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Your HVAC equipment works hard all year long to keep your home comfortable, and maintaining it properly is vital to keep it in peak operating condition. While yearly equipment tune ups are a good starting point, comprehensive preventive HVAC maintenance can bring you even greater benefits.

It’s not always easy to change your home energy habits when you are trying to conserve energy. To make matters worse, there are several energy myths abound that work against your efforts and actually increase your energy bills. Read on to get the facts about home efficiency.

If well maintained, a heat pump can keep you cozy even in the coldest of Grand Traverse County winters. Annual professional maintenance goes a long way, but there are still some things you’ll need to do yourself.

Planning a furnace installation? The first thing you’ll need to know is the heating load for your home, which will determine what size equipment you purchase. Here’s what else you should know about the heating load, and some other points to ponder before you schedule your furnace installation.

Your plumbing system relies on gravity to carry wastewater down the drains and out into your municipal sewer system or septic tank. Adequate ventilation is necessary to keep the drain lines running smoothly, so your home’s main drain is connected to a PVC or cast iron vent pipe that runs vertically up through the roof. The vent serves two purposes – it lets sewer gas out and draws air in to maintain neutral pressure in the drain system.

When you are installing a new heating system, it is sized to meet the heating load of your home. If your home becomes less efficient over the years due to air leaks, ailing ducts, failing insulation, or simply increased demand, your furnace is going to be in trouble, and so are your energy bills and comfort.

If a single thermostat is regulating the temperature in your home, you’re probably wasting energy, especially if your home is large or has more than one level. A thermostat installed on a wall in the living room or a nearby hallway will have no problem controlling the temperature in that area. Yet, that amount of heating or cooling likely will be too little or too much for other parts of the house. That’s why many homes are switching to a zoning system, which allows independent temperature control in different parts of the house.

If you’ve been considering replacing your existing HVAC system with a geothermal heat pump (GHP), 2016 may be the most advantageous time to do so. The Recovery Act of 2009 made tax credits available for homeowners who install exceptionally efficient HVAC and solar equipment. While some of provisions for high efficiency equipment have expired, the credits are still available for GHPs and solar systems that end in 2016.

The amount and quality of the attic insulation in your home makes the largest impact on its energy efficiency and your year-long energy costs. Adequate insulation properly installed will start saving energy immediately, and last for years. In most cases, it’s the most affordable improvement for long lasting comfort.

Boilers are built to be sturdy and long-lasting, but they eventually wear out and need to be replaced. When you have a boiler that isn’t performing as efficiently as it once did, keep in mind that this can end up costing you a considerable amount of money in higher utility bills. If yours is showing any of the following signs, it might be time to consider investing in a boiler upgrade.