Spotting Hidden Water Damage, Part 1

Being able to identify plumbing problems is critical to protecting your home from water damage. Quickly finding leaking plumbing joints, worn out fixtures and sources of condensation can mean the difference between a small repair and thousands of dollars worth of plumbing damage, wood rot and mold remediation.

A leaking faucet is easy to spot. If you’re lucky, the leaking water drips down into the sink and goes down the drain. If you’re not so lucky, a leaking faucet may allow water to drip down the walls or underneath the sink. Sometimes, you may find leaking water near the faucet handles or near the neck of the fixture.

If you suspect a leak, look for pooled water under the sink, seeping water around the faucet handles or neck, or signs of damage along the wall or in the sink base if your sink has one. Signs of water damage can include peeling or bubbled paint, warped or rotten wood, water stains on the walls, soft bulging plaster or drywall, mold growth, buckling floor tiles or mineral build-up around the base of the faucet.

Sometimes, replacing a washer or gasket can repair a leaking faucet. Many newer faucets are “washerless” so a $0.10 washer won’t do the trick. Some inexpensive faucets have plastic bodies that either crack with time, simple wear, over-tightening at the connections or manufacturing defects. In these cases, faucet replacement is in order.

Replacing a faucet isn’t hard, provided you have the right materials. Most faucets have standard threaded supply and drain connectors, so you may only need Teflon tape or pipe dope and a few hand tools to complete the repair. Despite the fact that federal laws require faucets and other plumbing materials to meet certain health and safety standards, plenty of low-quality parts still make it to store shelves. Choose a faucet that is made from quality material, guaranteed to be free of heavy metals and designed to work with your sink.

If your sink doesn’t have independent shut-off valves, now is a good time to add them in line with the water supply. If your sink does have shut-off valves, now is a good time to test them and verify that they’re still working! If they’re hard to move, sticky or leaky, replace those, too!

In most cases, a faucet replacement is “out with the old, in with the new.” Other leaks, such as those hidden behind walls or underneath the floors can be messy, difficult and time-consuming to locate and fix. If you’re not confident that you can complete this kind of repair, or you simply want professional assistance, contact Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating at (617) 288-2911 and we’ll replace your leaking sink faucet, test your shutoff valves and install valves (or replacements) if needed. We can also replace pipes hidden in the walls and test them for additional signs of wear or damage.

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Boston Standard Plumbing Techs Are NATE Certified!

NATE certification indicates that our staff members are experts in residential HVAC, light commercial and commercial refrigeration. NATE certification is the only HVAC certification that’s recognized industry-wide, so having a fully certified staff recognizes the fact that our technicians are well trained and up-to-date on industry standards and best practices. A fully certified NATE staff will also enable Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating to be listed in NATE’s Consumer Contractor Connection.

To the consumer, the NATE certification means that a professional group within the HVAC community has recognized Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating for its technical proficiency in heating and cooling systems. Consumers can be confident that the NATE-certified professionals at Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating are qualified to install, repair and maintain the heating and cooling systems they depend on to keep their homes safe and comfortable throughout the year.

To us at Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating, NATE certification means that our peers in a professional organization have recognized our hard work and training, and they’re willing to recommend us to the consumers in Boston who need high quality, reliable heating and cooling services.

We’ll keep you up-to-date on our certification progress and welcome you to contact Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating at (617) 288-2911 anytime you need a heating and cooling or plumbing professional. We do offer 24-hour emergency service and all of our “night” calls are answered by a Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating technician. We don’t use an answering service because we know that when an emergency arises, you want to talk with the people who can help you right away!

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Copper Thefts Target Boston Plumbing and Air Conditioning

The price of scrap copper has risen steadily in the past few years, making copper an attractive theft target. The Federal Bureau of Investigation targeted copper thefts in an 2008 report, indicating that the volume of copper thefts was posing a threat to critical national infrastructure including electrical power sub-stations, landline telephone wiring, cellular towers, railroads, water wells and construction sites. The report indicated that vacant homes are also a favored target of copper thieves. The demand for copper is expected to continue as developing countries, such as India and China, develop their fresh water, electrical and communications infrastructure.

To combat copper theft, utilities are increasingly being encouraged to install video monitoring systems in unattended substations, rooftops and other facilities that contain a large amount of copper. The average residential unit has about $25 worth of scrap copper, but thieves can cause thousands of dollars in damage just to get the copper that’s inside your A/C unit. Homeowners may not be able to add video surveillance to their arsenal of defense, but here are some tips most homeowners can use to help discourage copper theft.

Fence off your outside air conditioning unit. Installing a lockable fence or cage around your air conditioning unit can help discourage copper theft. A determined thief may still target your outside A/C unit, but if other easier targets are nearby, he’s likely to leave yours alone.

