Posts Tagged ‘mold’
Monday, December 19th, 2011
Excess moisture and negative odors are two things that every homeowner wants to get out of their home as quickly as possible. It is for this reason that our bathrooms and kitchens are equipped with exhaust fans and ventilation systems. However, if we are not taking that moment to flip the switch to turn the fan on, we aren’t going to reap the benefits of these valuable fans.
Why Your Exhaust Fans are so Important!
The first step it to get used to turning on that fan with every hot shower, but if you are still noticing sweat on the walls and ceilings, there may be a problem. Many homes are equipped with fans that move very little air and therefore allow loads of moist air to remain inside the home after hot showers. This could lead to mold and mildew growth that will cause even bigger and more expensive problems.
The Tissue Test
What you need to do is test your fan. This is easy enough to do on your own with a piece of tissue paper. Simply hold a tissue up to the fan and let go. The fan should be able to hold the tissue securely to its grills. This is a good indicator of the strength of your fan. If it can hold the tissue, odds are it is strong enough. However, if there is still excess moisture in the bathroom long after the showers are done for the day, your fan may not be large enough and therefore not powerful enough to remove the needed amount of moisture from the room. (more…)
Tags: bathroom, Chicago, exhaust fan, Four Seasons, handyman services, Kildeer, kitchen, La Grange, Lake Bluff, mildew, moisture, mold, repair, testing, ventilation systems
Posted in Air Quality, Air filtration, Home Improvement and Repair, Home Services, Tips and Suggestions, maintenance | Comments Off
Thursday, December 8th, 2011
Over the summer months, many of us experienced problems with our air conditioners. The souring temperatures and the repetitive heat waves truly took a toll on the system and if you didn’t have problems with your air conditioner, you were one of the lucky ones. The rest of us dealt with failures and leaks that needed emergency repairs. Luckily, Four Seasons was around all summer long, day in and day out, fixing broken air conditioners. A broken part is one thing but a leak or a condensation problem could cause much bigger problems that may have been initially seen. Water is like poison for both your air conditioner and your furnace, and if you had a leak in your air conditioner last summer, getting the furnace cleaned is more important than ever before.
Finding Problems Your Air Conditioner Caused
It is always recommended that you have a yearly maintenance check performed on the furnace at some point during the heating season. The cleaning will help identify problems and get the unit running efficiently and reliably for the remainder of the season. If the furnace was exposed to water over the summer months, you may not even know the extent of the damage that it may have caused unless you have the unit assessed. (more…)
Tags: air conditioner, Chicago, cleaning, condensation, Elmhurst, Evanston, Four Seasons, Furnace, furnace maintenance, furnace repair, Heating, IL, installation, leaks, maintenance, mold, replacement, rust, Tune Up, winter
Posted in Air conditioning, Furnace, Furnace Repair, Heating, maintenance | Comments Off
Friday, September 30th, 2011
The Chicagoland air quality this time of year can vary. The local weather report may indicate that the ragweed is at a moderate level or the mold count level is high. The same may be true of the air quality in your home. Mold and contaminants can affect the air in your home and your health. It may also interfere with your heating and cooling system. A germicidal light such as a Healthy Climate UVC-24V from Four Seasons can help to produce cleaner air in your home. The germicidal light produces strong rays of ultraviolet light to help reduce harmful pathogens in your home.
Do More that Just Get a Flu Shot!
As any mom knows, flu season can be an exhausting time of the year. It usually hits around the Holidays, right when you have the most going on. You can protect your family from harmful viruses like the flu by getting more than just a flu shot. Do more to protect your family by having a Four Seasons germicidal UV light installed. The UV light operates whether your heating and cooling system is running or not. It continuously destroys bacteria and viruses before the pollutants enter your duct system. You can give your family peace of mind knowing that this same technology is used in operating rooms and clinics across the U.S. Call and ask one of our friendly representatives about what you can do to protect your family’s health this winter, and get a free quote on one of our germicidal UV lights today!
