Ice Dams & What To Do!
February 1, 2011
During a snow winter many homes are plagured by ice dams.
An ice dam forms when the heat from your home escapes into your attic and melts the snow on your roof. The water will then trickle down your roof until it reaches the cold of an overhang, which it then freezes. Over time the Ice will get thicker and thicker which will form an ice dam. The ice dam is a small area that will hold water, which if it gets large enough it can back up under the shingles and into your home.
The most common method to fix ice dam is to do a little Waetherization to you attic. Sealing Air leaks between the warm interior and the attic is the first on the list. Then you will likely want to add insulation to your attic to help keep the heat in your home and not your attic. An additional step to be done it to add additional ventilation to your attic to help keep the temperature in your attic, below freezing.
For any questions on Ice Dams, Weatherilzation, or Insulation for your home, Contact Modern Homes, Inc.
Improve Air Quality in Homes
August 11, 2010
Tighter homes and more stringent residential energy-use standards are putting whole-house heat- and energy-recovery ventilators in the spotlight.
Soon homes that will meet Energy Star standard will require to provide an adequate amount of outside fresh air intercalation but because it is not required doesn’t infer that it is not ideal for your family and your home. Tight home provide an energy saving home although you still need fresh air to your home to control air quality and humidity.
How They Work
Simply, HRVs and ERVs provide a balanced, controlled, and measured amount of fresh air into the house to cycle out pollutants, while also capturing and exchanging the heat—or sensible energy—from the exhausted indoor airflow with the incoming air. This exchange preheats incoming air in the winter, or “pre-cools” it (if to a lesser extent) in the summer, reducing the energy demand on the home’s primary heating and cooling equipment.
Also because furnaces and air conditioners don’t have to work as hard or as long with an HRV or ERV supplementing air to them, they also might perform longer at optimum levels and achieve better investment values.
The equipment design of an HRV is fairly simple that two fans pushed a balanced amount of air through fixed filters while allowing to facilitate and exchange of heat between the two flows. ERVs follow the same general design while having an seperate chamber to manage humidity. Basically they are circulating the indoor air with the outdoor air with minimal heat loss. These systems must be connected to the homes central forced air heating and cooling system.
The effect of introducing preheated or precooled air into a room or rooms will not only freshen the indoor air but also reduce demand on the heating or cooling equipment to condition the incoming air.
For any questions on indoor air quality or energy saving items, Contact Modern Homes, Inc.
Remember to check your smoke detectors
January 19, 2010
Check the back of your smoke detectors to find the manufacturer stamped date. Use this date in accordance with the manufacturer’s manual to calculate the expiration date. Replace old smoke detectors to ensure the safety of your family, pets, and home. Also, when remodeling, make sure you know the current local building codes. Most villages require smoke detectors in every bedroom and a carbon monoxide detector on each floor level and may require that your smoke detectors be upgrade when remodeling. Some villages even require a sprinkler head over the furnace and water heater area.
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