Oasis Heating, A/C & Refrigeration Blog : Posts Tagged ‘Troubleshooting’

Tankless Water Heater Not Working Right? We Can Help!

Tuesday, November 21st, 2017

Although the storage tank water heater is the most common way for homes to receive the hot water necessary for daily chores, the tankless water heater is gaining rapidly in popularity. If you have a tankless water heater, than you probably can’t imagine switching back to using an old tank model. After all, a tankless water heater uses much less energy, it never runs out of its hot water supply, it takes up 80% less space, and it lasts for many years longer with far fewer repairs than a standard water heater.

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Fairfax, VA Heating Tip: Why Certain Rooms Are Cold

Sunday, October 22nd, 2017

In a home with central heating, you expect the heater will warm up the whole house. You don’t want it to act like a space heater, a tiny unit that heats up one spot and nothing else. If you walk through your home and it feels like you’re using multiple space heaters—some not even working—to get your house warm instead of a powerful central system, then you may have a problem. The heater might be faulty, or the trouble could stem from defects in your house’s insulation. The uneven heating might be a simple mistake you can remedy in minutes.

We’ll walk you through some culprits that can create cold rooms in your home even with a powerful heating system at work. Call the Fairfax, VA heating experts today at OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. if you need additional help with cold spots.

  • Blocked or closed vents: If you have centralized air providing heat, make sure that the vents in the chilly rooms are open. Vents near the floor might have accidentally become blocked by a rug or a shifted piece of furniture.
  • Thermostats issues: Zone heating in homes is a great way to conserve money, but it isn’t hard to set one of the multiple thermostats incorrectly. Make sure all the thermostats are programmed to the temperature you want. If one of the thermostats malfunctions, then you’ll need professional assistance.
  • Heat leaks: The cold rooms may have spots where valuable heat escapes outside. Check the seals around windows or any door to the outside. The trouble might be deteriorating insulation, which will need replacement.
  • Heater is too small: If you picked out your heater on your own without help, or relied on an amateur or inexperienced installer to pick it, you may have a heater too small to do the job of warming your whole home. Contact a reliable and respected HVAC company to inspect your house and determine its heat requirements. You may need to have the heater replaced.

Cold spots don’t have to mean an emergency—but they can warn you that something isn’t right. Don’t decide to “just live with it” and stay clear of the chilly rooms until spring. You deserve the best heating in Fairfax, VA you can get. Hunt down the problem, and if you can’t figure it out on your own, bring in OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. to do the detective work—and any repair work afterwards.

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Your Heat Pump Won’t Switch to Heating Mode: Here’s Why

Tuesday, October 17th, 2017

If you have a heat pump to handle the comfort needs of your home, you’ll soon switch over to heating mode for the first time in many months. You can expect the heat pump to make the transition smoothly, since all it has to do is change the direction the refrigerant flows and siphon out an amount of the refrigerant.

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Fairfax, VA Heating Repair FAQ: Why Does My System Shut Down When I’m Still Cold?

Sunday, October 15th, 2017

“Why does my system shut down when I’m still cold?” That’s not an uncommon question from homeowners who may be frustrated by problems with their heating system. Here in Fairfax, VA, heating repair is an essential service; our winters may not be a cold as they are in New England, but we still get our share of chilly days and nights. So when your system shuts down prematurely or just never seems to make your home comfortable, it’s a cause for some concern. Before calling in a professional technician, you can educate yourself a bit on why a heater fails to do its job, and why your system shuts down when you’re still cold.

In a lot of cases, such a situation indicates a failure with the thermostat.  If you’ve placed your thermostat in a part of the house that gets a lot of sunshine, or it it’s near a warm draft, it may read the temperature as being warmer than it is. Your service technician can move it to a more “temperature neutral” part of the house to correct the issue. Alternately, the thermostat’s thermometer may be malfunctioning, in which case it’s reading the temperature as higher than it is.

Other issues may have little to do with the overall temperature, but rather with overloaded or overheating components within the system itself. Fan motors and the like often contain automatic shut-off switches, designed to turn the entire heater off when the motor itself starts to overload. This happens in order to protect the system from further damage. In any case, it may come along suddenly, cutting off your heating power before it warms your home sufficiently.

Regardless of the causes, if you’re asking “Why does my system shut down when I’m still cold?” then your heater is experiencing problems. The trained experts at OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. can help. We handle Fairfax, VA heating repair issues of all varieties, and have served Northern Virginia for over fifteen years. Call us today to set up an appointment.

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Why Is My Water Heater Leaking?

Tuesday, October 10th, 2017

You need your water heater every day, no matter the time of year. This means the water heater undergoes an enormous amount of stress, much more than your home heating system, and all that wear can lead to malfunctions. One of the most common kinds of water heater problems is leaking. The only place where you should see water coming out of the water heater is a few drips from the pressure release valve. If you notice water starting to pool around the water heater tank, it’s crucial that you call professionals to find the leaks, discover why they’ve started, and then find a solution to the problem.

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Arlington, VA Furnace Repair Guide: Why Your Pilot Light Is Uneven

Saturday, October 7th, 2017

If you have a gas-powered furnace, you have one of the most efficient heating systems available working for you. But even the most advanced furnace with the best maintenance will age and develop repair needs. Among the most common issues that we encounter with gas-powered furnaces are troubles with the pilot light. Pilot lights sometimes flicker or go out.

Because the pilot light is responsible for igniting the gas jets in the furnace’s combustion chamber, which in turn warm the air that is blown through ducts in your home, if it fails your furnace won’t work. We’ll list a few reasons for uneven pilot lights and what repair needs they may point toward.

