Prevent Basement Flooding With A Sump Pump

After the recent flooding in the Mississauga/Toronto area, many home owners are looking at options to protect their home from future flooding, and damage.

One of the best ways to prevent a flooded basement is by installing a sump pump in your home.

Sump pumps work by being installed in a pit in the lowest part of a building. They are placed in a basin, usually below your basement, that collects water through drains, or naturally through the soil. The pump then pumps the water from the pit to a safe location outside your home, preventing water from affecting your basement.

Severe storms often cause power failures, and since sump pumps operate on electricity, it is a very good idea to get a system installed that includes back up battey power. These systems are usually powered by a marine battery if your homes AC power source is knocked out.

Systems without backup power can also be upgraded to include a secondary power source to prevent flooding in homes that already have AC powered systems.

Furnace King Is Happy to partner with Renmark Plumbing And Heating to offer sump pump installation and service to all our customers.

Don’t put up with another wet basement again.

Call Renmark Plumbing & Heating Today at 905-755-1220 to discuss your Sump Pump, and flood proofing options.

Furnaces, Air Conditioners, and Flooded Basements

Monday evening saw record breaking down pour in the GTA, and Furnace King would like to remind you of the danger water damage poses to your HVAC equipment.

If your basement has flooded at all, it is vital to have your furnace inspected to insure the water has not damaged the equipment. If you don’t have it inspected, you may find out your funace no longer usable when the weather cools back down, or worse, it may become a danger to your home.

Flooding outside of your home may have affected your Air conditioner as well, so refrain from turning it back on without having it properly inspected.

We can send a technician out to your home to inspect your equipment and determine if it has been damaged.

We are on the approved contractor list for a number of insurance companies, and are familiar with the claims approval process. If there is damage, we can generate a report and send it to your insurance company for you to expidite any necessary repairs, or replacements in your home.

Don’t get left out in the cold next winter, and don’t get stuck in the heat for the rest of this summer. Have your furnace and air conditioner inspected to make sure it is safe and operational as soon as you notice any water in your basement.

Call Furnace King today at 905-564-5464, or click here to have a member of our team get in touch with you.

What to do When your Air Conditioner is Leaking Refrigerant

If you’ve inspected your air-conditioning unit and found it has a leak, it is critical to know what to do when your air conditioner is leaking refrigerant. As HVAC specialists in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville we know the damage it can causes, and all the causes—and fixes—of leaking refrigerant—and the most common offenders. If you suspect you have a leak you need to visually inspect the unit for the tell-tale fluid stains or use a leak detector.

Once you know that your air conditioner has a refrigerant leak you need to correct them immediately or they will allow air and moisture to penetrate your cooling system, waste expensive coolant and damage the ozone layer should they leak into the environment due to the CFCs that they emit. Even more importantly leaks can reduce the overall efficiency of your air conditioner, could freeze the evaporator coil and otherwise permanently damage the unit.

Running an air-conditioning system with leaks will increase your electric bill and increase repair bills down the road as the leak(s) continue to damage the unit. As HVAC specialists in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville we have seen first-hand the permanent damaged caused when an air conditioner is leaking refrigerant.

What to Do When your Air Conditioner is Leaking Refrigerant
If you’ve discovered that your air conditioner is leaking fluid you will need to address the source—and remedy it like a mechanic fixes a faulty transmission. But first you need to find the cause of the leak:

  1. Manufacturer Defect
    If the refrigerant is leaking due to a manufacturer’s defect like a poor welding job, incorrectly aligned joint or lack of seal then it is the manufacturer’s responsibility to fix it under the warranty of the device. To fix it you simply need to find an authorized technician that can fix it for the manufacturer.

  2. Normal Wear and Tear
    Any machine with moving parts will naturally have wear and tear over the years. This includes things like rust- and acid-caused leaks in the tubing and joints and leaks caused from worn rubber seals. These are easily remedied by a professional with the necessary parts—but we don’t recommend over-the-counter products available at Home Depot-like stores as they often don’t properly seal the leak and can void the unit’s warranty.

So, what to do when your air conditioner is leaking refrigerant? Call us at Furnace King, your  HVAC specialists in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville—we will fix the leak and assess any damage done by the leaked refrigerant.

The Eco-Friendly Pros of Having a Tankless Water Heater

Besides the prestige of having a tankless water heater (which let’s face it are the coolest on the market) there are a number of eco-friendly pros of going tankless. As HVAC specialists in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville we have personally seen the eco-friendly, earth-helping (and wallet-helping) differences that tankless water heaters make. This includes elements like saving water and saving on your electricity bills.

1. Energy Savings

The biggest eco-friendly pro of having a tankless water heater comes in the form of energy savings—something that is as good for the environment as it is for your wallet. We’re talking about a significant impact in energy savings given that hot-water tanks account for 20-30% of residential energy use.

The energy savings are significant with tankless as a standard water heater holds between 150 to 300 litres of water at any given time, which is heated to 50 degrees or more—24 hours a day. The water is heated so hot that cold water must be added to it, so you are heating water rather uselessly. On top of all this, about a quarter of the water in the tank isn’t usable hot water as it is lost as cold water is added to the tank. On top of even that heated water tanks, even insulated ones, radiate heat—which loses even more energy.

The energy savings from using a tankless water heater or a tank water heater averages between 24% to 34%, but can reach up to 50% for heavy hot-water users.

2. They Last Longer—Less Landfill Space

Disposing of water heaters is a significant problem in landfills. In North America over 8 million tank water heaters are disposed into landfills, a process which can cause dangerous chemical leaching into groundwater. Also, as you can imagine water heaters don’t decompose quickly. Tankless water heaters are smaller, take up less space in landfills, last significantly longer and have more replaceable parts.

3. Less Emissions

Energy efficiency causes less emissions. If North America switched to tankless water heaters we would save 1 billion litres of fuel, 620 million litres of propane—or 22 billion kw hours of energy, each and every year.

The eco-friendly pros of having a tankless water heater are numerous. There is the all-important energy savings, less toxic garbage and lower global-warming causing emissions. To find out the specific difference you can make by installing an eco-friendly tankless water heater—call us at Furnace King today, your HVAC specialists in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville.