A lot of outdoor kitchen and cooking appliances require a gas line to fuel them. The nice thing about using a gas line rather than another fuel source — like charcoal or electric — is the ease and convenience a gas hookup allows. Adding that gas line to your outdoor appliances comes with several important considerations.

1. Do You Already Use Natural Gas in Your Home?

If you already have gas-burning appliances or heating in your home, then you can connect your outdoor appliances to your gas supply line. You can find tutorials and videos which show you how to do it, but this procedure is not something you should attempt on your own.

Many people assume that the process of adding on to an existing gas line consists only of opening the line and adding a connection. However, you’ll also have to:

• Choose the right piping size
• Choose the right piping type
• Make sure that the new line can provide the proper pressure
• Know where to place the shutoff

Other factors go into branching off a gas line as well. Always seek professional advice, instruction, and installation.

If you don’t already have a natural gas line in your home, then you can have a new one installed for the express purpose of fueling your outdoor appliances. The process can require some extra work, but the same rules apply. You’ll need plumbing and gas-piping professionals to help you achieve your goal.

1. Do You Have Permission to Run a New Gas Line?

Modifying or adding an outside gas connection can involve some legalities. You may need to seek permission from the municipality or your homeowners’ association before you do anything.

Your locale may want you to seek a permit before installing anything related to gas. In addition, your town may require you to get an inspection to make sure that the project falls within building code guidelines.

This all makes sense when you consider that you’re working with something that poses a very real danger to you, your neighbors, and your local environment. If in doubt, always check with your town and your local plumbing, heating, and cooling services.

Also, if you rent a property, share ownership of it, or don’t fully own it, then don’t move forward with any kind of modifications. Only a property owner can authorize such changes. If you share ownership, you still must discuss modifications to the gas plumbing with your co-owners.

1. How Do You Want to Configure Your Outdoor Appliances?

When choosing your appliances, make sure that they can fit where you want them to fit. That area will typically represent where your gas line can reach. In this case, the location of your gas line can dictate which appliances you choose and where you set them up.

Some people want gas grills, but grills aren’t the only outdoor appliances that can run on gas. For example, you may want to add side-burners, an oven, or even a gas-powered refrigerator. The more you add, the more consideration you need to give to how you will connect these things.

Your outside gas connection will limit where you place your appliances. You’ll need to make sure that you invest in outdoor kitchen appliances that can work with the kind of gas piping infrastructure you have or want.

In addition, choose appliances that are specifically designed to work with natural gas. Some appliances can work with natural gas but aren’t specifically designed to do so. If you have to make an unsanctioned modification to get your appliance to work with natural gas, then you should probably avoid that appliance.

When it comes to gas piping for your outdoor kitchen and cooking appliances, don’t take risks. At Custom Comfort, we have the experience to help develop a custom gas piping solution for your home. If you want to experience the benefits of natural gas cooking outdoors, contact us today.

During the dead of summer, the last thing you want to deal with is a problematic air conditioning system. Although many folks are quick to point out that every mechanical device will eventually fail, the fact of the matter is that user error can play a role in air conditioning failures. Here are three air conditioning problems you may have caused and how to prevent issues in the future. 

1. High Energy Bills

Furniture placement can make or break a room while also impacting your HVAC system. While a well-placed sofa and entertainment center can draw people in and create the ideal space for entertaining, blocking off air registers or warm air returns could make your AC unit work harder than it needs to — driving up your monthly power bill.

Your HVAC system is carefully planned and balanced to return warm air to the center of the unit. If furniture blocks air return vents, warm air can’t enter the system like it should, making it harder for your unit to properly cool air. The result is a home that feels hot and muggy, even though the system runs frequently.

To prevent these kinds of issues, never place large area rugs over floor registers, and keep furniture away from floor vents. If you have air vents or returns on the walls, don’t push furniture against the perimeters of the room. Be mindful of vent placement before you rearrange furniture or make renovations to your home to prevent future problems.

1. A System That Runs Continuously

To save money on heating and cooling, some homeowners choose to close doors to unused rooms or to seal off the air ducts in unused spaces entirely. Although this concept might seem like a simple way to move more air towards the rooms in your home you actually use, it can drive up energy costs.

When you close a door in an unused room, air continues to fill the space, putting the room under pressure. As air escapes under the door and around the window sills, it is sucked towards the air handler, which has to work harder to pull in the air. In fact, closing doors can increase the volume of air being drawn by 300% to 900%, putting a significant amount of strain on your air conditioner.