A word of caution: although you can fix minor pilot light failures by simply re-lighting the flame, trying anything more complicated poses serious risks. Not only do you face the possibility of damaging the furnace’s interior, but there are safety hazards as well. Gas furnaces can expose you to carbon monoxide poisoning and other dangers. Leave the work to professionals. In Arlington, VA, the furnace repair experts at OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. are on duty 24/7 to help you.

  • Low Air Intake: Flame requires oxygen to burn. If the air intake opening for the pilot becomes clogged, it will force the pilot light to struggle. This problem can go past a basic clog, however, and you may need an expert to examine the air flow.
  • Dirty burner: The burner and area around the pilot light can’t have a covering of grime over it, or else it will smother the flame. This is one reason that regular furnace maintenance is so important: keeping the parts of the furnace clean is vital for its operation.
  • Gas leaks: This is the most worrisome problem. The gas line into the furnace can sometimes lose its pressure, which will cause an inconsistent pilot light. But a leak is even more serious. If you detect the smell of gas while investigating a pilot light problem, shut off the gas immediately and call a professional.

If you allow a fluttering pilot light to go without repair, it may soon stop lighting at all, leaving you without heat. Don’t get stuck in the cold this winter in Arlington, VA: furnace repair is only a phone call away with OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc..

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Is It Time to Retire Your Old Heat Pump?

Tuesday, October 3rd, 2017

Fall is when homeowners should evaluate their heating systems and see if they’ll make it through another winter. Last week we wrote about this topic, asking if it’s time to replace an old furnace. But not every home uses a furnace for comfort; many opt for a heat pump instead, which not only takes care of winter comfort, but also summer comfort. We’ll take a look at deciding if the heat pump in your house is ready to retire and be replaced with a new unit.

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What Noises Signify a Need for Heating Repair?

Saturday, September 23rd, 2017

Many people don’t schedule heating repair until the furnace conks out entirely. Most heaters are placed in an out-of-the-way location, and we don’t think about them as long as they turn on when we want them to. But problems in a heater rarely arrive unannounced. They build up quietly over time, but there are some warning signs. Alexandria, VA has cold winters, which means that homeowners may not be aware that there’s a problem until just before the first cold front arrives. In those circumstances, it pays to spot the warning signs – or warning sounds – early. What noises signify a need for heating repair? A few of the more common sounds are listed below.

  • Grating or screeching noise. A screeching or grating noise may suggest metal grinding against metal, which happens when the blower becomes bent or misaligned. It may also come from a faulty bearing in the motor or similar motorized malfunction.
  • Rattling sound. Sometimes, older furnaces will make a rattling sound when they start up or die down. If the rattling continues when the furnace is running, however, it may indicate a loose component, or problem with the heat exchanger. If you ever suspect a problem with the heat exchanger, call for repair right away.
  • A clanging or a creaking noise. Sometimes, in cold weather, your pipes or ducts will expand and contract when hot air is introduced to them after a while. As with the rattling, it may be all right if you start your heater in the cold after a lengthy time lying idle. If it continues for a significant length of time, however, it may indicate a bigger problem and you should call a professional before a leak or a rupture develops.
  • A bumping or a thumping noise. The likely culprit is a fan belt which has become cracked or broken. Loss of a fan belt will likely stop the furnace from functioning, so it needs to be replaced as quickly as possible.

If you hear noises that signify a need for heating repair, don’t hesitate to call a service that can help. Call OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Inc.  if you need heating repair in Alexandria, VA or the surrounding area.

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Tripped Breakers and Air Conditioning Repair in Arlington, VA

Saturday, September 9th, 2017

You expect your air conditioning to work hard for you in Virginia, where the warm and muggy weather can make it extremely uncomfortable inside your home without cooled air circulating through it. When your air conditioner stops working, it can be as serious a problem as having your electricity go out. Indeed, electrical issues and air conditioning problems are closely linked: a malfunctioning AC can cause blown fuses. If turning on your air conditioner causes a tripped circuit breaker, your unit probably needs immediate professional check-up and repair.

One possible cause of a tripped circuit breaker is the compressor in your AC. The compressor requires the most energy to run of any part of your air conditioning system. If your compressor is a “hard starter,” it may overload circuits and trip a breaker. To fix the problem requires fixing the wiring in the compressor or even getting a replacement. An expert can come to your home to diagnose the electrical trouble with the compressor and provide the necessary repairs to get your air conditioning working again without causing a blown fuse.

Another reason for your AC tripping a circuit breaker is problems in the capacitor. This cylindrical device does the job of transmitting voltage to the condenser to keep it operating. Broken wiring can cause the capacitor to malfunction and send a power surge that causes the tripper breaker. A professional can perform electrical tests on the capacitor to determine what steps to take to get it running properly again.

Don’t delay calling in an expert when problems like tripped circuit breakers start occurring each time you switch on your AC. Simply trying to “wait out” the trouble won’t fix anything—an air conditioner is not a self-repairing device, and it needs attention from a highly-trained HVAC professional. For Arlington, VA air conditioning repair, OASIS Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Inc. is an excellent and dependable resource. Our NATE-certified technicians can determine the repairs you require and provide the necessary work. With 24-hour emergency service in Arlington, we can help you fight the Virginia heat without breaking a sweat. Contact us today!

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Watch Out for Air Conditioning Drain Clogs!

Thursday, September 7th, 2017

As your air conditioning system works to keep your home cool, it also collects water droplets along its evaporator coil. This is a normal part of how air conditioning works: as the evaporator coil absorbs heat from the indoor air, it also absorbs water moisture. In a place like Alexandria, which often suffers from high humidity, this can add up to a great deal of water collecting across the coil. But the AC has a way to deal with this: the water drips from the coil and collects in a shallow pan (the condensate pan) below. Then a pump draws the water down a drain line and out of the house.

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