Did you know sealing and insulating your ducts can improve efficiency by 20% or even more? Seriously. So why wouldn’t you start now?! Your air ducts that circulate the air in your home to-and-from a forced air furnace, central air conditioner, or heat pump are some of the biggest energy wasters. Without proper insulation, or if there are any holes punctures or misalignments, you could be blowing a lot of money every month - both literally and metaphorically. Here’s how to figure out if your ducts are performing poorly, and how to get started sealing and insulating those ducts now so you’re more comfortable once the cooler weather sets into Omaha for good.

Do Your Ducts Perform Poorly?

Here are some telltale signs that your air ducts could use proper sealing or insulation:

you have high summer and winter utility bills
you have rooms that are difficult to heat and cool
you have stuffy rooms that never seem to feel comfortable
your ducts are located in an attic, crawlspace, or the garage
you find tangled or kinked flexible ducts in your system

Seal Your Ducts

First of all, make sure you’re using the right sealing materials. Use mastic sealant or metal tape. Do not use duct tape. Start by insulating all of the ducts that you can access, such as those in attics, crawlspaces, unfinished basements, and garages. Also, check that the connections at the vents and registers are well sealed where they meet the floors, walls, and ceiling. These are common trouble spots for leaks and disconnections.

Insulate Your Ducts

Insulate ducts in attics, crawlspaces, unfinished basements, and garages where they are most likely to experience temperature differences. Be sure to use a foil-faced fiberglass insulation with an R-6 or higher insulation value. Use the same type of metallic foil duct tape to seal and hold the insulation in place. Make sure the foil surface of the insulation is free of dust before applying the tape.

Call the heating and cooling team you can trust at Getzschman Heating & Cooling at (402) 235-6727 to help you get your heating equipment ready for the long winter ahead.

Natural ventilation is a great way to keep your home cooler and less stuffy without the workings of an air conditioner. While an air conditioner can help keep your home cooler, it can’t always mimic the invigorating effects of natural air and wind. Getzschman Heating & Cooling understands that homeowners don’t want to have to run their air conditioners all the time, to save money, and to enjoy the fresh air when the temperatures are right. You can try and make this work in your home by adjusting a few things and save on your cooling bills as we transition into the fall months.

How Natural Ventilation Works

To make natural ventilation work you need two things, wind and the "chimney effect". Natural ventilation works best in climates with cool nights and regular breezes. Wind can naturally ventilate your home as it enters or leaves windows. Here’s how: When wind blows against your home, air is forced into your windows on the side facing towards the wind, while a natural vacuum effect tends to draw air out of windows on the leeward (downwind) side. The “chimney effect” works by way of convection and occurs when cool air enters the home on the first floor or basement, absorbs heat in the room, rises, and exits through upstairs windows. Convection in your home creates a sort of vacuum, which pulls more air in through lower-level windows. This works best in homes with tall or cathedral ceilings and windows located near the top of the house, or in operable skylights.

You can enhance natural ventilation in your home with the right landscaping. Depending on the house design and wind direction, a windbreak like a fence, hedge, or row of trees that blocks the wind can force air either into or away from nearby windows. Call Getzschman Heating & Cooling today at (402) 235-6727 to get your home’s furnace ready for fall . The temperatures may be perfect now, but a furnace tune-up can help ensure a more comfortable transition into fall and winter.

As the air conditioning season is winding down, many homeowners choose to forgo the convenience of air conditioning to save money. While the air may not seem quite as hot and humid, it can still cause problems at night when you’re trying to get a little quality shuteye. It’s been proven that sleeping in a cooler room promotes deep, restorative REM sleep. Warmer rooms can cause sleepers to feel stuffy and toss and turn more. So, how can you keep your air conditioning off and still sleep well at night? Here are a few sure-fire ways to keep cooler and save money as summer in Omaha comes to an end this year.

Use Cotton Sheets

Forgo the fancy satin or silk sheets, and just say “no” to synthetic fabric sheets. Instead, opt for 100% cotton sheets. They are lighter weight, and more breathable.

Go For Loose

Don’t wear your spandex or gym clothes to bed. Choose loose fitting clothing to sleep in at night. Go for a light tank top or oversized t-shirt, and boxer shorts. Loose fitting clothing allows your body to breathe at night and doesn’t restrict your movements.

Unplug in the Evenings

Everything that uses electricity generates heat to some degree. From your computer, to your TV, to your bedside lamps. Unplug all of these things at night to decrease the amount of ambient heat.

