energy efficient home improved Home Energy Scores smart home technology with smart thermostat

Home Energy Scores

Nobody likes to get audited, except when the audit is for a Home Energy Score™. That’s because a Home Energy Score provides information about your energy efficiency. Improving your Home Energy Score not only saves you money with lower utility bills, but it also makes your house more comfortable. A further benefit is that if… Read more »

plumbing problem in home under sink with water leaking and channel lock wrench

14 Signs Of Bigger Plumbing Problems In Your Home

When Things Start To Drip The fact of the matter is that if you own a home, plumbing problems are going to arise from time to time. It’s a nuisance, and we understand that sometimes it’s a nuisance you’d like to avoid until you absolutely have to do something about it. But that leaky faucet… Read more »

heat pump outside of residential home in california

What Is a Heat Pump?

A Heat Pump Both Heats and Cools  A heat pump is one of the most energy efficient as well as environmentally friendly ways to both heat and cool your home. So why is it called a heat pump if it also cools?  It’s because heat pumps don’t actually generate heat. Rather, a heat pump transfers… Read more »

Why Maintenance Today Leads To Less Furnace Repair Tomorrow

Why Maintenance Today Leads to Less Furnace Repair Tomorrow

Furnace Maintenance 101 The truism “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” particularly applies to regular furnace maintenance. Regular furnace maintenance helps you avoid costly repairs, not to mention irritating interruptions to your home’s comfort. Equally important, regular furnace maintenance ensures your heating system is operating with the highest energy efficiency, which… Read more »

old electrical panel on wall in home

Do I Need To Replace My Electrical Panel?

When To Replace Your Electrical Panel How do you know if it is time to replace an electrical panel that is old or unsafe? To answer the question of when to replace an electrical panel, let’s take a look at: What the electrical panel does What is the typical lifespan of an electrical panel Key… Read more »

homes backyard outdoor lighting bollard turned on

A Comprehensive Guide to Outdoor Lighting

Your Floor Plan for Outdoor Lighting Outdoor lighting literally illuminates your backyard landscape. But effective outdoor lighting—meaning, lighting that is both decorative and practical—isn’t as simple as putting a few fixtures in the ground here and there. Effective outdoor lighting is carefully planned lighting. In this comprehensive guide to outdoor lighting, we examine: The outdoor… Read more »

whole house water filtration system mounted on the wall

How Does Water Filtration Work?

The Reason for Water Filtration Water filtration is not something most people think much about. Water just comes out of the tap, right? It’s actually a little more complicated than that. The water that comes out of your tap is drawn from surface water (reservoirs, streams, lakes, rivers) and groundwater (underground aquifers). As you might… Read more »

iaq being affected by indoor air filter quality inside home

What You Should Know About IAQ – Indoor Air Quality

Indoor Air Quality and Your Health Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is a measurement of how much the air within your home is free of common indoor pollutants, such as tobacco smoke, pollen, dust, dirt, and other airborne particles. Controlling these indoor pollutants improves your IAQ, which can help reduce your risk of health concerns. To… Read more »

image showing what is havc with ac unit and gas furnace meter

What is HVAC?

And how do you pronounce it? HVAC stands for Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning. An HVAC system regulates all three of these functions to provide comfort within your home and improve the quality of air that circulates throughout your home.  It’s usually pronounced “Aitch-Vac.” To answer the question, “What is HVAC?,” let’s take a closer look… Read more »

indoor air pollution dust on a floor vent in a home

15 Causes of Indoor Air Pollution and What You Can Do About Them

When you think of air pollution, you probably think of smoky air, drifts of yellow pollen, factories blowing particulates out of chimney stacks. In other words, air pollution is something that occurs outside your house. But indoor air pollution is oftentimes dirtier than the air quality outside. Homes built after 1990 are typically well-insulated, so… Read more »