FAQ’s & Helpful Tips
Common Questions & Answers about Air Conditioners
What is the average lifespan of a central air conditioner?
What does the term "SEER rating" refer to?
Why is bigger not necessarily better?
Will my new air conditioner be noisy?
What happens to my old air conditioner?
Will my new air conditioner control the humidity in my home in the summer?
How often do I have to service my air conditioner?
Is Freon being phased out?
If I buy a new furnace or air conditioner do I qualify for a rebate?
https://www.midamericanenergy.com/ia-res-heating-cooling-water-heating.aspx https://www.alliantenergy.com/WaysToSave/Rebates/RebateLocatorTool
Common Questions & Answers about Furnaces & Heating
What should I do if the pilot flame goes out?
- Check your gas furnace filter. Is it clean and when did you change it last? 50% of service calls (and associated charges) can easily be avoided by properly maintaining your furnace filter. Call TMI today to order filters of any size. 563-355-8686
- Check to see if your Energy Star rated programmable thermostat has a battery back-up. Are they dead and when did you last change them? Some thermostats have a battery back-up even though they are wired to the electrical in the home. Some will have a warning sign that the batteries are going and some just stop working properly or all together. Check your owner’s manual for details on how to change the batteries.
- Make sure that the breaker/fuse (in the main electrical box) for the furnace and air conditioner are in the on position if it is a breaker or not in need of replacing if it is a fuse.
- Check the troubleshooting guide for your particular model furnace, in the homeowner’s manual. There are always good tips in there as well.
- CALL A LICENSED HEATING, VENTILATION AND AIR CONDITIONING COMPANY to have an educated technician out to diagnose the issue.
ALWAYS REMEMBER that all furnaces and air conditioners can be dangerous, they are connected to electrical and/or gas and could result in injury. Never have an unlicensed person attempt to repair these pieces of equipment.
What is a ductless heating and cooling system?
What if I do not have a standing pilot furnace?
Why High-Efficiency Furnaces Are A Must in the Midwest
Keeping Your Furnace Room Clean and Safe
Replacing An Octopus Gravity Furnace
Can I install a high-efficiency furnace in my 80-100 year old home?
Do you offer financing?
Do I need to pull a permit?
Common Questions & Answers Boilers
Do you work on boiler systems?
Why should I consider replacing my boiler?
Common Questions & Answers about Plumbing
What makes my plumbing and drain pipes rattle?
What causes my hot water to smell like rotten eggs? My cold water doesn't smell, what is the solution for this problem?
The simplest treatment available is the shock-chlorination of the system. This is a surface treatment, and often requires repeated trials in heavily infected systems. The chlorination of a system requires that you follow each step explicitly to avoid an un-treated portion of the piping system from reinfecting another part. Longer lasting solutions include chlorination or aeration of the water supply.
How do you get water in the toilet tank to stop over flowing?
Why does my water heater not work as well as it used to?
Why would a water heater run out of hot water faster than normal?
On electric water heaters, they commonly have two heating elements that work in turns. First the top element heats up the top of the tank, then power goes to the lower element. If the lower element is out, only the top of the tank gets heated. If the top element isn’t working, there will be no hot water. Sometimes the Reset button needs to be pushed or reset. If this doesn’t get the element working, use a continuity tester to determine if the element has shorted out. Replacement of the element may be needed.
How do I know if I have a broken water line outside my house?
How can you replace sewer pipes without digging up my landscaping?
FAQ’S AND HELPFUL TIP
Get the Greatest Benefit from Your Programmable Thermostat
- Keep the thermostat set at energy-saving temperatures for long periods of time, such as during the day when no one is home and at bedtime.
- Resist the urge to override the pre-programmed settings. Every time you do, you use more energy and may end up paying more on your energy bill.
- Use a programmable thermostat for each zone of your house if you have multiple heating and cooling zones. This will help you maximize comfort, convenience, and energy savings throughout the house.
- Change your batteries each year if your programmable thermostat runs on batteries. Some units will indicate when batteries must be changed.
- If you have a heat pump, you may require a special programmable thermostat to maximize your energy savings year-round. Talk to your retailer or contractor for details before selecting your thermostat.
- If you have a manual thermostat, you can adjust the temperatures daily before you leave the house and when you go to sleep at night. Typically, adjusting temperatures 5 – 8 degrees (down in winter, up in summer) can help save energy if you are going to be away from home for several hours.
What's the most common mistake people make in trying to save energy around the house?