Closing air vents creates similar issues, although the pressure buildup occurs on the inside of your ductwork. Added pressure can create pinhole leaks in your ductwork, allowing air to escape within your walls. Closed ducts also create hot spots in your home, which can cause your thermostat to incorrectly gauge interior temperatures and prompt your system to run continuously.

If you have noticed that your air conditioner runs frequently but doesn’t seem to cool your home, your indoor climate could be out of balance. Go through your home and checked for closed vents, and leave doors to unused spaces open.  

1. Frozen Outdoor Unit

Few things are more maddening than noticing your home is hot and muggy, only to go outdoors to find an AC unit that has completely frozen over. Unfortunately, if your home doesn’t have adequate airflow, the refrigerant in your air conditioner’s lines could become cold enough to develop ice crystals and stop flowing altogether.

The most common cause of frozen outdoor air conditioning units is failing to change the indoor air filter. When this filter becomes clogged, the system can’t move the hot air in your home like it should, which makes ice crystals form in refrigerant lines.

To prevent problems, check your home’s air filter regularly for dirt and grime buildup. Most air filters need to be replaced once every 30-60 days, or whenever they appear dirty.  

If you struggle with your air conditioner, don’t wait another day. Here at Custom Comfort, we offer convenient online estimates and emergency service, making it easy for people to keep their homes safe and comfortable. Give us a call today to learn more.

Proper heating and cooling of your home is more important than you may think. Your HVAC unit’s key job is to keep your family comfortable throughout the various temperatures, but the unit is also an essential part of creating and maintaining healthy air quality. Unfortunately, issues can affect your heating and cooling system’s ability to maintain healthy indoor air. Therefore, a whole-house dehumidifier may be necessary.

This guide and your contractor’s assistance will help you understand the dangers of high humidity and if a whole-house dehumidifier will benefit you, your home, and your health.

Humidity

Humidity is moisture. Avoiding it at all costs is not possible because some moisture is needed, but you should maintain a healthy humidity level in your home.

Experts believe 35 to 50 percent is a healthy humidity range. This amount of moisture will keep you, your family, and your home comfortable. The range is also ideal for preventing microbial growth inside the house.

High humidity is an issue in many homes today, but most owners do not even realize they have a moisture problem. Here are a few visible signs of high humidity in your home:

• Condensation on windows and other glass
• Warped switch and outlet covers
• Peeling, bubbling wall and trim paint
• Decaying, rotting, warping wood
• Foul, musty odors
• Visible water stains on ceilings and walls

If you are noticing one or more of the above signs, have your humidity levels tested by a professional.

On your own, you can measure the humidity in the air using a hygrometer. In addition, many thermostats are capable of measuring and displaying humidity percentages.

Remember that high humidity doesn’t only affect your home. In most cases, this moisture can affect your physical and emotional health.

Higher levels of humidity can cause breathing issues and allergy symptoms. If mold begins to grow, respiratory issues and allergy symptoms will increase.

High humidity has also been linked to skin and eye irritations, fatigue, and even depression.

Air Conditioner Versus Whole-Home Dehumidifier

An air conditioner and dehumidifier work in a similar way, but the end results are different. Both operate to circulate refrigerant back and forth between gas and liquid states, pulling heat and moisture out of the air.

The air conditioner pulls heat and moisture out, pushing it over evaporator cools to create cooler air for the home. A dehumidifier pulls moisture out, expelling it out of the home without creating any cooler air.

Basically, the air conditioner’s main job is to cool and pull some moisture out. A whole-home dehumidifier’s main job is to pull and expel moisture out of the home.

A portable dehumidifier is a common choice for many homeowners because portable units are less expensive and easy to use and install. Unfortunately, they are not ideal for large spaces or homes that experience higher levels of humidity.

One of the main benefits of installing a whole-home dehumidifier is that it can dehumidify the entire house. In most cases, models are capable of removing moisture from homes that are 3,000 square feet in size.

Whole-home dehumidifiers can be added on to your existing air conditioning equipment and tied into the same drain line. Considering you will have to dump buckets of water from a portable model, a whole-home dehumidifier that drains moisture along with your air conditioner is a more efficient option.

Heating and cooling your home in the most efficient and effective manner is important for your family’s comfort and your health. Fortunately, help is available if you are struggling to maintain healthy humidity levels. To diagnose a humidity issue or to install a whole-home dehumidifier, contact Custom Comfort today.