Don’t Cook with Heat at Night

To keep heat at a minimum, try to avoid using your oven or stovetop at night. It’s hard when you want a good home cooked meal, but try to use your microwave or outside grill instead. Ovens and stoves create a lot of heat that gets trapped in your home long after you’re done cooking. Why do you think people leave their oven doors open when they’re done cooking in the winter?

Avoid Running Washers or Dryers at Night

Other activities to avoid doing at night include running your dish or clothes washers and dryers. These also create heat that can warm up your home at night. Instead, run these in the morning before you leave for work.

Use Fans the Right Way

Start off by utilizing your ceiling fan. Make sure its settings are switched so the blades run counter-clockwise, which pulls hot air up and out. This can help keep the lower portion of your room cooler. If you have a box fan, point it out the window, which helps push hot air outside.

For more tips on keeping your home more comfortable, call the heating and cooling experts of Omaha at Getzschman Heating & Cooling at (402) 235-6727.

Bigger isn’t always better. This rings especially true when referring to air conditioning systems. It’s actually much more efficient and effective to have a unit that is appropriately sized for your home. Here are some of the biggest problems you’ll experience if you install a cooling system that’s too big, and how you can figure out what size air conditioner you should be considering instead.

Humidity Problems

Installing an air conditioner that is too big for your home can cause a your home to feel more humid, which can cause other issues. Air conditioners are supposed to remove heat and humidity from the air in your home, but if your system is too large, it will cool your rooms quickly, but only remove some of the humidity. This can leave your home feeling damp and clammy. A properly sized unit will remove humidity effectively as it cools.

Related Read: How to Beat the Humidity

Cost Concerns

An oversized unit can also end up costing you more. Not only will you have to cash out more to buy it, but to operate it as well. A unit that is too large will start and stop more often. It starts up and shuts down a lot more because it runs for only a short time to meet the thermostat set point. All those starts and stops mean you'll probably be repairing it more often and replacing it sooner, meaning it will have a shorter lifespan.

Figure Out the Right Size for Your Home

First, determine the square footage of the area to be cooled using the following formulas:

For square and rectangular rooms, multiply the length of the area by its width
For a triangular area, multiply the length of the area by the width and divide by 2

Next, using the square footage and the chart below provided by Energy Star, determine the correct cooling capacity. Cooling capacity is measured in British thermal units (BTUs) per hour.

Lastly, make any adjustments for the following circumstances:

If the home is heavily shaded, reduce capacity by 10 percent.
If the home is very sunny, increase capacity by 10 percent.
Adjust capacity based on how many people will occupy the home, as each person adds 600 BTUs.

For help figuring out which air conditioning system will be the most cost effective and efficient for your home, call the Omaha air conditioning company you can trust, Getzschman Heating & Cooling at (402) 235-6727.

The summer is starting to heat up, which means your Omaha area home’s air conditioner is going to be working full throttle now. The harder it has to work, the more energy it’s using to cool your home, and the more likely it is to need repair. Now is the perfect time to consider installing a high efficiency air conditioning and furnace system. Getzschman Heating & Cooling explains how it could benefit your home.

It Will Cost You Less In The Long Run

Installing a brand new system isn’t always cheap, but it will cost you less in the long run. Older, less efficient systems require often air conditioning repair and maintenance, which can add up over time. New high efficiency systems are more efficient and durable, though. This means they require less energy to keep your home comfortable, saving you money when it comes to your energy bills, especially since air conditioners consume more energy than any other piece of equipment in your home.

High efficiency systems with high Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratings, or SEERs, sometimes come with incentives and rebates, as well. Many name brand manufacturers offer rebates, and sometimes the government offers incentives, like tax breaks. These offers can drastically reduce the cost of a new system if you take advantage of them.

You’ll Be More Comfortable in Your Home

Like we mentioned above, high efficiency systems are usually much more efficient than old models. They can provide your home with a more consistent temperature throughout your home thanks to a more even airflow. This means you’ll be more comfortable wherever you are in your home.

High efficiency systems can also remove moisture from the air more effectively. These systems are more controlled, running longer cycles at lower temperatures. This helps cool the air more comfortably, and can deter mold and other airborne problems.

Your Home Will Be Greener

Since high efficiency systems consume less energy, they are also better for the environment. These systems emit fewer greenhouse gases and use less fossil fuel because they take less energy to operate. Not only will you be helping your wallet, but your community as well.