- Letting the furnace or air conditioner salesperson sell them a unit that’s much bigger than they need.
- Not getting the ducts checked for leakage when installing a new heating and cooling system.
- Thinking that “since heat rises, we only need to insulate the attic.” Floors over a basement or crawlspace, walls and windows also matter.
- Not using ceiling and portable fans to improve comfort in the cooling season. They use very little electricity. Use them to circulate air in the house, to make the house feel cooler by doing this, the thermostat setting for your air conditioner can be raised to 85°F, and still maintain the same comfort as the lower setting.
What's the single biggest user of electricity in my house?
Refrigerators are typically the largest users in houses without air conditioning or in climates where the air conditioners are used only a few days of the month during the cooling season. If your refrigerator is more than ten years old should consider replacing it. New efficiency standards went into effect in 1992, and older refrigerators are typically two to three times more expensive to run than a new unit. For more information go directly to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy’s list of most efficient refrigerator-freezers.
Indoor Air Quality Concerns
In the last several years, a growing body of scientific evidence has indicated that the air within homes and other buildings can be more seriously polluted than the outdoor air in even the largest and most industrialized cities. Other research indicates that people spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors. Thus, for many people, the risks to health may be greater due to exposure to air pollution indoors than outdoors.
In addition, people who may be exposed to indoor air pollutants for the longest periods of time are often those most susceptible to the effects of indoor air pollution. Such groups include the young, the elderly, and the chronically ill, especially those suffering from respiratory or cardiovascular disease.
Air Cleaners
The effectiveness of an air cleaner depends on how well it collects pollutants from indoor air (expressed as a percentage efficiency rate) and how much air it draws through the cleaning or filtering element (expressed in cubic feet per minute). A very efficient collector with a low air-circulation rate will not be effective, nor will a cleaner with a high air-circulation rate but a less efficient collector. The long-term performance of any air cleaner depends on maintaining it according to the manufacturer’s directions.
Another important factor in determining the effectiveness of an air cleaner is the strength of the pollutant source. Table-top air cleaners, in particular, may not remove satisfactory amounts of pollutants from strong nearby sources. People with a sensitivity to particular sources may find that air cleaners are helpful only in conjunction with concerted efforts to remove the source.
Over the past few years, there has been some publicity suggesting that houseplants have been shown to reduce levels of some chemicals in laboratory experiments. There is currently no evidence, however, that a reasonable number of houseplants remove significant quantities of pollutants in homes and offices. Indoor houseplants should not be over-watered because overly damp soil may promote the growth of microorganisms which can affect allergic individuals.
At present, EPA does not recommend using air cleaners to reduce levels of radon and its decay products. The effectiveness of these devices is uncertain because they only partially remove the radon decay products and do not diminish the amount of radon entering the home. EPA plans to do additional research on whether air cleaners are, or could become, a reliable means of reducing the health risk from radon. EPA’s booklet, Residential Air-Cleaning Devices, provides further information on air-cleaning devices to reduce indoor air pollutants.
What Causes Indoor Air Problems?
Pollutant Sources
The relative importance of any single source depends on how much of a given pollutant it emits and how hazardous those emissions are. In some cases, factors such as how old the source is and whether it is properly maintained are significant. For example, an improperly adjusted gas stove can emit significantly more carbon monoxide than one that is properly adjusted.
Some sources, such as building materials, furnishings, and household products like air fresheners, release pollutants more or less continuously. Other sources, related to activities carried out in the home, release pollutants intermittently. These include smoking, the use of unvented or malfunctioning stoves, furnaces, or space heaters, the use of solvents in cleaning and hobby activities, the use of paint strippers in redecorating activities, and the use of cleaning products and pesticides in housekeeping. High pollutant concentrations can remain in the air for long periods after some of these activities.
Amount of Ventilation
24 Hour Emergency Service
If you have a plumbing, heating or air conditioning emergency, know that when you call TMI you will talk to a live person who will locate the closest available technician to respond to your emergency quickly. Our technicians are cell phone dispatched and have their fully stocked service vehicles standing by to quickly respond to your needs 24/7. Call us today for your emergency needs: 1-800-383-2813.

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Schedule your appointment today with TMI - Total Maintenance, Inc.
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Schedule your appointment today with TMI - Total Maintenance, Inc.


A Trusted Company!
Since 1973, TMI has been a reliable source providing solutions for heating, air conditioning, plumbing and appliance related services in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. We are committed to delivering honest and exceptional customer service. Thank you for your business and the opportunity to work with you!