Why Replace a Furnace and Air Conditioner Together?

I recently had to buy a new car, not because I wanted to but because my last one was stolen (that’s a story for another day). I decided to get the same model as one I had owned 10 years ago.

The car was essentially the same in look and feel but was totally different in most other aspects. It was the same size, had roughly the same power and handled essentially the same. That’s where the similarities ended. My new car has superior gas mileage, improved comfort, more advanced technology and improved convenience and safety — all features that enhance my enjoyment of the vehicle.

Sure, the more basic car of 10 years ago would have gotten me from A to B, but not in quite the same way.

So, how is this story relevant to air-conditioning? The relevance is actually in how buying a car and buying air conditioning or other HVAC equipment is different.

In a car, all the pieces of the system are contained in a single package. While they are discreet pieces of equipment, they are integrated into a system where everything works together. You can replace a single component and get essentially the same performance as you had previously.

However, with air conditioning or your furnace, to take full advantage of recent technological improvements, they should be upgraded together. This is especially true if they are more than 10 years old as there has been a lot of technological change in this time.

We now have air conditioners that are up to three times as efficient as the models they’ve replaced. New high efficiency air conditioners come with multi stage and even fully variable speed compressors to match the output of the air conditioner with the load required by the home, so no energy gets wasted. To reach these efficiencies, however, they must be matched with a compatible furnace that also has a variable speed blower motor. Coupled with the right thermostat you can get better temperature distribution throughout your home and enjoy the added benefit of managing it through your smart phone, wherever you happen to be.

While energy efficiency is a big feature of today’s furnaces and air conditioners, moisture management is equally important. When a high efficiency air conditioner is matched with a variable speed furnace, you can also improve humidity control, particularly in the spring and fall, which can be quite damp. They can also work together with an energy recovery ventilator to bring fresh air into your home for optimal moisture control year round. There have also been significant improvements in sound reduction, inside and outside the home.

Contractors anxious to make a quick sale and then move on will often focus on the one piece that needs changing now. They might propose replacing the furnace or air conditioner as well but only at the entry product level. As you might suspect, the best efficiencies and features are only available on the higher end products. There is no question they can cost more, which is why we try to make them more accessible for our customers with financing plans that can put leading edge technology into your home for as little as $165/month.

The next time you are replacing a key piece of HVAC equipment, consider how it will work most efficiently with other equipment in your home.

 

Water heaters – rent or purchase?

As most of you are aware, there has been great upheaval in the water heater business. You have been besieged by unscrupulous door to door salespeople pretending to be utilities wanting to give you a “free” upgrade to your water heater.

It got so bad at one point that the Ontario government enacted special legislation to deal with the matter. This situation arose largely as a result of the water heater industry being controlled by a duopoly firstly of gas utilities and then international energy infrastructure companies. It became so lucrative that a host of opportunists jumped into the market.

Many of our customers were taken in and now have rental water heaters with God knows who. These portfolios of water heaters get bought and sold every day. Many of our customers are fed up and have asked us to intervene and become involved in the business. To that end, we are pleased to announce that effective April 1, 2016, you will be able to get your water heater from AtlasCare.

We have partnered with Rheem, the number one supplier of water heaters in Ontario to bring you a full range of water heating options.

We believe it is always better to own your own assets, so to make ownership easier for our customers we have developed an innovative “rent to own” program with rates that are competitive with the big guys. With AtlasCare, though, you will own your water heater after 10 years, while enjoying rate increase protection along the way. This way you can have the best of both worlds: low monthly cost with eventual ownership. If you rent your water heater you can expect to pay almost twice as much for the same one over its anticipated lifetime, than if you purchased it under the AtlasCare “rent to own” program. In addition to the savings, you can get the same great service from AtlasCare for your water heater that you currently enjoy for your furnace and air conditioner.

Water heaters are one of the least efficient appliances in the home today. We know that in the very near future legislation is coming to mandate higher minimum efficiencies and make those old water heaters obsolete. We offer excellent higher efficiency options such as tankless and condensing models with efficiencies in the same range as your furnace.

The best time to replace your water heater is now. AtlasCare will remove your old water heater, install a new one, return the old tank to the rental company and have them stop the charges on your gas bill. Why wait? Have AtlasCare replace your water heater today and get on the path to ownership and great service.