For more air conditioning tips or services, call the technicians you can trust at Getzschman Heating & Cooling at (402) 235-6727.

Outdoor AC units are nice when you are inside your Omaha area home. But when you’re spending a lot of time outdoors, like in the summer, they can be an eyesore. Here are a few ways to camouflage your AC unit that might make you forget it’s even there! But after you beautify them, don’t forget to take care of your AC units with regular maintenance from Getzschman Heating & Cooling.

Use a Partial Fence to Hide Your AC Unit

Fences are made to keep unwanted attention out, which makes them perfect for concealing an eyesore. But this project requires much less material & time. Pick a type of fencing that harmonizes with your home, be it a picket fence or a lattice screen. You’ll need roughly two, 9-12 square feet slabs if you want to cover two sides of your unit.

Add Some Strategic Greenery to Your Yard As a Distraction

One issue with covering up AC units is that they require 2-3 feet of room around them, to allow air to circulate. They also push out a steady flow of hot air when they’re running, which can inhibit many types of plants from growing. Keeping this in mind, a good idea is to attract attention somewhere else with strategic landscaping. Group some of the fine textured plants around your air conditioning unit, and then create a focal point a few feet down from there, using bolder shaped and sized plants. This strategy is simple and effective, because plants with bigger leaves and dramatic shapes draw more attention than plants with fine textures and leaves. For even more camouflage, combine strategically placed landscaping with a partial fence.

Want more ways to conceal eyesores around your home? Read our G-Force blog post on hiding ugly wall vents.

Use a Pallet to Add Character While You Disguise

Add character, and camouflage at the same time with this pallet idea from Pinterest. It’s a double whammy! It doesn’t even need to be a new pallet. Use an old pallet that’s lying around. Paint it to complement your home’s exterior and your landscaping. To add even more character, add a flower box at the top. Then just place it strategically in front of your AC unit and watch it turn from eyesore to adorable nook.

For more air conditioning tips or services, call the technicians you can trust at Getzschman Heating & Cooling at (402) 235-6727.

In our last Getzschman Heating blog post, we gave you some simple things you can do to save money on your air conditioning bills this summer. This time, the we’re going to give you a few more ideas that are a little more involved or may require a small initial investment, but will save you a significant amount of money in energy savings.

ATTIC-First of all, make your home as energy efficient as possible in the ways that will make the biggest difference. For instance, did you know that up to 30% of the heat that enters your house is absorbed through your roof? Is your attic properly insulated and ventilated? Insulation will help keep the hot air from seeping into your home through the ceiling and vents in the eaves allow cooler air to enter to reduce the temperature of the air in the attic. A ridge vent or an attic fan can significantly reduce your cooling costs. Plus, any insulation you add will also help conserve energy in the winter reducing heating bills.

DUCTWORK-Another area to think about insulating is the ductwork in your attic, crawl spaces, garages and other areas that warm air exists. They will pick up the heat from the surrounding air and make the air inside the ducts warmer.

WINDOWS-Consider installing window tinting on the windows that get a lot of sun (east and west-facing windows) to minimize the heat absorption. Installing awnings on these sides of your home is another sun slashing option.

THERMOSTAT-If you don’t already have one, install a programmable thermostat. Each degree you raise the thermostat up will save about 7-8 percent on your electric bill.

AIR CONDITIONER- If you have an old air conditioner that has a SEER rating of less than 8, it is probably worth replacing. With the energy you save, you should be able to pay for it in just a few years.

AC MAINTENANCE CHECK-Have your air conditioning unit tuned up once a year to be sure it is running at peak efficiency.

CEILING FANS-If you have ceiling fans, use them and make sure the fan is blowing the air downward. For most fans, when you're standing under the fan looking up, counter-clockwise blows down and clockwise blows up. If you don’t have ceiling fans, install a few in the rooms you use the most. Running a ceiling fan can allow you to set the temperature up five degrees because the moving air increases the amount of evaporation from your skin and helps cool you off.

PLUG THE LEAKS-Add weather stripping around windows and doors. Fill any gaps where utilities enter the house (plumbing, electrical, dryer vents, etc.) or around fireplaces. This will also help with heating in the winter.

PLANT A TREE-Plant a tree near your outdoor unit to shade it. Keeping the unit cool will help it run more efficiently.

And if you're REALLY serious about making your home energy efficient, check out the ReEnergize Program for Omaha and Lincoln residents. You could earn a rebate that pays you $100 per 1% energy savings in your home. Just click the link for all of the details.