Best Heating and Cooling Options For Your Home in Ann Arbor!

There are many different furnaces to choose from, but how to you decide? Do you have a 100-year old home? Do you have hot or cold spots? Is your home drafty?

Let’s take a look at the options for heating and cooling your Ann Arbor home: 

1. Forced Air
2. Ductless
3. Radiant Floor Heat
4. Boiler

To get a more in-depth look at these options, learn more here!

Still Have More Questions? We Got Answers!

We recommend downloading our Buyer’s Guide; “HVAC Buying Tips Everyone Wants to Know.” It will help guide you in the buying process and let you know what you should consider when installing anything from air purifiers to air conditioners to generators and beyond!

Give us a call today to schedule an in-home consultation! (734) 424-1560

Comparing Heating and Cooling Systems for Your Ann Arbor Home

Do you have high energy bills?

Do you have hot or cold spots in your home?

Are you debating on which heating and cooling system is best for your home?

Let’s take a look at the options for heating and cooling your Ann Arbor home: 

1. Forced Air
2. Ductless
3. Radiant Floor Heat
4. Boiler

To get a more in-depth look at these options, learn more here!

Schedule a Consultation for Heating and Cooling Your Ann Arbor Home Today!

If you'd like a free in-home evaluation of your existing system during a $99 Clean & Check Inspection of your home, or any other professional advice about heating and cooling please feel free to contact us at info@cmrmechanical.com or call (734) 424-1560. CMR Mechanical prides itself on honest, quality service!

Smart Phone App Control at Your Fingertips!

How would you like the convenience of having access to your air conditioner and furnace controls at your fingertips?

Do you use your smart phone for everything?

Do you currently find your smart phone a useful tool for controlling other devices in your home? It could start controlling your thermostat!

Learn more here! 

Mitsubishi Ductless Heating and Cooling Systems in Ann Arbor: 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed!

Call us today at 734-424-9555 to schedule an appointment. We’ll visit your home and evaluate your needs for a ductless heating and cooling system in Ann Arbor. We’ll help you increase your family’s comfort, health, and safety. We have the experience, knowledge, and skills necessary to service and repair all brands of HVAC systems.

Get Serious Payback when You Purchase a Zoned Comfort Solution!

Ready to learn more about a zoned comfort solutions and how they deliver a return on investment? Looking for a heating and cooling option that will put money back in your pocket? Interested in the serious saving potential of ductless heating and cooling for you Ann Arbor home?

Buying appliances isn’t most people’s idea of a super fun time. But if you were shopping for an appliance that could not only make your home comfortable year-round but also save you some serious money, that would really up the incentive!

This is precisely what you get when you’re shopping for a zoned comfort solution! Check out the details on how zoned comfort solutions pay you back:

Precise Temperature Control: controlling the temperature of your house in several zones rather than one (i.e., the whole house) means you choose where you spend your money. In other words, no more cooling the guest bedroom all day when no one’s in there, or heating the dining room all night!

Reduce Energy Loss: zoned comfort solutions minimize energy loss by eliminating ducts and vents and by operating on a smaller scale. You won’t be losing any money with heat transfer as air moves through ducts, and the units themselves operate more efficiently than larger forced-air systems.

No Over-Compensating for Hot-Spots: maybe you have the house set to 75 degrees in summer, but your sunny living room is just too hot! With a forced-air system, to make your living comfortable, you might have to fork over major cash, turning your system down much lower than you’d like. With zoned solutions, you can tackle the hot- or cold-spots in your house with their own units and spend less each month on heating and cooling. 

Efficient Installation: a short, simple installation makes for a less expensive installation, too. By investing in ductless heating and cooling, you’ll be assured that the needs for renovation after installation (like rebuilding walls) will be minimal to nonexistent.  

Combined Appliance: one of the great features of the zoned comfort solution is that it uses a heat pump which can both heat and cool your home. By including two appliances in one, you’re saving with your initial investment and keeping it in use all year long. 

It’s no wonder more and more homes and families are being turned on to the possibility and money-saving potential of zoned comfort solutions and ductless heating and cooling in Ann Arbor. If you have questions about zoned comfort solutions for your home, give us a call today. We are happy to design and customize a system that meets your needs. 

How to Design Around Your HVAC

Worried the components of your HVAC are the focal points in every room in your home? Want a solution to take back the design of your home? Need tips to minimize the presence of you HVAC components?

If you have any appreciation for the aesthetics of your home and décor, you’re probably not a big fan of the necessary utility components you have to live with and design around. We’re talking about outlets, switches, cables, wires, and, most definitely, your HVAC system.

If you’re at all familiar with ductless HVAC systems, you might think of them as relatively large, wall-mounted units that definitely draw your attention. Something like that could be difficult to design around. The reality is, ductless HVAC systems have several qualities that can make them very easy to fit seamlessly into your existing décor. 

