Your questions answered: HVAC FAQs

No matter what your HVAC questions are, the techs at B & B Heating & Cooling in Florissant have answers. Whether you have questions about selecting new HVAC equipment to best practices on care and maintenance, we can help. Our online FAQs answers offer a quick response for your convenience, but if you want to know more on any topic, don’t hesitate to give us a call at 314-325-7552.
Just like you need to take your car in to the shop for routine tune-ups, such as oil changes or looking at potential problems, your home comfort system should be subject to the same kind of attention. Routine maintenance by a skilled technician provides a variety of benefits to your HVAC equipment, which can help your systems perform efficiently and prevent costly breakdowns.
The cost can range depending on the equipment size and different features, so we recommend contacting B & B Heating & Cooling at 314-325-7552 to receive a quote.
With two-stage heating, furnaces may work on two different levels: high and low. Since you can heat your home on the low setting a lot of the time, a two-stage furnace can operate longer and more efficiently. Two-stage heating also works more quietly than traditional furnaces and can provide more even heat distribution and fewer temperature swings.
B & B Heating & Cooling offers many different brands and models that include advanced technology to cool and warm your home more efficiently. Technology in the newer HVAC systems provides more precision when it comes to matching your home comfort needs. If you want more information, please reach out to our experts at 314-325-7552.

Depending on how old your previous furnace was, you could experience a host of differences. Furnaces today are created to give more even and efficient heating than ever before. Modern furnaces also better regulate temperature and air flow, moving more air over the heat exchanger than older furnaces.

Additionally, new furnaces are designed to integrate with other high-efficiency HVAC products, such as air conditioners. The air conditioner blowers provide your heating system an extra lift so it can deliver cool air around your home efficiently. Special features like variable speed motors will also help lessen noise associated with operating your equipment and easily meet your family's airflow needs.

The Department of Energy recently increased the minimum efficiency levels for air conditioners, heat pumps and packaged units created after Jan. 1, 2015, since heating and cooling contributes significantly to a homes total energy usage. The requirements vary by region, so call B & B Heating & Cooling for the efficiency standards for Florissant.

There are lots of ways to decrease your energy costs and one of the best ways is to make sure you have an energy-efficient HVAC system. B & B Heating & Cooling carries many highly efficient products that will help lower the amount of energy you are using and save you money. In addition to looking for products that have the Energy Star® certification, high SEER ratings for air conditioners or AFUE ratings for furnaces, here are some other steps to consider:

  • Remember to arrange ongoing maintenance and have an experienced contractor take a look at your system to confirm its running efficiently.
  • If you have clear areas of your home that you need to heat or cool, you might consider a zoning system. This allows you to target that area and reduces wasted energy on heating or cooling areas that aren't used.
  • Programmable or smart thermostats make it easier to maintain your home comfort while not using energy to heat or cool your space if you aren't home. It is an easy way to reduce energy costs and once you set it, you can walk away and be confident its going to take care of your indoor comfort.
B & B Heating & Cooling has been supporting the Florissant community for many years and has been delivering trustworthy and dependable service. Our service and the products we carry are of the highest quality and you can be confident in the results. Our experienced team is here to help you reach your ideal home comfort.

There are four things to assess when enhancing your indoor air quality:

