Total Energy News and Insights

It's time to lock down the thermostat In many homes now that the temperature has started to dip the thermostat might have become a point of issue. One person in the home wants the house warmer while someone else wants it colder to save on money. The thing that everyone can agree on is that heating your home while no one is there is a waste of energy and money. Programmable and smart thermostat allow you to set an away temperature. With programmable thermostat you have to manually go in to set the time for each day it's suppose to go to "away". Smart thermostats like the Nest learning thermostat learn over time based on a week or so of manual temperature changes. Other smart thermostats including the Nest will go into "away" mode based on a cellphone gps location. The upside of these is never having to manually change the thermostat. In some cases the thermostat will start the heat the home before someone gets home so it'll warm and comfortable bef...

During the latter part of the Summer Florida and Texas were hit hard by hurricane Irma and Harvey. These hurricanes left massive amounts of destruction in their wake, leaving these area in need of help. In response the Santoro Family of Companies donated $10,000 to the relief effort in Texas. They have also sent several oil trucks to the relief effort in Florida to help bring fuel back into the area. We will update this post with photos of the relief effort in Florida.

Summer is Coming to a Quick End No matter what year after year, season after season, summer always goes by faster than any other season. Each season of course has there own strong points; fall has the leaves and cool nights, spring everything is coming back to life, winter has snow (if you like that stuff), and summer has the beach, pool parties, perfect outdoor weather. The Summer however is quickly coming to an end that means that soon you'll be heating your home again. We've touched on this subject before but there are plenty of factors to consider when picking an oil company if your new to oil. It's good to take a look at your oil company too, some of the things you should look at is price, service provided, services you'll need, and efficiency.  Many oil companies out there will try to rope people in with a low first delivery price and they jack the price up considerably. It is common for a company to offer a first delivery price, the key is to find out what...

Get the Equipment you Want for Less If you're in the market for new heating equipment or cooling equipment wouldn't it be great if you could get the equipment for less.  In Massachusetts there is a program call Mass Save that thanks to a small tax in your pay check you can qualify for rebates on heating and cooling equipment, insulation, light bulbs, and appliances. Most heating and cooling equipment is expensive ranging anywhere from $2,000 to $8,000 or more depending on how many you buy. These are necessary purchases to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. So it is important that you consult your heating and cooling company to ensure the system you're getting meets the requirements so you get the maximum rebate. The rebates aren't just there to help out homeowners by reducing the price of the equipment. The rebates are there to help get homeowners to upgrade their existing older equipment to more energy efficient equipment. Newer heating and cooli...

Do you turn off your thermostat or burner? For many of us turning off your heat is a welcomed break from the cold and the start of warmer weather. When it comes to turning off your heat for the summer there are a few things your should consider before your flip the switch. All oil burning homes will have a emergency oil burner switch in the home, usually found at the top of the stairs that head down to the basement. There is a switch that can be found on the heating system itself that will also turn off your heating system. This can be used as the turn off for the heating season switch, when you're familiar with your home's heating demands. New homeowners who aren't familiar with the way your heating system works shouldn't use this method as a way to turn off your heat for the season.  Many homes use an indirect water heater for the home's hot water, this uses the boiler or furnace's heat to heat your hot water. During the winter months this is essent...

What do you do when it feels like Fall instead of Spring Mother's Day is right around the corner, Memorial day and the unofficial start of Summer is a few weeks ahead. The temps should be getting warmer or at least staying in the 60's, but the next week is going to feel more like Fall than Spring. With night time temps dipping into the high 30's and low 40's I've found myself turning on my heat for an hour or so to get the cold out. Many of us turn off our heating systems for the Spring and Summer once we see temps in the 70's. A few weeks ago we had a 80 degree days and now we'll be lucky to see temps in the 60's. You can turn on your heating system to get the cold out but there are a few other things you can do to combat the colder temps. Keeping the window shades open during the day to let in the sun's natural warmth will help keep your home comfortable. Make sure to close them during the evening to trap the warm air in. If you want t...

Smart Thermostats almost always require them. The internet of things is on the rise and one of the easiest and most useful applications of this is the smart thermostat. Popular smart thermostats that come to mind at the Nest, Ecobee, and the Honeywell Lyric most of these and other smart thermostats that come with WiFi. Installing these thermostats can be tricky due to the C-Wire or Common Wire. For thermostat installations you need to have a set of wires that run from your heating and/or cooling system to your thermostat(s). In instances where you just have a boiler or furnace without the ability to cool you see a thermostat with just two wires, red and white. If you have a cooling system with your heating system you'll most commonly find the thermostats using 4 wires. If you add a smart thermostat you're going to need a fifth wire, the c-wire. C-wires help delivery more power to the thermostat to power the Wi-Fi functions. Adding this wire can be difficult as it requ...