To help you confidently design and decorate around your ductless HVAC system, let us fill you in on a few tips and pointers:

• Simple installation means no extensive remodeling will be required to fit your whole home with new heating and cooling technology. 
• The no-vent design of ductless systems translates to fewer components in your rooms to design around. 
• Units are wall-mounted and don’t need to take up a window.
• You can place units above the eye-line and may be able to place them in a nook or corner to obscure its visibility.   
• Ductless units are low-profile and typically feature a modern design that blends into décor like any other high-end appliance. 
• Delivering conditioned air at decibels less than a whisper, the unit will not draw attention to itself like forced air units. 
• Different looks to suit your décor are available with certain configurations such as covers. 
• Contractors may be able to install your units in wall or ceiling cavities and nooks.
• Help camouflage a unit in a room by placing it above a window.
• Hide the unit in plain sight by hanging art of photos near it. 

Your HVAC unit definitely doesn’t need to cramp your style! With our tips and tricks, you can see a little creative placement can go a long way and your guests will never know how you keep your home so comfortable!

If you have more questions about ductless heating and cooling in Ann Arbor, don’t hesitate to give us a call. With so many solutions available, we can customize a system to suit your needs perfectly!

What You Need To Know About Insulation

Is too much cold air finding its way into your house in the winter? Are you wondering if your home needs better insulation? Want to know if there is anything you can do to lower your energy costs?

Quality insulation is a key factor to having a living space that’s easily maintained at a comfortable temperature. Lacking insulation can lead to soaring utility bills, uneven temperatures throughout the house, overworked A/C units and furnaces, and poor temperature control generally. As important as insulation is, you’ll often find houses are inadequately insulated, especially if they were built in the 1980s or earlier. 

What do you need to know about insulation to make sure your home is protected and efficient? 

As experts in heating Ann Arbor homes, we’ve put together a list of tips and facts about insulation to help make you more comfortable at home:

1. Insulation can be made from fiber glass, rock wool, rigid foam boards, or cellulose. 
2. Depending on where it’s applied, insulation can be installed in batts, rolls, and sheets, as a spray, or as foam boards. 
3. Insulation quality is measured in R-values, which take into account material and thickness of the insulation product. 
4. Recommendations for R-values are made by the U.S. Department of Energy and differ across the country. 
5. Not only does insulation prevent air leaking in and out of your house, it also helps keep your home quieter. 
6. You can easily increase the insulation of your house by adding rolls to the floor of your unfinished attic.
7. Adding insulation to finished walls can be expensive, but should be considered if your home is often uncomfortable, unevenly heated or cooled, or sees very high utility bills. 
8. Crawl-spaces can sometimes be insulated, but don’t need to be if the floor above is already insulated. 
9. If your home is drafty, check for air leaks around windows, doors, light fixtures, outlets and switches, utility penetrations, ducts, and etc. 
10. You can also apply insulation to your hot water pipes to avoid heat loss and potentially increase water temperature 2-4 degrees F at the tap. 

Insulation may live mostly in the dark inside the walls of your home, but it doesn’t have to be mysterious! With this helpful guide, you may now feel more confident about the insulation in your home, or know how to tackle a problem if you have one. 

If you want to know more about insulation or heating your Ann Arbor home, give us a call. We are ready to help with any heating and cooling projects you have in your home. 

How Cold Weather Threatens Your Water Heater

Wondering how much colder weather takes a toll on your water heater? Curious about how much harder your water heater works in frigid temperatures? Not sure your water heater will last another winter?

We rely on our water heaters nearly every day we’re in our homes. From dishes, to laundry, to showers, we expect reliable hot water regardless of the temperatures outdoors. As the red in thermometer disappears, you might not think your demand on the water heater increases much, but truthfully, colder weather puts a significant strain on your water heater.

Check out the top cold weather threats to your water heater:

1. Colder Water Incoming

No matter the temperature outside, your water heater will continue to heat water to its set point. The difference is, during the winter, incoming water is colder and will require the heater to work longer to bring to temperature. This is an added strain on the heater that goes on all winter long.

2. Using Water for Warmth

Have you ever taken a really long, really hot shower in the winter to warm up? Or held your hands under the hot, running water even after all the soap was rinsed away just to thaw them out? These are things we all do once in a while as the days grow chillier, and they put an extra strain on the water heater which can really add up. 

3. Too Cold To Go Out

We tend to stay in more in the winter months, which can cause a strain in more than one area, but also on your water heater. Staying in means you’ll probably be washing more dishes under hot water, washing hands more often, maybe taking more showers, baths, and other activities all adding demand on your water heater. 

4. More Layers, More Laundry

You wear more clothing in the winter than you do in summer. That means you wash more, too. If you’re washing clothes in hot or warm water, you’re putting more pressure on the water heater. 

All the added usage multiplies across the weeks and months of cold weather and can take its toll on your water heater. Tank water heaters will see a greater increase in sediment with this added usage which can create problems and shorten its lifespan. If your water heater is older, the hard work of the winter might be enough to finish it off. 

If you’re worried about your water heater this winter, call the experts in heating Ann Arbor homes to assess your appliance and provide an estimate for its remaining life. We can also help make sure your water heater and furnace are running efficiently or assist you in any other heating needs in your home. Give us a call today!