Tags: Air Quality, Chicago, contaminents, Four Seasons, free quote, germicidal light, IL, installation, mold, UV Light, viruses, winter
Posted in Air Quality, Air filtration, Health, Informational, Safety | Comments Off
Tuesday, September 20th, 2011
At this time of year, most people are fussing about their furnaces and many forget to even take a second glance at the humidifier. The unit has been off all summer, but as the temperatures plummet, the humidity levels in your home will sink too. The heat from the furnace will dry out the air in your home to desert like conditions, and you don’t want to go turn on the humidifier only to find that it is not working properly or worse that it is leaking. Four Seasons Heating and Air Conditioning includes a free humidifier inspection with every furnace or boiler tune up that we perform, and we can help you get the humidifier back up and running before the air in your home becomes too parched.
Leaks, Clogs, and Filter Pads
Humidifier maintenance is fairly simple. If you keep on top of filter changes, you should never have any real problems with the system, but if you ever do find something wrong with the unit it is usually manifested as a leak. An old filter and a clog in the water line are the two most common causes of the leak, but many homeowners don’t spend enough time around their system to even notice if there are any issues. First let’s talk about that filter. It needs to be replaced yearly in order for the system to work properly, and if it isn’t, it becomes a breeding ground for mold. Mold in the humidifier can quickly become mold all over your home if you are not careful. The humidifier feeds moisture directly into the air circulation of the home, and with that moisture, it can also spread the mold. (more…)
Tags: air circulation, Arlington Heights, Chicago, cleaning, filter pad, Four Seasons, Furnace, humidifier, humidity levels, leaks, maintenance, moisture, mold, St. Charles
Posted in Air Quality, Furnace, Health, Heating, maintenance | Comments Off
Monday, September 5th, 2011
We have now entered the half of the year that is packed with holidays. Today is Labor Day and before we know it, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas will have all arrived as well. Many of us take the holiday season as a chance to redecorate the home in festive décor, and for most that usually means a trip to the attic to pull down boxes and boxes of decorations. While you’re up there, Four Seasons would like you to take a quick moment to have a look around. How does everything look? Is the insulation damp in area? Have you begun to notice dark spots forming in various places? Is the insulation level below the level of the joists? If so, your attic insulation may need some redecorating as well, and Four Seasons Heating and Air Conditioning is still your go to contractor.
Year Round Condensation Conundrum
Attics that are inadequately insulated have many problems, but today we are going to focus on the issue of condensation and the effects that it can have on your attic, your energy efficiency, and your home. Condensation can accumulate in a poorly insulated attic all year round. During the summer it can soak the insulation and cause mold growth and rot. During the winter, it turns to frost, and all year round this moisture diminishes your insulation’s r-value and therefore its efficiency. If left long enough, this water will eventually reach the level of your ceilings and cause unsightly staining. The insulation will need to be replaced and the ventilation problem corrected before you can ever hope to have a clean and energy efficient attic. (more…)
Tags: attic, ceiling, Chicago, condensation, Four Seasons, Fox Valley, Gilberts, holidays, IL, Insulation, leaks, mold, professional, repair, replacement, ventilation, water spots, Wheeling
Posted in Home Services, Tips and Suggestions, attic insulation | Comments Off
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
When you own a home, there could be hundreds of little problems within its walls that are hidden from view. A builder may decide to cut corners or a repairman may “jerry-rig” something to make it work. Either way, you end up with a problem inside the home that is not up to code. At Four Seasons, we have been running across several homes in the Chicagoland area that have problems with their clothes dryer duct and vent. The worst of these problems are vents that do not vent to the outdoors. Instead, they dump into a ceiling or attic, and the problems this can cause could be devastating to a home.
Improperly Venting Dryer Ducts
- Encouraging Mold Growth: As your dryer dries your clothes, it vents out large amounts of hot humid air. In homes that don’t have a proper venting system, all of this hot air could be filling up the damp dark spaces under floorboards and inside the attic. All of this excess moisture creates the perfect environment for mold and mildew to thrive! We have discussed in the past the many dangers of having mold growth in the home, and allowing a problem like this to go unchecked could be encouraging this very serious issue. (more…)
Tags: Chicago, danger, dryer vent, fire hazard, Four Seasons, Fox Valley, Glendale Heights, mildew, mold, repair, replacement, Safety, Warrenville
Posted in Health, Home Services, Safety, Vent Cleaning | Comments Off
Tuesday, July 19th, 2011
During the hottest days of summer here in Chicago, the biggest complaint that most people have is with the humidity not the heat. The muggy and uncomfortable atmosphere created by large amounts of moisture in the air makes it hard to breathe and many turn to the aid of their air conditioning system to remove all of the excess unwanted moisture from the air. If your unit is working properly, it will do this without problems, but if there is a backup in your condensation drain system, you could end up with some serious damage to the entire unit.