Control your Home Comfort with a Programmable Thermostat This past week I bought a wifi thermostat to replace the programmable thermostat that controls the first floor of my home. During installation I found out that currenting wiring is not compatible with my new wifi thermostat. This is going to become a common issue issue as wifi thermostats become cheaper and more common in homes.  The big question is what is the difference between a programmable thermostat and a wifi thermostat and what is the benefit. Programmable thermostats are a great way to help you save on your energy usage and tailor your heating and cooling to your needs.  Most programmable thermostats allow you to schedule a week schedule with 4 time point throughout each day. This allows you to schedule when your heat or cooling will turn on for during the weekdays and the weekends and at what time each day. The best times for the schedule to run would be before you wake up, when you leave for work, before...

Keeping your Attic Cold in the Winter is important One of the best ways to see if a home is properly insulated is the amount of snow on a roof.  The less snow on a roof the worse the insulation is, or the less cold air is getting in through vents.  Heat rises, as you heat your home the heat created by your heating system, eventually making it way into your attic. As your attic gets warmer and warmer the snow on your roof can start to melt from the bottom up.  In some cases it won't melt all the way through to the top or water will start to work it's way down your roof into more snow. This water can refreeze, melt, refreeze over time and create an ice dam. New water won't have anywhere to go as it hits the dam and in some cases will start to leak back in your roof or into rooms if you have roofs directly over rooms in your home. A good way to fight against ice dams is to make sure that cold air can get into your attic or that hot air can escape.  This can b...

What is your New Year's Resolution? Many of us make resolutions to lose weight, get that promotion at work, find our soul mate, or to save or spend less money in the New Year. If your resolution is the later a great place to start is your home. Some of these suggestions might involve an up front cost but will save you money over several years. There are many appliances, devices, and products that we use on a daily basis in our home that could be eating up your money. From your water heater, to your heating system, light bulbs, tv's, and other electrical devices. Water heaters are a great place to start, with a lifespan of 7-9 on average and taking up 25% of your home's energy consumption, an update could help to reduce your monthly bills.  When looking for a new water heater it is important to take in consideration your needs or demands for hot water. How many people are in your home, what type of fuel source do you have in your home, how your want your water to ...

There is a lot that can go wrong with your house in the cold. Winter has arrived here in the northeast right on time compared to last year when it didn't show up at all and the year before that when it showed up a month late. When the cold weather comes so can a lot of problems around your house. As we know water freezes at 32 degrees, this can happen in your home even if you have the thermostat set at 50, 55, 60, or even 65.  The pipes that carry water throughout your home can freeze and cause a great deal of damage. The rate and chances of your pipes freezing depends on the inside temp and the outdoor temps and weather conditions. On a typical winter day where the temp is in the twenties or thirties as long as you keep your house somewhere in the 60's and have decent insulation you'll have a pretty low risk of any pipes freezing inside your home.  Once the temps start to drop in November you should close any outdoor water taps and bring in any hoses. Make sure to g...

What does it mean to be the best? On December 1st the Telegram & Gazette, a local newspaper here in Worcester held it's first Best of Central Mass awards. These awards covered several different categories from best restaurant, to best university, to best home store, to best heating and cooling company, and many more.  What does it mean to be the best though? For each category it could mean something different but when you're voted on by the residents of the region then it means that you're doing something right.  People and more importantly customers know your name and know that you do something better than others that do the same thing as you. For the winner of the Heating and Cooling Company, ckSmithSuperior  it means that they provide a needed service to thousands of homeowners and businesses in Central Mass better than dozens of others.  The competition, pun intended is hot in Central Mass for heating and cooling companies. With a lot of compa...

What comes to mind when you think of propane? New England is one of the most popular places in the country for oil heated homes, Propane is much more popular in the midwest and the west coast. That leaves many of us to associate propane with one of it's arguably best uses, grilling.  Propane  can be used for a number of things throughout your home, from heating your entire home, to heating your water, keeping your pool open longer, drying your clothes, cooking your dinner, and much more.  The question for many oil or electric homes that have an interest in converting to propane is, what is involved? To convert any home to propane, first you'll need a tank. Similar to oil, propane heat requires a tank to store the gas that is used by your home's equipment. A difference between oil and propane in terms of the tank is the location. Propane tanks have to be located outside of the home while oil tanks traditionally are found in the basement of the home. Having a tank...

What to do when the weather is frightful With hurricane Matthew hitting the Caribbean and Accuweather publishing it's winter weather prediction for the country. Calling for frequent storms in the northeast it can lead some to wonder what they should do when bad weather strikes. In the event of a snow storm or a blizzard like what we saw in 2013 the most important thing to do is to stay inside once the storm starts. As we all know road conditions can deteriorate quickly, in most cases it is best to let the storm run it's course.  To prepare for a blizzard it's important to have an emergency kit for your home in the event that you lose power. The kit should include a flashlight, a first aid kit, non-perishable food, batteries, matches in a waterproof container, toothbrush and toothpaste, soap or body wash, paper papers and plastic utensils, water, sleeping bag, manual can opener, and pet supplies.  Now you many only be without for a few hours and all of these ...

