Energy Saving Tips

Daylight saving time begins Sunday, March 8. Remember to move your clocks forward 1 hour or “Spring” forward. Yes, we will lose an hour of sleep and feel sluggish for a week. But Benjamin Franklin proposed Daylight Savings Time in 1784 and he was a very smart man! Funny though, DST didn’t catch on in the United States until around World War I in an effort to save on artificial lighting costs. In general, we use approximately 25% of our electricity in our homes for lighting and small appliances. When we go to bed, we typically turn off the lights and TV. If we have extra daylight, we don’t need the lights. Studies in the 1970s showed that we can trim the entire country’s electricity by 1% each day with daylight saving time. It would be interesting to see what a new study would show today since most of us plug in our phones, laptops, etc. for an overnight charge. Maybe we aren’t saving that electricity anymore and we need to rethink the whole DST. But for now, remember to turn your clocks up one hour. If you didn’t change your smoke detector batteries at the end of DST, then now is the time to do that and to clean out your dryer vent! Call Attic & Filter Services if you need help with any of these things! We would love to add you to our route and help you save electricity!

Attic and Filter Services offers scheduled changes for the filters in your HVAC unit in Plano, Frisco, and surrounding area cities. We originally came up with the concept because many people do not physically need to climb on a ladder or stool or go up into the attic to change out the filters. In the last year, we have found that many of our customers are people just like us! They have the physical ability to change the filters, but no time! They are too busy to remember to take care of all the things around the house including filters. Look at this picture of a filter that was not changed for a very long time! You and your family and friends are breathing the air that goes through that filter. Not only will regular filter changes help keep the air clean, but it also prolongs the life of your HVAC unit. A friend recently spent $8,600 for a new HVAC unit. Their old system was less than 10 years old. Our HVAC unit is going on 17 years now. Proper maintenance helps! Let Attic and Filter Services maintain your HVAC unit with timely filter changes and drain cleans.

After the extreme heat of the summer, we are all ready for cooler weather. Are you really ready? Have you tested your furnace? Use your senses and test the system now before the cold is here. Turn on the system and always keep a fire extinguisher close. If you smell something burning, check to see if anything is really burning. If you see flames, turn off the system and use the fire extinguisher. If you are unable to put out the flames, get out immediately and call the fire department! If you hear unusual sounds, or feel a rumble in the walls, your system needs to be checked for performance. Make sure your home is sealed properly for winter. Check all the windows for proper closure. Make sure your attic stair door is properly sealed. If you already have our insulated attic door, make sure you closed that door before folding the stairs. If you don't have our insulated attic door, now is the time to have the door installed for only $209.00 (plus tax and installation). If you have any window air conditioning units, remove the unit and make sure the opening is sealed. Make sure basement doors, and any doors that lead to the outside are sealed tightly. If you see light, you need to add some weather stripping or readjust the door. Check all the smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector batteries. Change them if you do not remember when you last did or it was more than a year ago. Following these simple tips will help get you ready for the cold!

The first Labor Day was celebrated September 5, 1882, with a parade in lower Manhattan. A crowd of spectators arrived early and the police were out in force, wary of a riot. The Grand Marshall, William McCabe, was in place but no one moved. The few marchers that were there had no music when a group from Jewelers Union of Newark showed up with a band! Just after 10 a.m., they entered lower Manhattan playing a song from an opera by Gilbert and Sullivan. William McCabe and his aides joined the marchers as they passed. Others began to march with them and the numbers grew from a few to 700 men to final reports ranging from 10,000 to 20,000 men and women. They marched until noon when they reached Reservoir Park. Some then returned to work but many gathered for the after-parade party with speeches, picnics, cigars, and lager beer kegs.The New York Times reported this was “the first parade in New York of working men of all trades united in one organization.” Now we celebrated Labor Day as a day of rest with many picnics, much laughter, many drinks and loads of fun! Have a fun and safe Labor Day and remember to call Attic & Filter Services to help with code requirements for attic doors, and/or filter replacements! Attic & Filter Services 8745 Gary Burns Dr, Suite 160-204 Frisco, TX 75034 469-358-4363

Residential Codes have changed and the focus is on building more energy efficient homes. The new codes are part of the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code or IECC. Cities utilize the International Residential Code or IRC, and are expected to adopt the 2009 IECC changes regulating attic access openings. A few years ago, I noticed that I had no insulation over the attic ladder that I used to access the HVAC unit. I began a variety of proto-types to stop the heat transfer. I now have a patten pending on the insulated attic door. I was quite surprised when I learned that the residential codes had adopted some energy saving ideas that included the attic access. My door was just being put into production when the code changes were being made. The insulated attic door fits over the existing folded ladder in the attic opening and provides an R-16 rating. The new IECC requires up to an R-30 rating for Texas which is in climate zone 3. For cities that require up to R-30, we can acheive R-30 with a slight modification. We can meet the needs of all builders in and around Texas. We currently work with energy auditors and energy efficient experts to provide energy savings to older homes and individuals. Let us make a presentation for you and your company, and we can show how easy we make your job in meeting the new IECC requirements for attic access.

