Monday, June 28, 2010

Is Your Air Conditioner Making You Sick?

There's nothing quite like coming inside after a long afternoon in the sun and feeling the cool air provided by your air conditioner. As the cooler temperatures hit your body, you begin to relax and breathe easier. However, this is not always the case. In fact, in recent years, the number of reports about poor indoor air quality has become more prevalent.

According to a study by Cornell University, at least 20% of building occupants have experienced the following symptoms (also known as "sick building syndromes") due to the air quality in homes or work locations:

  • Headache, fatigue, shortness of breathe
  • Sinus congestion, cough or sneezing
  • Eye, nose, throat and skin irritation
  • Dizziness or nausea
However, for people who have asthma, allergies, respiratory diseases, a compromised immune system or wear contact lens poor indoor air quality can cause even more aggravation.

Some people often suffer with these symptoms for months not realizing that they are caused by the air inside not the elements outside. If you are not sure whether or not you are suffering from health problems as a result of poor indoor air quality, here are some guidelines from the EPA that can help you determine if you have "sick building syndrome".

  • Many people in your office/building are experiencing the same type of problems
  • The problems go away when you leave the building or are gone for several days (i.e. over the weekend)
  • The problems seem to occur suddenly
  • People with respiratory issues, asthma or chemical sensitivities have no problem when outside, but struggle with breathing and have the symptoms listed above when indoors.
  • Someone else in your building has already been diagnosed with an indoor air-related problem.
If you are a building owner or manager, then you do not want to be held responsible for any health issues of your employees or residents. To prevent your building from becoming another news story, due to poor indoor air quality concerns, here are several steps you can take.

  • Pay attention to your surroundings. Note the air vents in your building. Are they clean? Does there seem to be a moldy or musty smell?
  • Ask others around you. Occasionally ask co-workers or other building occupants if they have noticed any changes in air quality, leaks or mold/ musty smells around the vents or ceiling tiles. This can be done via e-mail, surveys, door to door-whatever works best for you to collect the information.
  • Keep records. If residents/workers in a particular spot seem to report an above average amount of complaints, you may need to test the HVAC system in that area or call in a professional to do it for you.
  • Testing devices are available from many HVAC companies, as well as online. These tests can check for air duct cleanliness as well as allergens and microbial growth.
Taking the time to make sure your AC system is working without causing sickness is important.

For further information on heating and air conditioning, please visit www.abelonsite.com.

Article independently authored by Janet Slagell. The content herein may or may not reflect the views and opinions of Abel Onsite.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Residential Solar Concepts 101

Ah, yes, the summertime! A wonderful time of year for some activities. Nothing could ruin the fun - except maybe the electric bill coming in the mail! It can be so expensive running central air and fans. Is there a way to escape from burdensome electric bills?

In fact, there is a way to escape and it is trendy too - solar! Alternative energy is very big right now and as a homeowner you can get in on the action. In fact, the federal government is giving people a tax credit of 30% of the material and installation costs of a solar system. That is much, much better than a run-of-the-mill tax deduction. The states also have incentives but they can vary widely. In short, now is probably the most economical time the United States has ever seen for installing residential solar systems

Basically, solar powering your home is done by capturing the sun's rays with panels installed on your roof or near your house. The panels convert the sunlight into electricity and then an inverter converts the power from direct current into AC power which is usable by your home appliances.

There are two ways to implement solar power into your home. Off grid and grid-tied. With off grid, your entire home is powered by solar and you do not have a connection to the electrical grid. The power company simply does not exist for you. This is a great way to power your home but it can cost tens of thousands of dollars even with government incentives to install the system all at once. This is difficult for many people to do.

Grid-tied is the more common way for people to power their home. Basically, your house is still connected to electric company but you have solar panels generating electricity as well. The power from the grid is only used if your solar array is not providing enough for your needs at any point in time. Why wouldn't your array provide all of your needs?

It might not provide all of your needs at a given moment because:

1. The sun is not shining

2. You are running many electrical devices at once - which is unusual for your home

3. Your array is only a meant to be a partial solution

If the sun is not shining, your solar panels can't collect sunlight. It might be nighttime, there might be an intense storm or heavy cloud cover. Either way there is no power for you. You can overcome this obstacle by installing batteries with your solar system. The batteries will store excess electricity generated that is not used by your home right away. For instance, if you are on vacation there will likely be surplus energy and the batterie will capture and store it. With batteries, you can still use your solar energy no matter what the sun is doing. The drawback to batteries is that they are an expensive part of the system.

Next, you might be having a giant party with many speakers, stage lights, fans and air conditioners running. With this situation your solar array might be big enough for your day-to-day operations but the excess usage exceeds it capabilities. During these moments, the grid would power your appliances alongside your solar array. Of course, if you have enough batteries, they could kick in and make up the slack.

Finally, the most common reason is that you are building your solar array slowly over time to mitigate paying out large sums of money all at once. For example you might install a system that powers only 20% of your power needs and the other 80% comes from the grid. That is a good arrangement because your power bill will be 20% cheaper moving forward! Plus, you can slowly add onto your system so that it powers 40%, 60% and eventually 100% of your power needs.

As a rough guide, a system capable of 100% powering the average U.S. home would run about $35,000. Keep in mind, however, that this would come with at least $9,000 tax credit (possibly more depending on your state) and you would never have to pay an electric bill again! Plus, you can sell excess power from your solar array back to the electric company. That right - the power company sends you a check! Of course, you have to be grid-tied for this to work.

Obviously, there are many facets to solar power that are beyond this brief article. Hopefully, you have enough information to start thinking about how solar might fit into your life. Maybe you just spend $200 and buy a small solar panel, an inverter, and a marine battery and use this system to charge your laptop. Thats an easy first step toward being energy independent and cutting loose from that ghastly electric bill!

For more information on residential solar power please visit www.AbelOnsite.com.

Article indpendently authored by Eric Parish. The content here in may or may not reflect the views and opinions of Abel Onsite.