Oasis Heating, A/C & Refrigeration Blog : Archive for February, 2017

Here’s How Often You Should Change Your HVAC System’s Air Filter

Tuesday, February 28th, 2017

Regular professional maintenance is a job you must schedule twice a year for your residential HVAC system: once in the spring for the air conditioner, and once more in fall for the heater. But between these times, there’s a key maintenance chore you need to take care of on your own, which is to change out the air filter on the AC/heat pump/furnace. If you neglect this task, the filter will rapidly become clogged and start to cut off airflow into the system. This will mean a drop in energy efficiency and possible repair troubles in the future. If left long enough, a clogged air filter can even shorten the lifespan of an HVAC system.

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Shutting Down the Furnace for Warmer Weather

Monday, February 27th, 2017

girl-welcomes-in-spring-weatherFirst thing’s first: we aren’t out of the woods yet when it comes to cold weather. Last week saw some warmer days here in Northern Virginia, but March is notorious for the way it can take sudden turns and hurl chilly weather our way. You may still need to have your home’s furnace running a few more days before it’s time to settle in for a pleasant spring and hot summer.

However, this is the time of year to start making plans for the change from heating season to cooling season. One of the most important steps to take is to arrange for a spring maintenance visit from our HVAC experts to see that your AC is ready to go to work when necessary. Signing up for a maintenance contract with us means benefits for both your cooling and heating.

We also recommend taking steps to shut down your furnace. This means doing more than simply stopping use of the furnace! You’ll save energy and help keep the furnace in the best possible shape if you follow these steps:

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Top Winter Heating Problems to Watch For

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2017

We’ve reached the second half of February, and that means the official end of winter is only a month away. That doesn’t mean we can relax when it comes to heating our homes. The furnace, heat pump, or radiant heating system that provides your family with warmth has already put in a great deal of work, and this stress can mean it faltering when it comes close to the finish line. Don’t let late season repair needs go without attention! When you notice the following issues, it probably means the heater needs help—call our repair team right away.

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Why Is My Heat Pump Blowing Cold Air?

Friday, February 17th, 2017

Heat pumps are incredibly useful systems for providing year-round home comfort. They improve upon the concept of the air conditioner to use the same system of heat exchange to also provide warm air. It’s as easy as turning a switch to move from heating mode to cooling mode.

But what if one day your heat pump stops doing half its job? If it’s winter, and your heat pump starts to blow out only cold air, there’s something wrong that will require professionals to investigate and repair it. If you need this sort of work on your heating in Fairfax, VA, give the technicians at OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration, Inc. a call, any time of the day or night.

Reasons your heat pump is staying in cooling mode

The most common reason for this occurrence is a problem with the reversing valve. This component is one of the key parts that differentiates a heat pump from a standard air conditioner. The reversing valve changes the direction that refrigerant flows through the heat pump, and this is what makes the heat pump switch from being an air conditioner to a heater and back. An electric charge to the valve controls whether it is in one mode or the other. If the heat pump malfunctions, it will remain in one mode until professionals come and replace it. Do not attempt to change a reversing valve on your own.

Another possibility for a heat pump remaining in cooling mode is a miscalibration in the thermostat or a thermostat malfunction. A miscalibrated thermostat may not know to turn the heating on because it is misreading the temperature. If trouble occurs in the thermostat wiring, the unit may lose its ability to signal to the heat pump to switch modes. Repair technicians will be able to quickly discover the source of the problem and fix it.

There are a few other possibilities that could result in a heat pump experiencing this trouble. Because of the complexity of a heat pump’s operation, you’ll need to have trained heating technicians examine the unit to diagnose the issue and how to target repairs.

Our trained repair staff at OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration, Inc. is ready 24/7 for the repairs you need to keep your heating in Fairfax, VA up and running. Whether your heap pump is stuck in cooling mode or something else is stopping it from giving you the comfort you need, trust to our service to fix it.

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When Your Heating System Just Won’t Heat: Steps to Follow

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017

Last month, we discussed the importance of ensuring your heating system is regularly serviced to maintain the efficiency of the system. Sometimes though, despite your best efforts as a diligent homeowner, you find yourself facing a detrimental winter problem: your heating system just won’t heat.

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How We Can Help You with the Coming Warm Weather

Monday, February 13th, 2017

air-conditioning-unitsBurke is wonderful city to live in—something we now have raw data on! Of the 82 Virginia cities surveyed in a comparison study by the personal finance website WalletHub, Burke ranked 9th overall for raising a family. (Curious about who placed 1st? Fall Church.)

