You are safe indoors, enjoying the sanctuary that the warmth of your home’s furnace offers you away from the cold of winter. Not to break up that comfortable scenario, but it’s always good to keep in mind you are just a power outage or mechanical breakdown away from experiencing the chill of the outdoors creeping inside.

Plan ahead for the unexpected — which isn’t likely to happen at a convenient time, if there is such a thing in the wintertime – and you’ll have some peace of mind from the worry of a cold, furnace-less frosty night.

Get to know your heating system before that time when suddenly it’s an emergency. You probably already know what powers your furnace, whether you have electric, natural gas, propane, or whatever, so you’ll know what fuel to check if the system shuts down. Do you simply need a fuel refill, or is the electric power out in the neighborhood? These are relatively simple, although not always convenient, fixes.

When trying to locate the source of the loss of heat, check the thermostat to make sure it hasn’t somehow been turned down too low or broken down itself. If you have a steam heating system, turn off the unit, check the water level in the boiler and add water slowly if it is low. In a forced air heating system reset the circuit breaker if it is tripped. In hot water systems, check that all temperature and pressure gauges are set to normal and clear system of excess air. In a gas furnace, check that the pilot light is on and relight if necessary.

Obviously, you need to get the heat back on ASAP, and not only because of personal comfort. Your pipes can freeze, and there can also be structural and cosmetic damage caused to the non-winter ready parts of the home if the temperature goes too low. If there is a supplemental source of heat available, turn it up to get as much warmth as you can. Light your fireplace if you have one. Close the curtains and make sure any openings under the doors are covered with towels or blankets to keep the heat inside the home. And try to keep everybody bundled together in a warm area of the house until the heat is back on.

It’s also a good idea to know your piping system. The pipes carrying water through the house need to be protected from the cold, so cabinet doors under your sinks should be opened to allow the warm air to get to the pipes. Hang a towel between the wall and the pipes to insulate them from the cold. Turn on your faucets so the hot water drips slightly but constantly — that will keep the water inside flowing and will inhibit the buildup of ice. If pipes aren’t already covered, wrap them with insulation or newspaper and then plastic to keep out any moisture.

Be prepared in advance for this situation and enjoy a worry-free good night’s sleep knowing you will be able to act quickly and efficiently in getting your heating problems resolved. And if you can’t do it yourself, be sure to call Family Danz at 518-427-8685 for expert service.

Now that the exhilaration of the holiday season has come and gone and the doldrums of the long winter months have begun to set in, you might start to feel a little antsy for a winter break getaway from home to some far away exotic — or even a nearby and only semi-exotic — vacation spot.

You stop the mail and the paper delivery and have a neighbor keeping an eye on the house for any strange visitors who might try to take advantage of your absence, but did you take some time to consider properly preparing your HVAC system for the lack of attention while you are gone?

Start by setting your thermostats down … temperatures around 50 degrees are plenty warm enough to keep water in the pipes throughout the home from freezing and to keep your house plants thriving (well, as long as someone is around to water them occasionally…). Nobody’s home, so there’s no need to heat the house to a comfortable temperature, and you’ll save on your heating bill as an added bonus.

Even with the temperature warm enough to keep the water from freezing, turn off the water supply to the toilets and washing machine anyways. Make sure there is adequate insulation around any water pipes that are near unheated areas, because it can’t hurt to make extra sure there won’t be a frozen pipe problem while you are gone. Check that furnace filter to make sure you have a clean one installed.

Open your interior doors to keep the heat circulating to all areas inside the home. This will eliminate cold spots where a pipe can freeze or plant die from the lack of warmth. Adjust the temperature setting of your water heater down … like your furnace, the water heater doesn’t need to be set at a temperature comfortable for humans when nobody is using the water. Again, you will see an energy savings that will grow with the amount of time you spend away.

Since you have someone checking the home, place a thermometer where it can be seen so he or she can tell the temperature inside. There are also electronic devices that plug into a wall receptacle that can turn on a light if the temperature falls to a dangerous level in the home.

Once these steps are taken, there will be fewer worries on your mind … and who wants worries when they are trying to relax on a tropical beach in some remote vacation destination?

For more expert advice on keeping your HVAC system running safely all winter whether you are at home or away, call Family Danz today at 518-427-8685.

With the New Year approaching, one of the best and most profitable resolutions to make and keep is creating a maintenance calendar for your HVAC system.

This “ounce of prevention” could save hundreds of dollars in costly repairs down the road. Clip and save these helpful tips, and feel free to insert new ones from your experience that correspond to the heating and cooling needs in your own home.

JANUARY: Get a fresh notebook and begin to record your month-by-month maintenance so you’ll never have a question about where and when something was done. Kick off the year with a fresh furnace filter. Clear snow away from any outside vents. Look forward to keeping on top of all of your HVAC maintenance needs all year!

