Choosing a home heating and cooling system is one of the most important decisions a homeowner can make.

Choosing a good system will lead to complete indoor comfort year round, as well as contribute to family health and energy efficiency. Choosing the wrong system can lead to an uncomfortable home environment, which can have an adverse effect on the family's happiness.

However, because the heating and cooling system is unseen, this important decision is often overlooked. This document will help you understand the major types of heating and cooling systems in common use today, it will also help identify a quality Total Comfort System contractor, and ensure that you and your family are provided the comfort you deserve.

 

Good heating and cooling, with the right type of system, is more important than the average homebuyer realizes. No matter how perfect the home, convenient the layout, or magnificent the view, all will be useless if you are not completely comfortable.

Good heating and cooling not only brings you proper and complete indoor comfort year round, but it also contributes to family health and reasonable housekeeping maintenance costs. Since a good heating and cooling system is quite thoroughly hidden, it is too frequently forgotten or not considered as carefully as it deserves.

The question is whether a heating and cooling system should do more than heat and cool? The answer is that it certainly should! Fire from the fireplace kept past generations from freezing, but it certainly didn't create total comfort, which you should expect from a modern system. The concept of total comfort has many facets, which contribute to your family's long-term enjoyment of its home.

This document has been developed to help you understand the major types of heating and cooling systems in common use today, which will ensure that your house is equipped with the type of system that will provide you and your family with the comfort you desire. As a result you should be better prepared to identify a quality "Total Comfort System," as well as choose a reliable "Total Comfort System" contractor.

1. Temperature Control (Zoning) - A number of different zoning options are available. In most cases, it is recommended that the blower run constantly.

• Multiple Systems - More than one heating/cooling system
• Zone-damper Systems - Consists of multiple ducts and thermostats located throughout the house
• Programmable Thermostats

2. Humidification and Dehumidification - A Total Comfort System that provides proper humidification and dehumidification offers the following benefits:

• Healthier Environment - Reduces occurrences of sore throats, dry skin, nose bleeds and other health-related problems
• Helps Efficiency - System can be set lower because body feels warmer
• Lessons Static Electricity
• Helps Preserve Furniture and Wood (i.e., doors, floors, millwork)
• Proper Humidification Control - Adjusts to outside temperature

3. Clean Air (Indoor Air Quality) - The Total Comfort System should include components that ensure clean, fresh air. Some of these options are:

• Heat Recovery Ventilation (HRV) and Energy Recovery Ventilation (ERV)
• Electronic Air Cleaners
• Media Air Cleaners
• Electro-Static Air Cleaners
• Ultra-Violet Treatment
• Periodic Duct Cleaning

4. Efficiency - The Total Comfort System should provide maximum energy efficiency. Some of the options for providing an energy-efficient system are:

• Energy Efficient Equipment
• Variable-speed System
• Two-speed System
• Programmable Thermostat
• Properly Designed and Installed Sheet Metal Ductwork System
• Proper Duct Sealing
• Multi-Stage System
  

5. Noise Control - If a Total Comfort System is properly designed and installed using good quality components, its operation will be extremely quiet. To ensure optimum noise control, the system may include:

• Vibration Isolation
• Insulated Compartments
• Acoustic Lining
• Proper Location of Equipment
• Variable Speed Equipment

6. User-friendly - A user-friendly "Total Comfort System" will include:

• Easy-to-operate Thermostats and Controls
• Clear Maintenance Instructions
• Long-term Maintenance agreement

In the Total Comfort System, the blower should run constantly -- all the time -- it should never shut off. Supply outlets are sized and located so that the discharging air stream should not strike a person directly.

In many ducted forced warm air systems, blowers are adjusted to run intermittently, only when the heating and cooling element is on. This is ineffective in any ducted air handling system. It should never happen in the Total Comfort System.

When a blower runs intermittently -- on and off -- as frequently as the heating element starts and stops, you will first get a blast of hot air and then everything will shut off. Floors will get cold/hot and room temperatures will become unbalanced. Basement or lower level rooms cool rapidly and upstairs rooms are apt to overheat. No ducted air handling system can produce total indoor comfort unless the blower runs all the time.

In most well-engineered, big commercial ducted central air handling systems, you will usually find that the blowers run constantly. There are sound reasons for this.

Cleansed, conditioned air moves through the duct system when -- and only when -- the blower is operating. As this air enters the rooms through the perimeter diffusers, it draws room air into the supply air stream, setting all the air in the room into gentle, even motion. You would not sense this movement of the room air in terms of its motion; rather you will sense that the air surrounding you is constantly renewed and that the atmosphere is pleasing and fresh. If the air is not moving, you may soon feel that the air seems to "hang heavily" around you and that the atmosphere is oppressive.

