Boston Plumbing and Heating Blog

Your plumbing problems may not be as bad as the Oakland A’s plumbing problems. But, if you suffer through them once, like the A’s did back in June, then you should hope to get it fixed right the first time, hire the right plumber, that way you won’t have a repeat problem , like the A’s did.

The A's smell like contenders. But, their dugout is another story. Oakland's home dugout flooded on Tuesday night due to a backed-up toilet during the A's vs. Angels game. The maintenance workers had to mop up the disgusting mess during the seventh inning.

It's the second time this season that the aging stadium has had to deal with a sewage backup. Back in June, the stadium suffered a massive backup that spilled sewage into both clubhouses, the managers' offices and all the clubhouse level bathrooms.

Fortunately, after June’s mess they ripped out the carpet so the mess wasn’t as ‘gross’. Actually, it sounds gross to us. That is why Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating is committed to fixing your plumbing problems the first time.

The VP of stadium operations blamed the plumbing issue on a single toilet and said the problem would be fixed before the start of Wednesday's matinee. The A’s certainly hope so.  It better be as it would be a shame for ongoing plumbing problems to soil Oakland's pennant chase.

To solve your plumbing problems the first time, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

Excerpts  - NY Daily News

As a homeowner, you have to pay attention to all of your home utility bills. You know what you usually pay for water, but have you received a water bill that is unusually high?  Usually, the reason for a dramatic increase in the water bill is because you have a water leak somewhere in your home.  

Unfortunately, the time you think of plumbing is when you have a problem, when something goes wrong.  A water leak, if left untreated or undetected, can lead to serious damage and costly repairs.

Water can be your home's worst enemy.  Leaving leaks unattended can lead to serious damage to your home. For example, a water leak behind a wall could require drywall repair. A small drywall repair job can cost as much as $400, not to mention if you end up with mold. And a mold remediation job can be anywhere from hundreds of dollars to thousands of dollars.

It is best to find and tackle plumbing leaks, no matter how small, immediately.

An easy sign of a leak in your house could be a stain on the wall or on the floor and it might smell musty.

There are a couple of simple ways to check if your toilet is leaking.  Place a few drops of food coloring in the toilet tank and wait several minutes. If the food coloring has entered the toilet bowl without the toilet being flushed you know you have a leak. Another thing you can do, lay toilet paper along the base of the toilet and flush the toilet.  If there's a leak, the tissue paper will be wet.

To find out if you have a leaking sink, place a few paper towels below the sink drain pipes. Run the water, if the paper towels are wet, you could have a sink pipe leak.

Some additional sources for water loss include dripping faucets within the house and a garden hose mistakenly being left open for days.

For more information on plumbers in Boston and Worcester, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

WXOW

Cooler weather is fast approaching and smart home owners are making sure that their furnaces are ready to perform properly and efficiently. Make sure you home is warm this winter and that your heating bills are as low as they can be.

Do you know if your furnace or boiler is working optimally and that you are not wasting energy? This will ensure that you are as warm as you can be this winter. Did you know that almost half of all heating equipment in our homes does not perform to its optimal standards and efficiency? This is mostly due to incorrect installation. And if you have an older heating system built before more modern efficiency standards, you could be spending more than you need to on heating your home this winter.

If your boiler or furnace needs to be replaced have it installed properly by a professional, certified technician.

Beyond that, there are some other steps to make your home warmer and more efficient:

Have your heating filters cleaned and check them every couple of weeks. Change them at least twice in the season, or as directed by the manufacturer.

Check and maintain insulation and add weather stripping and caulk around windows and doors. This can also improve a home’s insulation.

Turn down the thermostat or install a programmable thermostat.

Clean around the furnace or boiler. Don’t keep chemicals or cleaning products near a heater, and don’t store anything next to it that could impede ventilation.

Keep the vents and returns free of obstructions. Don’t lay carpet over vents, place furniture over or in front of them, or obstruct the flow of air.

Dry air feels cooler than moist air, so install a humidifier. A simple humidifier may make the home feel five degrees warmer than a home with dry air.

Have your heating system, furnace or boiler serviced regularly for optimal performance. Greater Boston Plumbing & Heating can service and repair all of your forced hot water boiler or steam boiler system issues. By making sure your heating system is operating properly you can maintain a warm, comfortable home while keeping heating costs down.

For more information, contact Greater Boston Plumbing & Heating.

If you live near water, or if your home was built in or around the ‘50’s, your home may be built on a slab rather than on a foundation. Homes built on a slab are just that, a rectangle of concrete is poured and the home is built atop it.  Often, people want to add an additional bathroom to homes built on slabs, but they don’t know if they can.