New England Weather is Ever Changing. La Nina, El Nino's little sister, cousin, crazy aunt was and may still arrive for winter 2016, however it looks like there will be a much lower chance of it arriving. The NOAA also believes that it does arrive it will show up much later than originally thought. As the old saying goes wait a minute the weather will change, it seems like the same applies for the weather predictions. La Nina is the opposite of El Nino, where El Nino brought a warm water bubble in the pacific ocean. La Nina is suppose to feature a cold water blob in the pacific ocean, La Nina has not taken a step that traditional La Nina's do. The cooling of water in specific spots that affect wind patterns has not occurred yet and has lead the NOAA to reduce it's chances of a La Nina happening from 70% to 40%. The NOAA now believes that we will have a neutral pacific weather pattern, neither an El Nino or a La Nina. What does that mean for our winter...

What to do what to do to stay cool To be honest I started looking around the internet for Central Air units because of the massive heat wave/ heat index rise that has been floating over the Northeast. While I work for a heating and cooling company, I just bought a house that I don't want and can't do major work to, yet. That didn't mean I haven't asked around to figure what is involved. My home doesn't have ductwork as it is a forced hot water boiler heated home. I have baseboards in all the rooms that bring heat to the rooms, meaning that I can't just add central air conditioning to the ductwork in my home. That doesn't mean that I can't add ductwork to the attic of my home to get central ac. There are several different types of AC that you can have installed in your home, which we've talked about here before. Central AC, Mini-Split ductless AC, Window AC, and Portable (not even worth the hassle) each have their own benefits and downfalls. ...

There is a Strong Chance of a Weak La Nina This past winter we experienced one of the strongest El Nino's the planet has ever seen and it brought with it a much warmer than average winter. This was a nice rest for many homeowners after the past two winters that brought exceptionally cold weather and snow. Since the El Nino has ended meteorologists have been looking to see if a La Nina will arrive. La Nina is the cousin or sister of El Nino. Which is caused by the warming of water in the pacific ocean, La Nina is caused by the cooling of water in the pacific ocean. La Nina's have three different strengths weak, moderate, and strong and each has varying effects on the weather here in the Northeast. By all accounts we are looking at a strong chance of a weak La Nina starting in the Fall or Winter. A weak La Nina brings cool or colder area to the Northeast more inline with a traditional winter. It looks like we will also have to deal with more snow in the second have of the se...

This is Going to be one for the Record Books We've been experiencing a wide arrange of extreme weather over the past few years, from a year of monthly global temperature records, to record setting cold last winter to record setting warmth this past winter and a relatively mild summer last year.  This summer looks to be a more traditional hot summer for us in New England. The Weather Channel has published there 3 month temperature prediction for June through August and as you see above, we're in for a hot summer.  That will mean a lot of fans and/or AC's running to keep you cool. This could also mean a lot of time in the pool or by the beach. When it comes to keeping cool inside of your home, it's important to make sure that you're mini-split and central AC's are properly maintained. Like your heating system, your cooling system needs to be properly maintained to keep running at it's optimal level. Having your cooling system running at it's o...

We Could Experience much Warmer Temps this Summer Last year and even the year before that we talked about El Nino and boy did it come, we saw one of the mildest winters this past winter. Now what, El Nino is the warming of the waters in the pacific, but what happens after the water has warmed? After the warm has warmed, it naturally cools off this is called La Nina. Traditionally La Nina follows El Nino's and present the opposite effects of El Nino. Of course La Nina don't always follow El Nino's, in the past we've seen El Nino's that extend into the next winter or La Nina's that extend for several years. For this year most weather outlets are predicting that we'll see a La Nina arrive around Fall or Winter. To understand what we might see this summer we have to look at last year. For 2015 we didn't see the real El Nino until mid fall and it continued through mid winter, but its effects were seen during the summer.  It brought us unseas...

Only in New England Spring is rhere and it has felt like we've been in Spring off and on for the past couple of weeks. It sure has been an odd winter, like last year it was one for the record books. This winter we had the most days at 50 degrees or above during December, January, and February, but only in New England could you have a 50 degree day followed by negative 15... As for this Spring it is shaping up to be warmer than average, just like our winter.   While this is the average temperature is suppose to be higher than what we're use to, this doesn't mean that winter is going anywhere. We've seen temperatures this winter, since March is still winter, range from -14 to 75 here in New England. This weekend, as winter comes to its official end we could get a Nor'easter dumping a foot of snow on us.  Only in New England could we have one week where we see two days in a row in the 70's and most days in the week in the 50's and 60's and the fo...