Note: While in most instances it is recommended that the blower runs constantly, in some geographical areas, where humidity is a problem, running the blower constantly could lead to more humidity and the problems that could result from it. Consult your local Total Comfort System contractor to determine what is best for your local environment.

Having a properly designed and installed Total Comfort System will ensure that your family enjoys year-round indoor comfort for years. The following steps are recommended for the homeowner who wants to be certain that the ducted central system he or she purchases will be the Total Comfort System -- with all of its features and benefits -- this document has described.

1. Select your installing contractor carefully - The installing contractor is actually the manufacturer of your Total Comfort System. It is the skill, experience and care with which this contractor selects quality components and assembles them into an engineered system to fit your home that makes the difference between good and poor comfort results. Check your contractor's reputation. Ask for the names of customers whom he or she has served and contact them about the contractor's performance - both the effectiveness of the system and the quality of service that was provided before, during and after the installation. (Refer to the Characteristics of a Quality "Total Comfort System Contractor" on the next page of this document when looking for a contractor.)

2. Recognize that quality may require significant investment - If you want the Total Comfort System benefits and advantages described in this document, don't expect to buy them at discount prices. The adage that "you get what you pay for" holds true in this instance.

3. Specify what you want in terms of Comfort Performance when you buy - You are not a heating or air conditioning engineer. You generally will have no trained way of personally determining whether your system has been designed and is being installed correctly. However, there is a way that you can definitely protect yourself and get the Total Comfort System you want. Specify the Comfort Performance you want your system to deliver. Your contractor should be willing and able to work with you to make sure that all your comfort needs are met.

While choosing the right Total Comfort System and the necessary components is essential in ensuring a comfortable home environment, it is equally important to choose a qualified contractor to install the system. The following checklist has been provided to assist you in finding the ideal Total Comfort System contractor.

Maintains a Superior Trained Workforce - This contractor provides continuing education and training for the company's "Total Comfort System" installers and service technicians. These workers have received multi-year apprenticeship training, which includes extensive classroom and supervised on-the-job training. The contractor's insured workforce complies with local and national codes, and also receives continuing education, including regular safety and manufacturer training.

National Support System (Local and National Trade Association) - In addition to being included in a network of thousands of HVAC contractors, this contractor has access to hundreds of local and national educational resources, including programs, publications and videos. Additionally, this contractor is involved in the development of nationally recognized technical standards, and has priority access to expert technical assistance. Access to the latest industry trends enables this contractor to utilize the latest in technology and equipment in servicing its customers.

In-house Design and Fabrication - By having in-house design and fabrication capabilities, this contractor has the ability and resources to customize any job. This ensures a properly balanced, well-performing system.

Twenty-four Hour Service - A quality "Total Comfort System" contractor will have technical assistance available around-the-clock, every day of the year, including holidays, to solve heating and air conditioning emergencies. Often times, the technician will be able to help the customer determine if the problem actually warrants a potentially expensive service call.

Guarantees Comfort - A quality contractor will take the time and effort required to evaluate individual comfort needs with the homeowner. Subsequently, the system will be designed and installed to meet those specific needs.

Environmentally Concerned - A quality contractor only uses refrigerants meeting EPA requirements, and employs EPA certified technicians.

Long-term Maintenance Program - A quality contractor will offer a regular maintenance program for the life of the system. Among the services the contractor will offer are annual maintenance and service agreements, extended warranties, technical tips, and 24-hour support for customer questions and concerns.

Who is SMACNA?

Located in headquarters outside Washington, D.C., the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association (SMACNA) is an international association of union contractors located primarily in the United States and Canada. SMACNA's mission is to provide products, services, and representation to enhance members' businesses, markets, and profitability.

Association Goal
SMACNA exists to address issues common to member firms that impact the industry nationally and internationally. It serves members' needs to improve their business environment through industry education, labor relations, standards, industry representation and business studies.

Member Profile
SMACNA members perform work in industrial, commercial, institutional and residential markets. They specialize in heating, ventilating and air conditioning; architectural sheet metal; industrial sheet metal; kitchen equipment; specialty stainless steel work; manufacturing; siding and decking; testing and balancing; service; and energy management and maintenance.

Technical Manuals and Standards
The voluntary technical standards and manuals developed by SMACNA Contractors have found worldwide acceptance by the construction community, as well as foreign government agencies. ANSI, the American National Standards Institute, has accredited SMACNA as a standards-setting organization. SMACNA does not seek to enforce its standards or provide accreditation for compliance.

SMACNA standards and manuals address all facets of the sheet metal industry, from duct construction and installation to air pollution control, from energy recovery to roofing. SMACNA's Technical Resources Department fields several thousand technical questions annually from architects, engineers, manufacturers and government personnel.