Install motion-activated outdoor lighting. Outdoor lighting can help you deter theft. Motion-activated lights can also cut down on your electrical use, while still providing protection when needed. If a thief thinks he’s been spotted, he’s likely to leave the area rather than risk being caught.

Join or create a Neighborhood Watch group. Thieves don’t like neighbors any more than they like lights and locks. Watch your property and your neighbor’s properties, and report any suspicious activities. Be especially mindful of vacant homes in your neighborhood.

Talk to your local police department. Community outreach officers can give you information about theft trends that are occurring in your neighborhood. Share the information with your neighbors and ask them to report any unusual activity back to the police department.

Keep gates closed and locked. A determined thief will get into a locked yard, but getting tools in and stolen property out can be more difficult. Make it as hard as possible on the thief, and chances are good that he’ll go looking somewhere else.

Landscape for safety. Consider installing shrubbery around your outside air conditioning unit. Rose bushes, vines and barberry bushes make great deterrent landscaping. Just remember to clear leaves, petals and other debris away from the unit periodically.

Relocate your cooling equipment. This is somewhat drastic, but if your air conditioning unit is an easy theft target, moving it to a less accessible location may discourage thieves. Boston Standard Plumbing and Heating can help you reposition your outside A/C unit to discourage theft.

Hire a plumber to install slimduct. Slimduct is a plastic sleeve that encloses your exposed copper piping and helps protect it from theft. The more work a thief has to do to get your copper, the less attractive your copper becomes.

Consider installing a copper alarm. Yes, copper alarms exist and can detect when a refrigerant line or the power to your A/C unit has been cut. Consult your favorite Boston heating and cooling contractor for help in discouraging A/C unit theft.

Consider getting a dog. Thieves don’t like dogs because they’re noisy, territorial and unpredictable. A thief doesn’t want to guess whether your dog is the friendly type or not, and it certainly doesn’t want your dog to warn you or your neighbors that something’s amiss. A dog isn’t a guarantee that your copper won’t be stolen, but it does complicate the job for the would-be thief.

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DOE Credits Can Help Homeowners In Boston Install Efficient Heating And Cooling

Some heating and cooling systems have the potential to save a great deal of money, but at the same time, they cost a lot of money to install. A geothermal heat pump is one such system. A geothermal heat pump doesn’t rely on outside air to heat and cool your home. Instead, this special type of heating and cooling equipment uses the constant temperature of the Earth as a heat source in the winter and a cooling source in the summer. Coils of wire that are connected to a heat pump are placed into the earth. The soil acts as an exchange medium, extracting heat from your home in the summer and drawing in heat to your home in the winter. Coil systems can be either “open loop” or “closed loop.”

A geothermal heat pump is exceptionally efficient. In some areas, a geothermal heat pump can eliminate the need for supplemental heating. Most geothermal pumps have an efficiency rating of 300%-600% even in the coldest temperatures. There are several different kinds of geothermal heat pump systems, and some systems combine a geothermal heat pump along with a conventional heat pump for high-efficiency at a lower cost than a regular geothermal system.

Depending upon how your geothermal system is laid out, your system may have closed coils that extend horizontally from your home, buried in trenches around your home at depths of 4-6 feet. Most home systems are laid out with horizontal ground loops. In some cases – mostly for commercial buildings or larger installations like schools – a vertical orientation for the ground loops because a horizontal layout for the exchange coils would either take up too much room or would seriously disturb the landscaping around the building during the installation process. In other designs, water from a pond can be used as an exchange medium.

Currently, the Department of Energy is offering a 30% credit with no upper limit for geothermal heat pump systems that are installed into new or existing homes between now and 2016. Unlike most other credits that apply only to a primary residence, this credit can be used for both primary and secondary residences.

Geothermal heating systems can be very expensive. A geothermal heat pump is about twice the cost of a conventional heat pump, but the real costs are incurred during the installation. If a geothermal heat pump is out of your range, even with the 30% credit, contact Boston Standard Plumbing and Heating. We have a number of highly cost-effective options that can help you save significantly on your heating and cooling costs.

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If you’re considering building a new home, or completely replacing your home heating system, the Department of Energy (DOE) is offering a credit of 30% of the cost, up to $1,500, on central air conditioning, electric heat pumps, high-efficiency furnaces and boilers that run on natural gas or propane, and advanced main air circulating fans for furnaces. Each of these systems must meet certain efficiency guidelines as spelled out in the program rules. This credit is available only through 2010 and applies only to improvements made on your primary residence. For more information about this program, please consult the DOE Web site.

The DOE program will also provide a rebate of up to $1,500 on biomass stoves used for home heating. A biomass stove provides heat by burning agricultural crops, trees, wood, wood pellets, plants, grasses, plant residues and fibers. Most often, these stoves are seen in rural areas. For more information about this credit, please see the DOE Web site.

