Gary Kiger, Carroll Home Services' Assistant Service Manager, has been working in the Heating and Air Conditioning field since 1984. For 10 of Gary's last 21 years in the HVAC business, he has been with Carroll Home Services. He began as a Service Technician and worked his way up to Assistant Service Manager. Gary holds an HVAC Master's License in Maryland, and his many years of service and training truly make him an expert in his field!

John Marshall, Carroll Home Services' Technical Supervisor, has been with Carroll Home Services since 1981. John holds a Master HVACR license in Maryland and has 32 years of experience in the HVAC industry. His extensive training in the HVAC industry includes courses at both the Richmond and Waldorf Technical Centers, training in the Honeywell Control Pro program, as well as factory training from Beckett, Riello, Carlin, and Fire-Eye. In addition, John holds a silver certificate from The Petroleum Marking Education Foundation and a gold certificate from The National Oil Heat Alliance. His fields of expertise include hydronic and steam heat, heat loss and heat gain calculations, air flow, combustion testing and flame safe guard controls.

Q: My hot water heater has a reset button. Occasionally, not often, I will have cold water, but no hot water. If I reset it, the water will heat up. What causes this?

A: The reset trips when the control does not receive a flame signal from the burner when it starts or when the flame signal is lost during the burner cycle. There are many reasons why this could happen: poor or no ignition, poor oil flow to the burner, dirt on the flame sensor, just to name a few. Oil burners should have routine maintenance (tune-up) once a year. Contact an HVAC contractor or your oil supplier for this service. That may take care of the issue, or they should be able to diagnose the problem and let you know what corrective action is needed.

Q: My Beckett AFG oil burner stops and shows a red light after 3-4 hours of working. I have to turn off the power switch, then manually lift the transformer and spin the blower, close the transformer, turn on the power and press the reset button to get it started. Sometimes it won't start unless I apply a little hand pressure to the top of the transformer. I am handy and have a parts list for the Beckett oil burner. What do you recommend for a do it yourself person like me?

A: The problem could be with the burner motor. Having said that the best thing to do would be to contact Carroll Home Services and put in a service call. Changing the burner motor on an Beckett AFG burner requires removing the burner fan from the old motor and installing it on the new one. If this is not done correctly the fan, new motor, or the air guide in the burner housing could be damaged. In addition when the repair is completed a combustion test should be done for correct burner adjustments. Since most do-it-yourselfer's don't want to spend the $1400.00 needed to buy the test equipment it would be best to let a pro do it.

Q: When outside temps are 30 - 60 degrees how much should I lower the settings on my programmable thermostat for away and sleep settings? When outside temps are 10 - 30 degrees should the setback be less? Why do some people think that using a stage 2 setting on their HP is cheaper?

A: The general recommendations for set back is no more than 5 to 8 degrees in and 8 hour period. Example 70 degree occupied temp. 62 degree unoccupied or sleep setting. When leaving for longer periods (5-7 days) the set back can be more (up to 20 degrees) For long time setbacks in cold weather make sure the coldest part of the dwelling stays above freezing. If the back-up heat for the heat pump is fossil fuel (gas or oil) it can be more cost effective to use the back-up heat below outside temperatures of 35 degrees. Also the new Honeywell set-back thermostats have "Intelligent Adaptive Recovery" which brings the temperature up slowly. Conventional set back t-stats are "snap action" trying to bring the temperature back all at once. It is beneficial to invest in a good set back thermostat with the recovery feature.

Q: I had a Goodman furnace replacement installed by a qualified contractor recently. The furnace is blowing out cold air on one side of the output plenum at a crack/hole. The front plemum does not get hot on the left side. The right side is hot, the middle is warm, but the left side is cold. Yes, it heats the house, but I suspect something is wrong, or that it could work better. The installer thinks the cause is the shape/slope (3" in a 20 rise") of the plenum on the left side. I don't think so. Cold air should not be coming out of a furnace.

A: New heating equipment has a specification called heat rise across the heat exchanger. It will be listed on the rating plate with the model and serial numbers. The typical rise is 50 to 70 degrees F. To measure this,with the equipment running, insert a thermometer in the return plenum, wait for the temperature to stabilize (normally about 2 minutes). Then insert the thermometer into the supply plenum, above any a/c coils or transitions, when that reading stabilizes subtract the return temp and that's the temperature rise. If below 50 degrees F there is too much air flow, if higher than 70 degrees F there is too little air flow. If the temp rise is with in operating limits there could be poor air flow distribution through the transition ( that 3" in 20" rise). I an assuming the transition is flat on one side and slopes on the other. If this is the case, It may be corrected by re-doing the transition so it slopes evenly from both sides. There could be other causes such as a partly obstructed a/c coil, poor air flow due to duct sizing, ect. The other possibility is that it is just the characteristics of that installation. If there is an air flow or temperature rise problem it could lead to premature failure of the heat exchanger. Contact Carroll Home Services and ask about having a factory representative check the condition to see if is a problem or just "normal" for that installation.

