Advice
Before you call anyone
Including the problems you can fix yourself in five minutes for nothing. We would rather tell you that than charge you to come and flip a switch.
Latest
The best time to book a tune up is the month nobody does
Everybody calls on the first cold morning. Booking in the quiet months costs less, gets a better appointment, and catches the thing that would have failed.
· 1 min read
Read itWhy the upstairs is always cold and the basement is roasting
Almost never the furnace. Usually ductwork, and often fixable for a fraction of what people expect to spend.
ReadA cracked heat exchanger, and why it ends the conversation
It is the one furnace fault with no repair option and no wait-and-see. What it is, how it is found, and how to know you are being told the truth.
ReadHow often should you really change the filter?
The box says three months. That is right for some houses and badly wrong for others. Here is how to tell which one you have.
ReadDo heat pumps actually work in a Michigan winter?
Modern cold climate heat pumps do, down well below zero. The honest version, including where they still do not make sense.
ReadWhat that furnace noise means
Banging, screeching, clicking, rumbling. A rough guide to which ones can wait until morning and which one means switch it off now.
ReadWhat size furnace do I need? Why bigger is worse
Oversizing is the most common mistake in this trade, and it makes a house less comfortable, not more. Here is what actually decides the size.
ReadAir conditioner running but not cooling? Start here
The outside unit hums, the air is moving, and the house is still warm. Here is what that usually means, in the order it is usually true.
ReadSeven questions to ask before you buy a furnace
The answers separate a contractor who will do it properly from one who is guessing. Ask all seven, and ask them of everyone who quotes.
ReadHow long should a furnace last in Michigan?
Fifteen to twenty years, and the difference between ten and twenty five comes down to three things, none of which is the brand on the front.
ReadFurnace blowing cold air? Check these three things first
Three checks that take two minutes and solve this more often than anything a technician does. None of them cost anything.
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