There are many types of HVAC filters on the market today. As a home owner, you need to know what you are looking for in a filter to include the correct size, the efficiency rating, the MERV (minimum efficiency reporting value) rating, pleated versus non-pleated, price, how many filters, allergen reduction, odor reduction, by-pass air, how frequently to change the filters, etc. The items listed may seem needless to you, but they are all important factors in filtrating the air for your family. In the opinion of Attic & Filter Services, you should change your filters a minimum of every 3 months. If you have hard to find filter sizes, then order on-line in bulk or call us for the hard to find sizes. Our filters can be custom sized to fit your needs. The MERV rating is an industry standard used to rate the ability of a filter to remove dust from the air as it passes through the filter. The higher the MERV rating the fewer dust particles that pass through the filter. MERV ratings range from 1 to 16. The highest rating is what you find in hospitals. Some HVAC technicians will tell you that the higher rating also restricts air flow and can lessen the life of your system as it works harder. By-pass air is allowed when you use a cardboard framed filter. It is imperative that you use the correct size of filter to eliminate as much by-pass air as possible. The idea is to have all the air pass through a filter to eliminate many of the micro particles. Most filters do not reduce odors unless they are carbon based. A filter is designed to capture the particles that pass through so if more pet dander is trapped on/in the filter, then you can have some odor reduction but a carbon filter is the best means to reduce odors. Hopefully, the information listed helps you the next time you go to buy a filter. If you would like to have someone help, please give us a call at 469-358-4362 and we can put you on our regular route and change the filters for you!

Our brand new neighborhood with nothing but empty lots began to slowly add homes to the sandy lots, then small landscaping to include small trees. Now, 20 years later, we have tall, shadowing oak trees all around. The squirrels have found their way to our neighborhood and they are so cute with their scampering antics as they climb the fence between houses and tease the dogs. They also are finding their way onto our roof tops leaping from the branches of the beautiful shade trees. They run across the roof looking for access into the home and attic. They begin to find holes where the house has settled or they chew through rotting wood around the exterior. Squirrels find very small points of access or they create new access through your siding, soffets, fascia boards, chimney flashing and even various types of exhaust fans. If you haven’t inspected your home's exterior lately in Mckinney, TX, you need to yourself or hire someone to walk around the outside of the house and the roof to carefully examine for any existence of new holes or crevices a squirrel or other critter can access. The fixes are really simple with some heavy gauge wire screen, hammer and nails and/or staple gun, 2 inch thick by 4 foot long pieces of wood, and ¼ inch to ½ inch hardware cloth. You first need to trim all trees to at least 6 feet away from the house but 8 feet is better. Squirrels are very acrobatic! Repair all holes and openings, replacing any rotten pieces around the trim and roof line especially. Also, seal all openings at joints of siding and overhanging eaves, utility cables or pipes entering the house with the hardware cloth. You can staple the cloth 2 inches beyond the hole in all directions. Check your attic for any daylight coming through. Repair all those openings also! Install caps on chimneys and secure flashing at chimney base. Make sure you don’t leave any critters inside. If all else fails, call the exterminator! I have a great referral! If you have critters inside the attic, the insulated attic door stops any droppings from falling on you when you pull down the attic ladder. Happy squirrel hunting! Attic & Filter Services Dallas Area Frisco, TX

We recently went into an attic to complete an energy review. Up in the attic we found several things that we can fix to save the client money. Many of us decide to complete small remodel jobs ourselves. That is what this client did. He converted a room in his house to include can lights. The job was fantastic, however, the duct work in the attic was not. Some how the duct was no longer blowing air into the filters and through the house. All the air was blowing directly into his attic. He had been heating and cooling the attic since the remodel job in 2008. Wow, what a difference his next energy bill will be!!! We reattached the duct and sent the air in the right direction. We also installed our insulated attic door! Both of these items will save him money and help use less energy. Check us out and let us show you what we can do!