When homes are built on a slab, the plumbing is laid before the concrete slab is poured. You can add plumbing after the fact, but it is labor intensive. This is similar to adding a bathroom to an existing basement.

Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating with work with the homeowner on the layout of the bathroom. All fixtures, sink, toilet, shower, will be laid out in their final location. We will then mark where the drains will be located on the floor related to all of the fixtures that require plumbing.

There are two options for running plumbing lines.

1. The concrete slab can be dug out into trenches and the lines can be run through them. We then pour concrete into the trench to level the slab, and the new floor is covered with ceramic tile. This gives the nicest appearance of the two options.
2. A plumbing system can be installed above the slab. The drain lines will be exposed but most of the other plumbing lines will be hidden in the new bathroom walls. An electric pump is used for the drains, and is visible.

For more information on installing a new bathroom on a slab, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

In Worcester and Boston home owners are considering how to better heat and cool their homes in order to save on energy costs. Homeowners have been seeing and hearing a lot about “heat pumps” but many don’t know what they are. Heat pumps give you an energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air conditioners. In many cases a heat pump is preferred to separate heating and cooling systems.

Heat pumps use less energy to move heat from a cool space to a warm space, making the cool space cooler and the warm space warmer. During the winter, heat pumps draw heat from the cooler external air and bring it inside while moving the cooler inside air, out; in the summer, heat pumps move heat from inside your home to the outdoors.  They move heat they don’t generate heat, so they can give up to 4 times the amount of energy they consume. They transfer heat, they don’t burn fuel to create heat, and this makes them very efficient.

If you heat your home with electricity, a heat pump can cut down on the amount of electricity you use for heating by up to 30% to 40%. High-efficiency heat pumps dehumidify your home better than most central AC units. This saves you money in the summer.

There are also gas-fired heat pumps, called absorption heat pumps. These use heat as their energy source, so they can be fueled by natural gas, propane, solar-heated water, or geothermal-heated water.

For homes without ducts, air-source heat pumps are also available in a ductless version called a mini-split heat pump. For homes that have "non-ducted" heating systems this is a good energy efficient add on.

One of the biggest advantages of a heat pump over a standard HVAC system is that you don’t need to install separate systems to for heating and cooling.

For more information on heat pumps, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

Homeowners spend a large percentage of money on heating and cooling. The only way to cut these costs is to make the heating and cooling system, or HVAC, more energy efficient. This is  not as hard as you may think.

First, compare your utility bills to friends’ homes of similar size. How do your energy bills compare? Do you use more or less energy? After you figure that out, you can begin to make energy saving changes.

Check the air filter in your heating and cooling system. A dirty air filter slows air flow. This forces the HVAC system to work harder and waste more energy. You should change the air filter at least every three months.

AC service and maintenance is imperative to keep your system running efficiently and effectively. If your central air system is working to hard it will waste energy. Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating can  handle all of your service, maintenance and upgrade needs on your cooling system. A well-maintained heating and cooling systems run more efficiently therefore wasting less energy.

A programmable thermostat saves lots of energy. By programming your thermostat to energy-efficient temperatures you can save about $180 a year, according to Energy Star.

Contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating to schedule your heating and cooling system maintenance.

Lots of things get better with age. Central air conditioning and heating is not one of those things. In fact, the federal government recommends that homeowners consider replacing air conditioners that are more than 10 years old. That’s because heating and cooling systems now have significant advancements to save money and energy, and they are more environmentally friendly while improving comfort.

Here are five ways that newer HVAC systems outperform older ones:

Energy efficiency. The purchase of a high efficiency system can help save up to 50% or more on energy bills.

Comfort. Newer systems can better moderate temperature throughout the home. Homes with a multi-stage operation and variable speed blower technology use a “cruise control” type of system that can “accelerate” slightly to avoid temperature swings.  Newer systems also offer the option to “zone” the home, so individual rooms are heated or cooled based on your needs.

Replacement of R-22. R-22 is a refrigerant (also known by the brand name Freon(R)) and has been the refrigerant of choice for residential heat pumps and AC systems for more than four decades. Unfortunately, R-22 is also harmful to the environment and is therefore being phased out, causing the price to skyrocket. Service and repair of AC systems is becoming very costly for existing units. New systems now include R-410A refrigerant, a much more environmentally friendly alternative.

Less noise, better looks. No one likes the sound of the A/C running. Luckily, systems today are engineered to run almost silently. The design of the systems are also becoming more attractive. Furnaces have become smaller and more attractive.

