Blog Tag: heating and cooling systems

A look at two more of the most popular pool-heating options.

It’s time for part two of our side-by-side comparison of all your different Florida pool heating options. If you missed part one where we covered the pros and cons of electrical resistance heaters and natural gas/propane heaters, check it out here. This time, we’re focusing on the air source heat pump and the PH90 GeoThermal pool heater. 

The air source heat pump has an evaporator coil that is susceptible to damage from the salt air. If you have a pool on the coastline, you may not want this type of pump. However, it is a pretty efficient option.

Here’s how it works: It takes in air through the coils, sucks the heat out of the air, ejects the heat through the coil, and the condensing coil has a titanium tube heat exchanger that produces about 150,000 BTUs per hour. For every dollar you spend on heating, you’re getting six dollars worth of heat. To heat your average pool, it only costs around $1,300 to maintain 84 degrees. That’s much lower than the $6,000 average for pools heated with natural gas or propane systems.

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Is geothermal only effective to heat and cool a home or office or commercial building in Florida? Does geothermal work in cold parts of the country? We operate in Englewood and the surrounding areas of Florida, but we do know that geothermal works anywhere that a unit can be installed. It is energy efficient and effective at heating and cooling, no matter where you live.

The geothermal professionals at Symbiont Service can work with you to help you choose the most effective and efficient unit to heat and cool your home or office. As a bit of background, geothermal heating is a tool that can generate heat for a home or office and can also generate the power needed to cool the same home or office.

Does GeoThermal Work In Cold Parts Of The Country

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When it comes to major appliances, preventative maintenance is always best. Waiting for something to break down or crossing your fingers and hoping it doesn’t will usually mean an emergency service visit, usually after hours and on a holiday! Planned maintenance prevents unexpected surprises.

Budgeting for a maintenance visit for your heating or air conditioning unit may not be at the top of your priority list, but the money you put into preventative maintenance pays off in the long run. Additionally, if you have one of our experienced geothermal service technicians pay a maintenance visit and there is a potential issue, you may have time to plan for it and have it addressed before you’re freezing or roasting if it breaks down when you’re not prepared.

A planned maintenance visit is one of the best ways you can ensure the heating and/or cooling system will be ready when you need it the most. Schedule a regular service visit with one of our qualified professionals to keep the HVAC system running smoothly and efficiently. Plan for a service visit in the spring and one before cooler weather settles in.

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“It is hot enough for ya’?” Chances are you’ve heard that phrase a few times during this hot Florida summer. Floridians are accustomed to heat and humidity. We are always looking for ways to save money on air conditioning costs during our long, hot summers. We have come up with 3 ways Florida homeowners can slash cooling costs — then you can spend your savings on fun summer events!

The air conditioning professionals from Symbiont Air Conditioning in Englewood, Florida work with homeowners and business owners to find ways to make cooling homes and commercial buildings more affordable.

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In order to know what size of heating system you need for your pool, you will need to know how many gallons it holds. For the equations you’ll need to use to estimate this amount, please refer to the video above starting at 0:15.

After you know how many gallons your pool holds, you can then find the BTUs that your pool will need each day. You can see the equation for this at 0:37. This calculation requires using a recovery factor, which is the number of degrees that the heating system must be able to raise the pool each day to maintain a temperature when heat is lost overnight.

As I mentioned before, a pool that is not heated would match the outside average air temperature. So, if you wanted to keep a pool heated to 86 degrees in January when the average temperature is only 60 degrees, you will have to raise it 26 degrees just to counter the air temperature.

To calculate the recovery factor after this temperature difference is considered, there are many factors to evaluate: Average wind speed, shade from trees and buildings, if a blanket is used, where return locations in the pool are located, and depth, which is a large factor.

The pools that you see in the video at 3:00, although they look much different in terms of surface size, only have a 200,000-gallon difference. The depth of the pools greatly impacts the number of heaters required for the competition pool versus the diving pool. This is because there are less BTUs needed to heat a deeper pool with a smaller surface area compared to a shallower pool with the same volume. In this example, the competition pool requires eight heaters while the diving pool requires only three.

If you have any questions about this, please feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

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Are Your Ducts Sealed? Symbiont Service Corp professionals explain its importance 

Have you ever wondered, “are your ducts sealed?” Not many people do, but whether you live in the sunny climate of Florida or the chilly climate of New York you need to think about whether the ducts in your home are sealed. Why? Whether it’s a hot day or a cold day, if the ducts in your home aren’t properly sealed you are paying to heat or cool your home and that warm or cooled air is slipping out through unsealed ducts.