Of course, this doesn’t mean that you automatically get a great family life simply by living here. Taking good care of your family requires making sure that you have a comfortable and cozy house in which to live. And that’s where we can come to your assistance. We offer excellent heating and cooling in Burke, VA and have since 1998. We’d like to think we’re part of the reason that Burke scores so high as a quality place to live.

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Leaks in Radiant Heating Systems

Friday, February 10th, 2017

Radiant heating systems are a terrific option for home comfort that has spread from Europe into the United States and gained great popularity. Most radiant heating systems use hydronic (water) power to send heat through pipes under your floorboards and provide you with toasty warmth right under your feet. There are some electronic radiant floor systems that you can have installed as well.

But using hydronic power always comes with the risk of leaks developing. Modern radiant floor heating is built to resist leaks because they are fixed systems that do not permit oxygen to enter and degrade the piping. But leaks can still occur. When you need professional repairs, or installation, for your heating in Arlington, VA, contact our specialists at OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration, Inc. Even if we didn’t install your radiant heating, we can repair it.

The most common cause for leaking to occur in radiant floor heating is from construction stress. When these leaks develop, they will usually start underneath floorboards or floor stones and will cause damage to building material. This is similar to what plumbers refer to as “slab leaks”: pipe breaks that occur under concrete, leading to extensive damage unless fixed.

When you suspect that you have a leak in your radiant heating system, you need professionals to perform leak detection to discover exactly where the water is coming from and how best to access the pipes and repair them. The precision technology used to locate leaks means that technicians can pinpoint the location so exactly that they usually need to do only a minimum amount of removal of floor material to access the leak.

Sometimes, radiant floor heater leaks do not require excavation in order to repair. An injection of a type of sealer additive into the water system can take care of minor leaks, and this will also prolong the life of the system.

If you have leaks in your radiant heating system, you will need repairs… fast! That’s why we offer 24-hour emergency service at OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration, Inc. We know these problems almost never occur when it’s convenient, and we are ready to help when you need it.

We can be there for all your troubles with heating in Arlington, VA and northern Virginia.

Contact Our Team!

 

“Great timely service. Knowledgable and neat techs. Good value.”

“Would absolutely use their services again. Arrived on schedule.”

-Springfield, VA

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How Sealed Furnace Combustion Improves Over Older Furnaces

Wednesday, February 8th, 2017

There’s never a wrong time of the year to arrange for installing a new gas furnace for your home. Whenever you notice that your current furnace is failing in its job and is past the point where repairs will do much good—or last for long—then don’t delay calling HVAC professionals to arrange for a replacement. If you have a furnace that has seen more than 20 years of service, it’s also time to get a brand-new unit. That old furnace is probably costing you too much money to run each time it comes on, and it may even turn into a safety hazard.

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Why is My Furnace Producing No Heat?

Saturday, February 4th, 2017

Sometimes, a problem with your furnace can be very subtle, requiring a little detective work to successfully ferret out. A furnace that produces no heat, however, isn’t one of those cases. You pretty much know right away if no warmth is coming out of your vents, and a call to a qualified service technician is probably next on the agenda. If you need furnace repair in Arlington, VA, the experts at OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration Inc. can resolve the issue properly.

You may be asking yourselves, “why is my furnace producing no heat?” – we’ve included a brief outline of the issue below.

A lack of heat stems from one of two basic sources: no heat being generated and no air being blown through the system. In the former case, there’s no heat being made at all. If the unit is one, it may indicate a problem with the burners (they may be clogged or otherwise inoperable), or it may be a problem with the thermocouple or ignition system. The thermocouple regulates the flow of gas into the furnace and if the pilot light is out or some other problem exists, it won’t release any gas to start the heating process. In every case such as this, a technician can solve the problem by cleaning, repairing or replacing the faulty part.

In the event that no air is being blown into the house, the technician can check the air filter or for a build-up of dust and similar particles preventing the air from flowing. The trouble might also be with the fan mechanism, such as a faulty motor or a misaligned fan blade.

Whatever the cause, OASIS Heating, A/C & Refrigeration Inc. hunt down the source of the problem and correcting it. Our trained Arlington, VA furnace technicians are on call to answer your questions and we conduct ourselves with your satisfaction in mind at all times. Call us today to schedule an appointment. You’ll be glad you did!

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Pollutants That Might Be in Your Home’s Air… Right Now!

Wednesday, February 1st, 2017

One of the services that we offer to our customers is the installation of a range of air filters, air purifiers, and UV lights to clean their air of various contaminating particles. But many homeowners don’t believe such measures are necessary: after all, it’s the outdoor air that’s polluted and unhealthy, not the air that’s kept circulating through the inside of a house.

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