FEBRUARY: Check the valleys of your roof for ice dams and clear them away. Make sure all vents inside the home are clean and clear of clutter. Install a new furnace filter.

MARCH: Drain your water heater and remove any sediment. Install a new furnace filter.

APRIL: Spring has sprung! Inspect outside for any winter damage to roofs, siding and foundations and repair. Install that final (hopefully) furnace filter of the heating season.

MAY: Inspect your air conditioning system and have it serviced if needed.

JUNE: Uncover that AC or reinstall in the window. Insert a fresh AC filter. Enjoy the cool air as the heat of the summer returns.

JULY: Clean your AC unit. Paint your radiators, baseboards and registers while the heat is off for an all-new, fresh look.

AUGUST: Clean you AC unit. Inspect your heating system and service if needed.

SEPTEMBER: Install insulation wherever you noticed the need during the winter months. Clean your AC unit.

OCTOBER: Substitute your storm windows for your screens. Inspect all windows where they fit to the wall to make sure there are no gaps and caulk where needed. Clean your AC unit for the final time of the season and pack it away or cover it for the winter. Apply weather stripping and plastic to seal windows from the winter cold soon to come. Install a new furnace filter.

NOVEMBER: Install a new furnace filter. Prepare for power outages caused by inclement weather.

DECEMBER: Install a new furnace filter. Review your plan and update with any improvements for the next year.

Of course, the calendar is adjustable if your system only heats or only cools, and for other parts of the country — just disregard the portions that don’t pertain to your situation. And as always, for expert advice on any of your maintenance concerns, call Family Danz today at 518-427-8685.

The worst time to realize you need a plan for emergencies in the home is when you are shocked from your sleep by the smoke or carbon monoxide alarm. You’re definitely not alert, and it’s suddenly time to make decisions in a potentially life-threatening situation. Not a good combination.

So backtrack a bit to the time before the fire, fumes or whatever household situation broke the peace of the home. Nobody really wants to think about being in an emergency in their inner sanctum, but prior planning and precautions can save lives if the dreaded time comes.

Take an assessment of your living area, especially the sleeping places. If there is a fire or any emergency where you and your family need to escape quickly, figure out the easiest exit route. Don’t take for granted that simply because you’ve lived there for years everyone will know what to do when they need to leave in a hurry. Remember, the stress of the emergency doesn’t lend itself to clear thinking.

Find a safe place to meet once you are outside so you can be sure everyone got out safely. Don’t get too close to the house, but not far away either — maybe a tree or other landmark in the front yard.

Some situations will necessitate the turning off of your utilities, so know where your gas, electric and water valves are and teach all adult members the proper methods to work the shut-offs. But if you turn off the gas, wait for professionals to arrive so they can turn it back on.

Your kids can get in on the planning too by showing them how to call 911 or your own local emergency numbers. Have them posted somewhere near the telephone, because fumbling through the phonebook during the heat of an emergency isn’t a good idea. And always make sure those numbers are up to date.

Once you have your emergency plan created, write it down and review it every six months to make sure it is still viable. Practice your evacuation plan also at least twice a year … even going so far as to set off the alarm in the middle of the night to see what kind of response you get from your sleeping family.

A seriously consideration emergency plan can give much peace of mind to everyone in the household. For more information on smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, call Family Danz today at 518-427-8685.

Now is the time of year when people living in the northeastern United States will start battening down for the winter by sealing up their homes to keep the heat in and the cold out.

At the same time, they will be significantly reducing any kind of natural airflow that used to come in through the windows and doors that often remained open on the warm days. And if the heating vent ductwork hasn’t been properly or recently cleaned, firing up that furnace for the first time of the season is going to send all of the dust and what-not that has accumulated inside the ductwork out into the living areas of the home.

Duct cleaning is a paramount concern this time of year, and the professional removal of any foreign substances in the ducts – ranging from the benign small dust particles to potentially more serious mold growth — will lead to a healthier environment in the home. When your home is a refuge from the ills of the world, you certainly don’t want to get sick from breathing your own household air.

Tired of uncomfortably dry and cracking skin, waking up in the morning with a sore scratchy throat, and getting shocked each time you walk across the carpet and touch something metal? It’s time for a humidifier. Not only will you feel better, but that extra moisture in the air also helps your heating system run at better efficiency. It reduces the amount of dust and contaminants in the air, and ultimately in your lungs.

Still not enough comfort? Well, it’s your home so you deserve to pamper yourself with an air cleaner that actually removes pollutants from the air. But an air cleaner becomes less of a frill and more of a necessity if any member of the family has allergies to dust, pet dander and other household contaminants, or if there are elderly persons or infants in the home who especially need to be kept free from germs.

Make sure you have a carbon monoxide detector, too. We’ve discussed it before, but the message can never be stressed enough. Carbon monoxide can kill so take proper precautions before there’s any problem.

For professional advice on all your indoor air quality concerns, call Family Danz today at 518-427-8685.