known to mankind, as it fulfilled all of the four basic functions of modern AC, controlling the temperature, humidity, air circulation and ventilation, and cleansing the air. In 1906, after 4 years of constant refining and testing, Willis Carrier was granted U.S. Patent number 808,897 for his “Apparatus for Treating Air”. It would then take nearly 20 years for the first air conditioner to make its debut to the public at Times Square’s Rivoli Theater in the year 1925.

Air conditioning began to take off in the 1920s, quickly spreading to department stores and offices but it hit a few road bumps on its way into our homes. Those road bumps being the Great Depression and the onset of World War II, not to mention the humongous price tag of those early systems. However, once America hit the baby boom and started reaping the benefits of the post-war economy, it finally started to take off. The combination of a booming economy and the advent of more compact, inexpensive window air conditioners gave many homeowners their first taste of that sweet, sweet AC. By the 1960s, most new homes were being built with central air conditioning systems. And by 2009, the number of American homes using AC reached 100 million, roughly 87% of US households.

The air conditioning we rely on now is much more energy-efficient than those early versions and today HVAC manufacturers continue to innovate. The most recent breakthrough has been the “smart thermostat” which pairs energy-saving features with the ability to control the temperature of your home remotely. These smart thermostats can even be programmed to make adjustments based on fluctuations in weather conditions.

In the span of fewer than 100 years, following its public debut in New York City, air conditioning has transformed from a personal luxury to an absolute necessity, changing the quality of life for billions across the globe. Just another example of American ingenuity and determination!

For more information on the latest innovations in in-home air conditioning, contact the experts at AffordaBull Heat & Air in Russellville, Arkansas, proudly serving residents of the River Valley!

Winter Maintenance Tips for your HVAC System

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 23:08:52 GMT

Five Ways to Make Sure You System is Ready to Stand Up to the Next Cold Front

Winter is hitting its stride River Valley area and that means your heating system is about to do a lot more of the heavy lifting necessary to keep your home comfortable all season long. Is your system up to the challenge? Here are five maintenance tips from AffordaBull Heat & Air that will help you keep your family warm and cozy all winter long.

Regularly Clean your Air Filter

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, one of the most important aspects of HVAC maintenance really is a simple as regularly changing out your air filter. A dirty air filter makes your heating system work even harder, putting unnecessary stress on your home’s HVAC system. Not only that, when your system has to work harder it also requires more energy, which ends up coming out of your wallet.

Clean your Air Vents

Next time you're vacuuming around the house, take off your vent covers and vacuum out the air vents as well. This will help prevent any blockage inside the vents as well as improve your home’s indoor air quality. Removing any blockage within the vents will help better maintain a consistently comfortable temperature throughout the home. However, if you’re noticing a significant amount of buildup on your air vents, it’s probably worth scheduling an air duct cleaning to remove all the grit and grime your vacuum cleaner can’t reach.

Add Some Insulation

A good HVAC system can only do so much, especially if your home is prone to leaking air and heat. While not technically part of your home’s HVAC system, good insulation is critical to both the comfort of your home and its energy efficiency. And since hot air rises, a well-insulated attic is critical.

Checkout the Thermostat

A good habit to start is replacing your thermostat’s batteries at the start of the winter. You don’t want to be scrambling for fresh batteries to power your system’s thermostat when the temperature drops below freezing. You can also save on energy costs by setting your thermostat to a lower temperature at bedtime and while you’re away at work. This is made even easier by upgrading to a programmable thermostat.

Schedule an Inspection

If you didn’t already schedule a heating inspection this past fall, now is the time. The experts at AffordaBull Heat & Air will be able to identify any wear and tear that needs to be addressed before it starts to affect both the efficiency of your system and its lifespan. Give us a call at 479-747-6548 and we’ll make sure that your HVAC system is ready to stand up to the next cold front!

The History of In-Home Heating

Fri, 10 Dec 2021 17:35:04 GMT

FROM THEN TO NOW, AFFORDABULL HEAT & AIR OF RUSSELLVILLE WALKS YOU THROUGH A BASIC HISTORY OF IN-HOME HEATING.

Have you ever imagined what it must have been like for our ancient ancestors when the only way to stay warm at night was a well-built fire and maybe an animal hide to snuggle underneath? Sure, today we still enjoy a nice campfire with friends but caveman life doesn’t sound all that pleasant. Thankfully our heating options have advanced over the centuries, from the methods of keeping ourselves warm to the types of structures we choose to make our home in.

Have you ever wondered about the history of heating and how humans developed technology to keep ourselves warm and comfortable all winter long? Well, it all starts back in the 1100s, when the prototypes of the modern chimney began to appear. Prior to then, using in-door fireplaces depended on small holes placed within the walls or roof to allow the smoke to slowly escape. You can see how that setup would lead to other problems.

Surprisingly, chimneys didn’t become commonplace until around the 1500s. In fact, they wouldn’t develop into the streamlined, smoke-removal systems we would recognize today for another 200 years due to humans finally gaining a better understanding of physics and how heat actually works.

