Residential & Commercial HVAC and Refrigeration Tips Blog | Atlantic Refrigeration & Air Conditioning, Inc.

Here’s How Much Cooling You Can Get From Your AC

July 5th, 2021

Have you ever wondered how cold you could make your house using the AC? The thermostat has a lowest setting of 60°F (sometimes 65°F), but if it weren’t for that, is it possible for the air conditioner to put out enough cool air to get your house down to something like the inside of a refrigerator?

You can probably already guess the answer is no. You wouldn’t want it that cold, and the air conditioner must have some limit at which it couldn’t get the house any cooler. But what is that limit?

We’re going to explain the cooling limitations of your air conditioning in Smyrna in this post. It’s more than trivia: it can help you with setting the best temperature on the thermostat during hotter days to help your AC run with few problems.

Paying Too Much for Cooling? Your Ductwork May Be the Culprit!

June 21st, 2021

During the first stretch of warm weather for the season, we recommend you pay close attention to your electrical bills. You can anticipate paying more when the air conditioning system begins to run regularly because the AC’s compressor draws on more electricity than almost any other appliance in the home. However, you can expect the electric bills to be close to what you were paying this time last year (unless there are special circumstances). If you notice that the cost has made a significant increase this year, it’s often a warning you need air conditioning repair in Middletown.

But not all spikes in the cost to run the AC come from the air conditioner itself. There may be other troubles in the HVAC system. One of the most common sources of a rise in the costs to cool a house is trouble with the ducts.

Reasons Your AC Keeps Shutting Down Randomly

June 7th, 2021

Have you noticed that your AC shuts down randomly? Don’t worry! The explanation for this is not paranormal. Rather, it’s a phenomenon referred to as short-cycling. It may not be ghosts, but it’s definitely just as scary.

We say this because there’s nothing scarier than the thought of losing money. Short-cycling damages your AC system, burdening it with wear and tear that it is not designed to withstand. This creates a double blow for you.

First, the wear and tear reduce the lifespan of the unit, requiring more repairs than it ordinarily would. Secondly, the additional load on the system makes it inefficient, which increases your energy bills! We’re sure you want to prevent either of these from happening, so reach out to Atlantic Refrigeration & Air Conditioning, Inc. We offer great air conditioning repair in Delaware.

How Much Electricity Does It Take to Run My AC?

May 24th, 2021

A question homeowners often have about their central air conditioning systems is: “How much does it cost me to run my AC during the summer?” It’s a good question: people are curious about what they can expect to pay through the season, as well as how they may lower those costs.

There’s a problem with providing an answer, however, and that’s because too many factors are involved to allow us to provide any sort of answer in cold, hard dollars and cents. For one thing, the cost of electricity changes, and a house in Delaware may pay a different amount for similar AC usage compared to a house in Maryland. There are also different types of ACs with different efficiencies, and some homes are more difficult to cool than others because they have less insulation, more people in them, etc.

Do I Need to Replace My Water Heater If It’s Rusting?

May 10th, 2021

“Rust” and “water heater” aren’t words you want to see together. In general, you don’t want rust or other forms of corrosion to appear on any metal, since it weakens it. Metal in contact with water is in danger of corrosion, provided it’s also exposed to oxygen. Because rust cannot be reversed, only removed, once it starts, conventional wisdom about rust and water heaters is that once there’s corrosion starting, a water heater is finished. Time for a new one.

Is this always the case? If you see rust on your water heater, does it mean it’s time to call us to replace it? Let’s take a closer look at corrosion and water heaters.

Do I Need an Air Purifier for My House?

April 26th, 2021

This is a good question, and you’ve come to the right people to ask it. We work with different indoor air quality installations for homes, and if you want an air purifier in Smyrna, DE, we can outfit your ventilation system with one. But as to whether you need one or not, that depends on other factors. The best way to find out for sure is to schedule IAQ services with our team.

However, we can help out in this post with some facts about when air purifiers are the most useful as well as how they work with other indoor air quality solutions. Follow us below for some air purifier data…

Avoid Conditioning Repairs This Summer With This One Trick!

April 12th, 2021

Dealing with a broken or malfunctioning air conditioning system is a pain, especially when you should be able to enjoy summer weather and relax. That’s what summer should be all about—but a faulty AC can drain away everything relaxing about a summer day.

We have a simple trick to keep away repairs. Maybe not every single one, but the majority of them. It’s so simple, we almost feel a bit silly saying it, but here it is…

Schedule professional spring air conditioning maintenance.

How Can I Tell How Big a Furnace I Need?

March 29th, 2021

If you’re asking this question, it’s because you’re looking to replace an older furnace (or you’re putting in the first furnace in a new house) and you understand that if you end up with one that’s not powerful enough—“undersized”—the house won’t be comfortable. You might not know that going too far the other direction, an “oversized” furnace, is also a huge problem. You need to know a specific size to get the best performance.

So … how do you do that?

Can’t Get Warm Enough? Don’t Keep Raising The Thermostat!

March 15th, 2021

The thermostat for a house seems like a simple enough device. When you want the house to be warmer, you raise it. When you want it cooler, you lower it. And, in many ways, the thermostat is that basic: even with the complex “smart” thermostats available today, a thermostat still operates as a switch that turns the heater, AC, and air handler on and off as needed.

But people often mistake the thermostat as a tool to overcome a deficiency in their HVAC system. For example: let’s say you’re finding it hard to keep your house warm during the winter, so you keep pushing up the thermostat higher until you get the comfort you want.

This isn’t how either the thermostat or the heater should work. Both are designed so you can set the thermostat to a single, steady temperature and receive the comfort you desire. If you need to push the thermostat higher than normal, it means you have a problem with your heating in Dover, DE.

What Is an Air Handler and Is It Important for My Furnace?

March 1st, 2021

It’s easy for people like us who work in HVAC and are immersed in it every day to forget that most homeowners aren’t familiar with the terms of heating and air conditioning systems in the same way we are.

One example is the air handler. It can trigger confusion for people who hear “air,” then immediately guess the air handler means the air conditioning system. An air handler is important for an AC, but it does more. We often have to make repairs to air handlers to help with customers’ heating in Delaware. If you have a central furnace heating your house, whether electric or natural gas-powered, an air handler may be a part of how the furnace works.