Q: I am having a problem with a Beckett oil fired burner. The initial problem was that the burner would trip the oil primary reset. The homeowner changed the oil filter but let it run without the oil filter for one day. I changed the filter, oil pump, oil primary control, cad cell, nozzle, and checked for proper flame. I let the boiler reach 180 degrees, and then the burner shut down. I put on all zones to make the burner fire again, then got a call that it is still tripping the reset on the oil primary. Any suggestions?

A: The primary control will lock out when there is no or low flame signal from the burner. There are many things that can cause this. Oil supply: The pump on the burner is rated for 10" hg vacuum for a two pipe installation, 6" hg one single pipe. There could be a restriction in the oil supply causing a flame out after the burner runs for a long period of time.The pump could be "breaking down" as it runs and stop the oil flow. Ignition: The transformer/igniter could become weak. An iron core transformer is rated for 10,000 volts, an electronic igniter is rated at 14,000 volts. It may have a crack in one of the ceramic porcelains on the nozzle assembly. The electrode wires could be spreading from excessive heat or misadjusted. Electrical: The cad cell could be misaligned, or receiving a poor flame signal. The ohm reading from the eye should be 1,000 ohms or less when the burner is running. The burner motor may have a "dead spot" that will not let it start all the time. If the equipment uses a "power vent" there could be a problem with establishing draft and not energizing the burner circuit. Combustion: There could be an air adjustment problem. The standard combustion reading are 12% co2, 5 to 8% o2, -.01 to -.02 draft over the fire, -.03 to -.06 draft in the stack, 350 to 600 degrees F stack temperature. CO should be 50 ppm or less in the stack.

Q: I am a Carroll Fuel customer who needs a new oil tank. My furnace is 26 years old, and my AC compressor is 20 years old. What do you think about changing to a heat pump? Also, if I stick with oil, how many years will it take to pay back my investment in a new efficient oil furnace?

A: The average savings when installing new oil heating equipment is 17% to 30% depending on the age and condition of the equipment being replaced. Cooling equipment over 13 years old had a seasonal energy efficiency rating (S.E.E.R.) maximum of 10. The average was 6 to 7. New cooling equipment has a S.E.E.R. minimum of 13 with an average of 14 to 16. With today's high energy prices the new equipment would lower the cost of operation. How much one saves depends on the condition of the equipment being replaced, use, insulation, and type of windows in the home among other factors. Heat pumps in this area need some type of back-up heat source (oil, gas or electric). Because oil has a higher BTU rating than gas or electric, it generally has a lower cost of operation. I converted my home from natural gas to oil last year with a savings of about $800.00 in cost of operation. Heat pumps have a higher installation price than straight cooling units. They do tend to lower overall energy cost, because they work well to a temperature of 38 to 40 degrees F. When old systems are replaced, it is worth checking into heat pumps with a fossil fuel back-up. The duct system needs to be evaluated for a heat pump installation. Please feel free to contact me if you'd like to discuss this further.

Q: When I burn a fire in the fireplace and the heater kicks on, I get a strong smoke smell coming through the heater vents. I do not smell it unless the heater is on. What might be causing this?

A: There is probably a return vent in the room for the fireplace. When the furnace fan comes on, the odor is picked up by the return air vent and disturbed through the house by the supply vents. There could be a problem with a down draft on the fireplace chimney as well when the furnace fan runs. The issue might be corrected by installing a fresh air intake for combustion air in the fireplace.

Q: Is it possible to recharge a dehumidifier?

A: Residential dehumidifiers are sealed units. It is usually not cost effective to attempt repairs such as recharging. However, if the symptom is the unit freezing while running, it could be that the coils are dirty and need to be cleaned. This can be accomplished by disconnecting the power cord, moving the unit to the outside, spraying the coils with a detergent such as 409. Let it soak for about 5 minutes, then rinse with a garden hose. Let it dry for about 24 hours before turning it back on.

Q: Do you have any info on mini-duct Central AC systems? I have a small old rowhouse in Baltimore City and I've heard these are ideal when you do not have ductwork installed. However, the house is set-up for forced air gas heat, will that work with the mini-duct system?

A: A mini duct a/c (also known as a high velocity system) is a complete system that would not use any part of the existing force warm air heat. It may be possible to install a conventional a/c unit on the existing heating system provided that the ducts are large enough to accommodate the air flow needed. Carroll Home Services installs both types of systems. We can have a comfort consultant contact you to make an appointment for a site survey and a quote.

Q: Whenever we turn on our heat-pump unit, the 3-amp fuse clicks itself off. What may be the cause of this problem?

A: The 3 amp fuse in in the low voltage (24 volt) side of the control system. The cause is usually a short in the low voltage wiring or a bad relay coil in the control circuit.