Removing Humidity from the Home
The air conditioner must first pull the moisture or humidity from the air in the home before it is able to effectively bring down the temperature to the desired level. It does this by condensing water from its gaseous form to a liquid form as it passes over the coils. The water is then dumped into a condensation drain pan and eventually down a condensation drain. This safely removes the water from the home’s air. (more…)
Tags: air conditioner, Bristol, Chicago, clogged drain, condensation, Cooling, Four Seasons, health concerns, humidity, IL, leak, maintenance, mold, Oswego, repair, Tune Up, water
Posted in Air Quality, Air conditioning, Health, maintenance | Comments Off
Wednesday, May 11th, 2011
Last summer, I went out on a repair call for an air conditioner that wasn’t cooling. At least that’s the message the dispatcher sent me over the phone. When I arrived at the home the customer seemed a little distant, sort of like her mind was somewhere else. After she told me about the problem she was having we both went to the basement to look at her furnace. As I walked up to it I immediately saw the problem. The insulated Freon line was frozen. A large chunk of ice was right where the Freon line goes into the plenum near the furnace. Unfortunately, this wasn’t her only problem.
Mold in the Humidifier
Once you discover that much ice on the outside of the furnace, you know the coil inside of the plenum is iced up just as bad. I removed the cover to the humidifier so I could see how much ice had accumulated, and to my surprise the humidifier pad was covered with black and green mold. The first words out of my mouth were this pad needs to be changed; there is enough mold here to make someone sick. I wish I had chosen my words more carefully. (more…)
Tags: air conditioner repair, Air Quality, Buffalo Grove, Calumet Park, Chicago, Cooling, Duct Cleaning, Elgin, filter, Four Seasons, humidifier pad, IL, mold, Safety
Posted in Air Quality, Air conditioning, Duct Cleaning, Safety | Comments Off
Friday, March 11th, 2011
Many allergy sufferers have enjoyed the long winter away from itchy eyes, sore throats, and nasal congestion, but spring is almost here. As the flowers bloom and the grass grows, allergens will be released into the air and into our homes. If you use a furnace or air conditioner with a duct work system to circulate the air, these allergens could be flying around in the air of your home making it very difficult to get control of your allergy symptoms. Luckily, there are a few steps you can take to rid your home of as many allergens as possible, and Four Seasons has the experts to help you get it done.
Your Duct Work
The duct work system in your home is breeding ground for mold, dust mites, pet dander, and a plethora of other allergy causing particles. The dark and sometimes damp bends and twists of your duct work system are the perfect place for these microorganisms and particles to collect, and removing them is nearly impossible without help from a duct cleaning company. (more…)
Tags: air purifier, Air Quality, allergens, Allergies, Alsip, Chicago, cleaning, Dolton, duct work, dust, Four Seasons, Glenwood, IL, mold, pollen, spring allergies
Posted in Air Quality, Air filtration, Duct Cleaning, Health, Home Services | Comments Off
Monday, January 31st, 2011
The Illinois Attorney General, Lisa Madigan, is looking for justice for some of the most vulnerable members of our population here in the Chicagoland area. Our senior citizens have been targeted by a number of different scams, but in this suit, Illinois is taking on a duct cleaning company that stole thousands of dollars from elderly homeowners.
The Suit
In the suit, it was found that the company in question was deceiving homeowners by convincing them that they had mold present in the home. The cleaners would show the homeowner pictures of the mold that was supposedly in the ducts, but in reality the picture was not even taken in that particular person’s home.
After the crew supposedly cleaned the mess, the price that was originally quoted would suddenly skyrocket. These charges were added on without the homeowner’s knowledge or consent, but many handed over payment to evade threats from the company’s owner. These services were not needed, and the evidence provided to the consumer was false. (more…)
Tags: Alsip, Attorney General, Chicagoland, Consumer protection, Duct Cleaning, Four Seasons, fraud, Illinois, Justice, Lisa Madigan, mold, Phoenix, save money, scam
Posted in Air Quality, Consumer protection, Duct Cleaning, Informational, Savings | Comments Off