We can actually thank one of America’s founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin for several of the innovations that led to our modern understanding of home heating. In the year 1742, at the age of 36, he invented the original version of the Pennsylvania Fireplace, a cast-iron fireplace designed to be inserted into the home's existing fireplace space. Franklin famously refused to patent his new fireplace, which would go on to be known as the Franklin Stove, allowing it to be continually improved upon and made more efficient by other inventors, just as the famous David Rittenhouse. These new versions continued to be the primary method for heating American homes until the late 1880s when the first radiators and furnaces came into existence.

It was at this time that low-cost, cast iron radiators were first invented, and due to the innovations of the industrial revolution, were able to be mass-produced and made more readily available to Americans eager to bring central heating into their homes. These early radiator systems were usually fueled by a coal-fired boiler located in the home’s basement, which then sent hot water or steam into radiators placed throughout the house.

A few decades later the first riveted-steel coal furnaces were built. The original version of these types of heating systems depended on convection (hot air rising) through ducts from the basement furnace to control the temperature in the house. This would be improved upon with the introduction of electricity-power fans being added to circulate the warm air throughout the home.

By the mid-1800s, gas and oil became the primary fuel used to heat the home and forced air furnaces became the norm, which meant that homeowners no longer had to ‘stoke the coals,’ to keep their homes warm. Since then, home heating technology has abounded, eventually resulting in the HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning) systems we depend on today.

Due to their expense, the first true HVAC systems were mostly limited to commercial use, however, in 1932 H.H. Schultz and J.Q. Sherman produced the first ac/heating unit that could fit into a window sill. Eventually, this would lead to most homes having some type of residential HVAC system by the 1960s. HVAC technology continued to undergo intense development over the last half-century, with the invention of high-pressure heating systems serving as a particularly high achievement in the history of home heating.

Innovations in home heating and HVAC systems don’t stop there. Technology is always evolving and adapting to our changing world. Who knows what tomorrow will bring for the future of home heating. For more information on the latest innovations in home heating, contact the experts at professionals at AffordaBull Heat & Air in Russellville, Arkansas, proudly serving residents of the River Valley!

What To Do When Your Air Conditioning Freezes and How You Can Defrost Your Condenser

Thu, 02 Dec 2021 15:56:11 GMT

How to Safely Defrost Your Condenser

If your AC is running but no cold air is flowing into your home, or worse, if you see ice on your unit, it's a sign that your system might be frozen. You may think to turn down your thermostat even lower, however, that could be a costly mistake. Continuing to run your unit with a frozen condenser can seriously damage your HVAC system. Ice on your unit means that the refrigerant (the liquid used to cool the air coming into your home), is much colder than necessary and if that super cold liquid is sent into your outdoor unit, it can permanently damage your compressor. Your HVAC system’s compressor should only receive refrigerant in the form of gas and never cold liquid.

The good news is that it's not always necessary to wait for a service technician to come and repair it. In fact, the easiest way to defrost your air conditioning system is by letting nature take over. Just turn the cooling setting on your thermostat to OFF and your system’s fan to ON and wait for the ice to melt. Turning your thermostat from COOL to OFF prevents your home’s air conditioning system from sending that super cold refrigerant to your outside unit where it can reach the compressor. And by turning your fan to ON you are forcing your air conditioner’s fan to blow warmer air over your system’s frozen evaporator coils. Don't try to remove the ice using a sharp object or your hands. Doing so could cause more harm than good both to you and your HVAC system. Depending on the volume of ice that accumulated around your compressor, it could take as long as 1 to 24 hours for it to completely melt.

If you need to speed up the process, try adding heat in the form of a hairdryer. However, you want to be careful not to use so much heat that you damage your AC system or unit. Keep the hairdryer on the lowest setting and make sure to maintain at least 12 inches of distance away from the coils. If you expose too much heat to the evaporator coils you can risk cracking them.

After all the ice has melted, turn on the fan-only mode. This will help minimize the amount of moisture that's left in the system. Before you attempt to run your air conditioning again, make sure to take steps to correct the problem that led your condenser to freeze in the first place and prevent further damage. Doing so could involve removing debris from the unit, changing the air filter, or cleaning the evaporator coils. In fact, the most common reason for a frozen air conditioning system is usually a dirty or clogged air filter, which can actually suffocate your air conditioner by not allowing enough warm air to flow over the evaporator coils, or dirty coils themselves.

If your HVAC system freezes again after taking these steps then the problem could be related to a more serious issue, like a mechanical malfunction or a refrigerant leak. In this case it’s time to call in the assistance of a licensed HVAC technician. The experts at AffordaBull Heat & Air are here to help diagnose and correct the issue that is causing your HVAC system’s compressor to freeze up.

At AffordaBull Heat & Air, we believe it's important to help educate our customers in the River Valley about how to properly maintain home comfort systems. For assistance with air conditioning and other HVAC related issues call us at 479-747-6548.