The next time you look at your heating or cooling bill and gasp in horror — especially if you’re never warm or cold enough — it’s time to call on the services of Symbiont and its technicians to inspect your home’s ductwork.

Are Your Ducts Sealed?

A leaking portion of ductwork can be miniscule — one so small that without a trained eye you wouldn’t even notice it. Even the smallest leak in the ductwork can mean you’re losing up to 25% of the air you have heated or cooled and that can certainly add up — as you’re well aware when you open your heating or cooling bill! The best way to determine whether your home is to have a home energy test or to hire a professional contractor to perform a ductwork inspection. A professional geothermal specialist from Symbiont Service Corp can locate and fix any leaks or cracks in the ductwork. Keep in mind that many of these leaking elements are nestled behind walls or in the ceiling.

A professional contractor will locate and repair the leaking elements and you will be on your way to a cooled or heated home and a lower energy bill because you’ve had the leaking ductwork repaired.

Potential health hazard

Losing money on heated or cooled air is one of the concerns with leaking ductwork. Another concern is that gas appliances including the furnace and dryer can release harmful gases into the home. If the ductwork is not properly seaked, harmful fumes could be pulled into the ducts (that’s called a back-draft) and could push those fumes throughout the home. Breathing in those fumes are harmful and could lead to health issues.

If you have never had your ductwork inspected and aren’t certain whether you have any leaking ducts, give Symbiont Service Corp a call and we can schedule an onsite visit to help you determine the potential for any risks with leaking ductwork.

Our goal is to educate customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For information, click here and download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Symbiont Service Corp. serves Englewood, Florida and the surrounding areas. To get started, check out our website.

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What Is A Home Energy Test?

Chances are you have heard of home energy testing but may wonder, “what is a home energy test” and whether it makes sense for you to schedule one for your home. Florida homeowners certainly want their homes to be as efficient as possible especially in the hot, humid climate in which we live. The Florida weather means that your air conditioner will work harder than those in other parts of the country and because of that you will want to make certain your home is as energy efficeint as possible. You will also want to make certain your air conditioner is operating at peak efficiency before summer returns.

Scheduling a professional energy audit and evaluation is a way to help determine if your house is as efficient as possible. This means, for example, that your home doesn’t have any “leaks” from which the air you’re cooling is escaping or that outside air is making its way into your home.

Look for an energy evaluation professional who is trained in energy audits. The professionals at Symbiont services have many years experience performing energy audits and assessments for Florida homeowners.  After the energy evaluator visits your home and performs the energy evaluation test, he or she will offer you a document that will highlight any areas of concern.

An energy evaluation test includes:

1. A thermographic scanning. This scan shows differences in temperatures within the home and also shows where cooled air is seeping out of the home. The thermographic scanning also highlights where there isn’t enough insulation in the home or where insulation may be improperly installed. The test will highlight “spot leaks” and areas of infiltration. You should receive a document that highlights these areas with colored areas.
2. A blower door test will likely be performed. With this test, a fan will be attached to an exterior door frame of your house. The fan will draw the air out of the house and lowers the air pressure inside. Because air will try to enter the house to equalize the internal pressure, the blower door test allows the auditor to track areas where air is coming into the home. This test will detect unsealed openings (like around window or door frames) or cracks in the walls or foundation.

Contact Symbiont Service to answer any questions you have about energy audits and to schedule yours. At Symbiont Services we want to educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For information, click here to download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

Symbiont Service Corp. serves Englewood, Florida and the surrounding areas. To get started, check out our website.

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As an alternative to more conventional sources of heating and cooling, geothermal energy provides an extremely efficient and cost-saving way to heat your pool or spa or to heat and cool your home.

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Programmable thermostats keep getting better and better, which is good news for residents of Florida’s Suncoast. Some “smart” models even give you the capability to make changes to your settings when you’re not even home. Remote access allows you to program your thermostat over the Internet, via a wireless connection.

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While the water temperature in your pool varies with the seasons, the temperature of water in lakes and aquifer wells in coastal Florida remains very consistent. Geothermal pool heaters utilize a water-source heat pump to take advantage of that free, steady underwater temperature and heat your pool all year long.

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