  • The indoor air quality in your house starts to suffer when the air begins filling up with air pollutants. The biggest concern is eliminating these pollutants. Some to-dos to put on your weekly checklist is vacuuming, washing your linens and making sure any cleaning products are stored properly.
  • Especially in newer homes, the insulation is installed so well that it might be challenging for these pollutants to leave the home. While it helps to keep your home warm or cool, depending on the season, its valuable to get some fresh air inside.
  • Make sure that you have good ventilation and arrange routine maintenance on your system. And while that's helpful, you can also take your IAQ even further by using air filters, germicidal lights and purification systems to get rid of particles while eliminating chemical vapors.
  • Smart or programmable thermostats can assist in controlling humidity levels as well as the temperature. This can help prevent germs and other particles from collecting while sustaining your home comfort.
Every home is different,, which is why we recommend that you contact our experts at B & B Heating & Cooling to find out which solution will be best for your space. Our team will conduct an assessment of your current system and determine what your ideal home comfort looks like. That will help us select which products will be most effective.
You may be surprised to learn that air conditioners don't technically make your home cooler; they actually remove the hot air and move it outside. This hot air moves across a refrigerant coil on the indoor unit and then is sent to the outdoor unit where it is released. Your air conditioner moves as much hot air outside as is necessary to reach the temperature you have set on your thermostat.
Different regions have different minimum energy efficiency standards. Additionally, air conditioners, heat pumps and packaged units made after Jan. 1, 2015, have higher minimum efficiency levels than products manufactured prior to that date. The team at B & B Heating & Cooling can help you determine the minimum requirements for Florissant, let you know if your current systems meets those requirements or help you find a replacement air conditioner that does.
Your systems service panel should have a white label on it, with your systems model and serial numbers at the top. M/N stands for model number and S/N is the serial number.
Since equipment size needs differ for each home, the best way to find out the proper size equipment for your home is to have a technician from B & B Heating & Cooling come out to perform load calculation tests. The tests take factors such as square footage, insulation value and amount, and more into account to determine your homes unique HVAC equipment needs.
Yes debris can limit your systems ability to function effectively. Its not uncommon for heat pumps to have frost or ice on them in the winter, but many include defrost controls so they can work efficiently regardless of the weather conditions.
When a cooling systems has two-stage cooling, it means that there are two levels of operation. This allows the system to work more efficiently since there is one level for milder weather and another for harsher weather that demands the system work harder. Two-stage cooling also enables slight temperature changes so you don't experience extreme differences in temperature. Aside from better efficiency, other benefits of two-stage cooling include quieter operation and improved humidity control.
When your cooling unit freezes up, there are a couple of reasons why it could be doing so. The most common reasons include: dirty filters, low refrigerant, a dirty evaporative coil and a faulty blower motor or relay. A dirty filter is something you can fix as a homeowner, but the others need to be fixed by a professional like those at B & B Heating & Cooling. Contact them at 314-325-7552 with any other questions.
B & B Heating & Cooling has a number of great thermostat options for your HVAC systems. The best thermostat for you will depend on a variety of variables, such as whether you want one that's programmable or not. No matter what kind of thermostat you'd like or if you're looking for something that can fit with a home automation system call B & B Heating & Cooling to hear about which thermostats you can choose from. Our team will help you find one thats best for your system, your family's needs and your budget.
A heat pump takes care of both your homes heating and cooling needs, offering you one HVAC system that can be used in all four seasons. In the warmer months, heat pumps act like an air conditioner, capturing the hot air from inside your home and directing it outside; in the cooler months, this process is reversed. Heat pumps can be very energy efficient and may produce two to three times more heat than the energy it uses.
At B & B Heating & Cooling, we do recommend replacing both your indoor and outdoor units at the same time because:
  • Outdoor systems are now built to work with their matching indoor system for the most efficiency. When you replace just one of your systems, you may not see the same energy efficiency levels as if you had replaced them together.
  • Thanks to technological advancements, newer systems mean improved efficiency. This is true for HVAC products as well. While the advancements focus on higher heating and cooling efficiency, they also include benefits such as better air handling, filtering and noise reduction.
  • If your heating and cooling systems are over 10 years old, they need to be replaced. Older models have outdated technology that is likely contributing to higher energy bills due to poor efficiency. So by replacing your indoor system at the same time as your outdoor equipment, both your systems will provide better energy efficiency that helps you decrease your energy bills and keep your home more comfortable.
Your home energy system may have a communication module that sends performance stats to an online site or portal. You can visit this to check your system's status, the amount of energy being produced and the positive influence you are having on the environment. You can also take a look at your owner's manual for tips on monitoring performance.
Rain will clean the modules by itself in most areas; however, if you live in a dusty area, you could see improved performance after periodically spraying the modules with water. Please note that high-pressure hoses and detergents should never be used to clean solar modules, as they can ruin the product.
B & B Heating & Cooling can help recommend the right thermostat for you based on your home and current heating and cooling equipment. We have a selection of programmable and nonprogrammable thermostats, which can help enhance the efficiency of your homes furnace and/or air conditioner. Browse our thermostats or give us a call at 314-325-7552 for more information.

A significant portion of your monthly energy bills can be attributed to your heating and cooling system. It makes sense, because our home comfort is a vital aspect of our day-to-day lives. Luckily, there are high-efficiency solutions from B & B Heating & Cooling that can keep you comfortable while also decreasing energy costs. When it's time for you to shop for a new HVAC system, there are a couple things to consider. You'll want to find air conditioners with high SEER ratings and furnaces with high AFUE ratings. These ratings measure efficiency, so the bigger the number the better off you'll be when it comes to saving on energy costs. You can also consider these tips:

  • Keep your system operating to its best ability by booking routine maintenance. It helps sustain efficiency and make sure everything is working properly.
  • Consider a zoning system if you only have specific rooms that need to be heated or cooled. There is no need to use energy adjusting the temperature in a room that is never, or rarely used.
  • The U.S. Department of Energy states that programmable thermostats can save up to 35 percent on heating costs and 25 percent on cooling costs. There are a lot of programmable and smart thermostat products that are easy to use and vary in the number of features-so you can find an option that you are comfortable with.
A zoning system allows you to section your house and heat or cool each space differently. While these systems function well for homes that have parts that are rarely occupied, they can also be great in situations where you and your family cant agree on the temperature in various areas of your house. There are a collection of additional bonuses of zoning systems, such as efficiency and comfort. View our selection of zoning systems or give B & B Heating & Cooling a call to see how a zoning system could fit in your home.