High Tech. New systems can now be operated via WiFi so the system can be controlled with a smartphone, tablet or computer. They even give you guidance on how much energy you’re using every day.

For more information on replacing your homes central air conditioner, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

Daily Markets

As the heat and humidity arrive in Worcester and Boston, there are some tips you can use to keep your home cool, conserve energy, and reduce energy bills according to the Department of Commerce Division of Energy Resources.

The following tips will keep you cool, save money, and help prevent unnecessary power outages by easing high demand of electric power this summer.

Replace inefficient air conditioning systems with high efficiency, ENERGY STAR models (www.energystar.gov). For central air conditioners, look for a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) rating of 14.5 or more.

Maintain HVAC Systems. Heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems need to be inspected annually to ensure they are working efficiently. Change furnace and air conditioning filters regularly, and keep air conditioner coils clean and free of dust and dirt to increase efficiency and lifetime use.

Seal Air Leaks. Over half of our home’s energy is used to heat and cool our homes. Keep the cool air in by reducing air leaks in attics, walls, windows and doors.

Use a Programmable Thermostat. Install and use a programmable thermostat with your central air conditioner and set it to 78 degrees F.

Keep the Cool Air Inside. Keep shades pulled and doors and windows closed during the daytime when temperatures are at the warmest. On cool days and nights—when the outdoor temperature is cooler than indoors—open windows to let cool air in.

Use Fans. Use fans to pull cooler air in through windows at night or to cool your body. Ceiling fans will create a wind-chill effect that can make you feel cooler and reduce the need for air conditioning.

For more information on replacing HVAC and maintaining your air conditioning systems, contact Greater Boston Plumbing.

Allergy season is here in Boston! If you or anyone in your home is an allergy sufferer, protect your inside air. Did you know that in a typical six-room house, everyday living creates up to 40 pounds of dust every year? Your heating and air conditioning system pulls in a sizeable amount of that dust and contaminants. It even may re-circulate irritants five to seven times a day.

Consider your air conditioning system to be the heart and lungs of your house. It breathes air in and out. The cleaner the lungs, the cleaner the air in your home, and the fewer allergy triggers in the air. This is why quality HVAC service and maintenance should be done on a regular basis.

However, AC service does not just make it easier to breath, it helps you save money too. Dust in your HVAC system can make it work harder, using more energy, which costs you more money and may shorten its life. So the benefits to regular service are twofold. Despite filters, the central air conditioning system in your home gets dirty with normal use. When it is clean it does not work as hard, and you save money…and breathe easier.

For AC system maintenance, contact Greater Boston Plumbing and Heating.

Excerpts - Journal Sentinel

Homeowners who are looking to spend less on energy bills this summer will find a solution by ensuring the proper installation and service of their home air conditioning.

It is estimated that nearly half of all heating and cooling equipment in U.S. homes never performs to its advertised capacity and efficiency due to incorrect installation, which means homeowners pay higher operating costs over the life of the equipment. Older heating and cooling systems waste energy, create a bigger carbon footprint, and ultimately cost you more money.
 
Fortunately, North American Technician Excellence (NATE), the nation's largest industry-endorsed, certification organization for heating, ventilation, air conditioning technicians, recommends some steps you can take to maximize your home's efficiency while also being environmentally friendly.

• Look at your current energy bills to identify inefficiencies. Or call a plumber help you decide if your current system should be replaced.
• Purchase ENERGY STAR air conditioners. High-efficiency systems reduce your impact on the environment and can also save you money. You may also be eligible for a Federal Tax Credit.
• Compare the SEER or AFUE of your cooling or heating system with newer models. If it's below 13, you may want to consider a new, more efficient system. Remember, the higher the rating, the less wasted energy and reduced carbon footprint. Use our energy savings calculator to help determine the efficiency of your current cooling or heating system as compared to a more efficient HVAC system.
• Look into geothermal heating systems. By using the earth's natural heat, these systems are among the most efficient and energy-conserving heating and cooling technologies currently available.
• Change your air filters monthly.
• Ceiling fans can help delay or reduce the need for air conditioning.
• Plant more trees on your property. By doing so, the shade it gives off will make your home feel cooler in the warmer months. In addition to climate control, trees also improve air quality.
• Install a programmable thermostat to keep temperatures regulated all year long.
• Make sure your home is properly insulated--drafty windows and doors waste energy.
• Have your AC system serviced regularly for optimal performance by an HVAC professional.

For AC service or installation in Boston and Worcester, contact Greater Boston Plumbing.

WSJ