The DOE is offering a credit of up to $1,500 on high-efficiency water heaters. Most tank-storage water heaters won’t qualify for this credit, but if you plan to install a tankless water heater system, your system may qualify. Before you make plans to use this credit, you should know that electric tankless water heaters will not qualify for this credit because they do not provide significant enough energy savings. In addition, electric tankless water heaters are about as efficient as they’re ever going to get. Without room for improvement, the energy savings offered by electric tankless water heaters do not meet the program’s energy efficiency goals.

In my next post, I’ll discuss additional DOE incentives that can help homeowners in Boston install heating and cooling equipment and other energy saving devices.

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Cool Smart Helps Homeowners In Boston Install Air Conditioning

Cool Smart is one of several programs designed to assist homeowners. For homeowners who are having difficulty paying electric bills in the summer (and heating bills in the winter), the Energy Bucks program can provide assistance. The Energy Bucks program is income dependent and can provide fuel subsidies, discounts on utility services like electricity and natural gas, and help pay for services that are designed to reduce your home’s energy consumption and improve the efficiency of your appliances, heating and cooling equipment. If you would like more information about the Energy Bucks program, or want to find out if you qualify for assistance, please call 1-866-537-7267.

If you’re considering building a home, your new home can be awarded an ENERGY STAR® designation if it meets certain energy-saving criteria. ENERGY STAR® rated homes contain insulation, high-performance windows, and energy-efficient heating and cooling equipment.

Boston Magazine named Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating the Best of Boston 2010, and we can help you design, install and maintain high-efficiency heating and cooling systems for your Boston home. Call us at (617) 288-2911 to discuss the heating and cooling incentives you may qualify for under these programs.

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Long-Term Financing Available For Boston Home Heating and Cooling Improvements

These rebates can really reduce the cost of making these improvements. Once the improvements are made, homeowners can count on reduced home heating and cooling costs – another excellent benefit of the program. In this post, I want to discuss some of the incentives that are available for substantial renovations that you may be considering.

Extensive home remodeling or building an addition can easily reach into the tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars. This kind of project provides an excellent opportunity to rethink the way you heat and cool your home. In many cases, a large addition will prove to be too taxing for the existing heating and cooling plant. Relying on additions to the existing system may leave the new space too cold or too hot.
Homeowners in this situation are typically faced with two choices: an expensive re-design of the home’s entire heating and cooling system, or the addition of a second, separate heating and cooling plant that serves the added space. With the Mass Save program, homeowners may be able to afford to choose the more efficient option – a single, redesigned heating and cooling system that can heat all areas of the home.

Low interest loans are available through the Major Renovations program that can help defray the cost of completely redesigning the heating and cooling system. In the long run, this approach saves money because it enables the homeowner to maintain a single heating or cooling plant. It also saves energy because the homeowner can rely on a single, high-efficiency system, rather than two systems, which may not be equally efficient.

The Major Renovations program is administered through the local electric utilities. NSTAR Electric, National Grid, Cape Light Compact and the Western Massachusetts Electric Company are all participating in the major renovations program. Whether or not you’re considering a major renovation, Boston Standard Plumbing can assist you with all of your Boston home heating and cooling needs. Please contact us at (617) 288-2911 for more information about the Mass Save programs and how you may be able to save hundreds or thousands of dollars on energy-efficient upgrades to your home.

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Mass Save Program Can Help You Reduce Boston Home Heating And Cooling Costs

The program provides rebates and tax incentives, low-cost long-term financing for major improvements, and instant coupons that can be used to lower the cost of purchasing energy-efficient appliances and lighting. Depending upon your income level, some repair and upgrade work may be completed at no cost to you.

To find out what programs are available to you, visit the MASSSave.com Web site and enter your city or ZIP code. For some types of repairs or upgrades, you may also need to identify the type of home heating equipment you currently use.

Examples of program rebates and incentives include a 75% rebate of up to $2,000 to help defray the cost of completing the audit’s requirements. This audit, performed by a trained professional, can help you better understand how you can reduce your energy consumption and improve the living environment in your home.

Other program incentives include a $300 rebate for installing a high-efficiency indirect water heater; a $300-$400 rebate for installing an ENERGY STAR® qualified central air conditioner or heat pump; a $500 rebate for installing a qualifying ENERGY STAR® rated ductless mini-split heat pump or air conditioner; installing a high-efficiency propane or heating oil system; a $100 rebate for installing weather-responsive controls for oil or propane-fired hot water heat systems; a $25 rebate on the purchase of a 7-day programmable thermostat (limit 2); a rebate of 75% (max: $2,000) on insulation upgrades; and rebates of between $200 and $1,600 on high efficiency furnaces, boilers, and control units.

I’ll put more information in future posts, but if you’re interested in replacing, repairing or upgrading your home’s current heating or cooling equipment, contact Boston Standard Plumbing at (617) 288-2911 for more information about how you can take advantage of these outstanding incentives.

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Air Conditioning That Cools While Looking Cool

If this situation describes you, you may want to consider an option now available from LG called the LG Art Cool ductless air conditioner. The LG Ductless Art Cool system can be configured to offer single, dual or triple zone control, mounts on the wall and requires only a 3″ hole in the wall to connect to an outdoor unit. Best of all, the LG Ductless Art Cool units hang on the wall and can be customized with any artwork that suits your taste. The end result? A low-profile, wall-mounted air conditioning unit that looks like a painting and cools the room at the same time.

The cooling units provide either 9,800 BTU or 11,500 BTU of cooling power and uses R410 A refrigerant. In addition, the units feature a self-cleaning indoor coil, a plasma air purifying filter, three-way cooling, automatic or manual operations, 24-hour on/off timer, evaporator frost control and corrosion protection for the fins. Optionally, LG makes a version of the Art Cool ductless units that can be attached to a heat pump unit to provide zone heating during the winter months.

Ductless air conditioning systems are an excellent option for historic homes, rental properties, and for homeowners who suffer from dust and pollen allergies. Boston Standard Plumbing and Heating provides a wide variety of options for cooling your Boston home. We can install, maintain and repair ductless and ducted systems to ensure that you stay cool when the weather warms up. If you would like more information on ductless air conditioning systems, heat pumps, or the LG Art Cool air conditioning (or heat pump) systems, please contact Boston Standard Plumbing at (617) 288-2911.

We provide excellent heating and cooling services throughout the greater Boston area and can help you add a cool touch to your Boston home. Contact us today and find out why Boston Standard Plumbing’s heating and cooling services were named the Best of Boston 2010 by Boston Magazine.

Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of LG

A Little Boston Air Conditioner Maintenance Goes A Long Way!

Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating is ready to help you inspect, repair and maintain your home’s air conditioning system. After a hard winter like the one we’ve had, a little spring cleaning may be in order. Outdoor air conditioning units accumulate lots of debris, especially from falling leaves, seeds, and petals from flowering trees. Spring cleaning will pay off handsomely, and will help your outdoor unit remain trouble-free. Getting rid of the debris is Job #2. Job #1 is always safety. In this case, that means cutting the power to the A/C unit.

The outdoor portion of your home’s air conditioning system includes the compressor and an electric motor, which make a lot of noise and heat. Compressors and motors are usually self-contained and don’t require much maintenance. You will need to remove the cover on the unit to inspect and clean the condenser coil. Removing the cover usually involves basic hand tools and isn’t hard to do. Carefully remove the cover and do not touch the condenser “fins” with your hands. Fins are made of soft, wavy metal. Bending the fins will reduce the unit’s efficiency.

Take a look at the uncovered unit. Check for oil leaks or accumulation around fittings and near hoses. These are all signs of leaking. If you notice that a compressor is leaking oil, however, that’s a good sign that a repair is in your future. Don’t try to tighten fittings that appear to be leaking. Instead, give us a call at Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating, at (617) 288-2911 and let us take a look.

Some electric motors require lubrication at the beginning of the season. If your motor has an oil port, consult the owner’s manual to see how much oil should be added. You can find oil for an electric motor at a hardware or home improvement store. Usually, you’ll need to add just a few drops. Note that some motors are sealed and don’t require additional lubrication.

Included in the box with the compressor is the condenser coil, which has a fan. The fan’s job is to pull outside air through the condenser coil. Along with air, however, the fan also pulls a lot of debris into the condenser coil and reduces the unit’s efficiency. Sweep out or remove by hand any debris that you can reach easily. Using a garden hose, gently wash the fins to remove any remaining debris. Allow the unit to dry.

Inside your home, you’ll need to clean the evaporator unit, which will be located somewhere near the furnace. The evaporator also has fins, so work gently around your evaporator. Use a very soft brush to clean the fins or gently vacuum the unit to remove any accumulated dust, dirt and debris. If the evaporator doesn’t look approachable, looks like it’s been leaking, you can’t locate it, or you know where it is but can’t reach it, contact Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating and we’ll be happy to lend a hand.

Finally, make sure all drain hoses or drain lines are free of debris and accumulation. If you discover biological growth in your drain lines, you can use BioClean, a natural, enzymatic drain cleaner to clear your drain lines. Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating stocks BioClean, and it’s safe and easy to use.

Once the outside unit has dried, reattach the cover and fasten it in place. (Don’t store anything on top of or around the unit, either!) Re-apply the power and test your system. If you run into problems, Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating offers standard and emergency repair services and we’re on call 24-hours a day! Contact us today at (617) 288-2911 for more information or to schedule an inspection. Find out for yourself why Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating was named the Best of Boston 2010!

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