Why Solar? Why Daikin?
My name is John Morris with Morris Heat and Air. For years, I have dedicated my time and efforts to learning more about the heating and cooling industry. In this blog, I would like to share with you why being a heating and air conditioning contractor isn't enough to supply customers with quality air conditioning services that minimize the month to month cost on the utility end. To further your understanding as a reader, I will discuss several aspects of what we do at Morris Heat and Air. We will cover ACCA involvement, Daikin and Goodman products, BPI Certifications, Solar Systems, NABCEP Certifications, and IECC implementation.
When we stare into the vast realm of the internet or gaze into the local area phone book in search of someone to fix our air conditioner or furnace, we find hundreds, if not thousands of heat and air companies advertising their services. If we do a little homework, we can find reviews and determine if the company is trustworthy. However, reviews have become so much more in the heating and air conditioning realm so it is not always a good determination. I have seen companies pop up with tons of good reviews, but have seen their work and questioned why they are so heavily rated when they cannot even diagnose problems with peoples' homes correctly or size a duct system correctly. Most consumers are unaware of the actual standards that exist for heating and cooling contractors and never think to look any deeper into heating and cooling contractors than their next emergency breakdown and who can get to their home the fastest. Heating and Air Conditioning contractors are all different, but when it comes to being the best, there actually is a right and wrong way to do things in this industry. So, for me, there really are companies that are better than others and they are very easy to identify if you do a little homework online. For starters, ACCA or Air Conditioning Contractors of America is an organization that has spent a large amount of time and effort into studying construction materials that exist and how heat penetrates through these materials. They have formulated a process that we use to determine what size air conditioner needs to be on a home as well as the size of the ducts required to deliver air throughout the home evenly and efficiently without a lot of resistance to the airflow. This information is found within ACCA's Manual J and ACCA's Manual D. Scientifically, I can determine what size air conditioner and heater is required to heat and cool a home to a certain setpoint under given outdoor conditions. For instance, I can determine what size equipment is necessary to ensure an indoor air temperature of 70 degrees when it is 96 degrees outside based upon the orientation of your home, shading, and the construction materials of your home. There is no difference in the calculation. It is essentially a scientific fact that cannot be disputed by another way. Knowing this, I always recommend or suggest that a homeowner hires a heat and air company that is a member of ACCA and implements their standards in their business practice. Morris Heat and Air is a member of ACCA and implements ACCA's Standards in their business practice. Because we implement ACCA's Standards, we are able to better serve our customers by accurately diagnosing problems with a home's central heat and air conditioning system. Believe it or not, I go into thousands of homes every year and can honestly say that all duct systems are typically not designed to ACCA Standards. This is and will always be a problem and we can fix it.
When it comes to Equipment, there is no doubt in my mind that Daikin and Goodman products are the best in the industry. There are a few reasons for my opinion and they are as follows. Daikin is the largest heating and air conditioning manufacturer in the world and Goodman is the largest manufacturer in the United States. Because these companies sell more products than other manufacturers, they make more money. Because these companies are financially stable, their infrastructure supercedes that of other companies. They are far better than other manufacturers in many ways that include readily available parts, more distributors, longer warranties, cheaper prices, and technical support of their products. When I go to choose something that I feel comfortable selling, I want the longest warranty for the cheapest price and the least amount of headaches. There is, in my mind, no reason to wait 2 weeks for a part. I have experienced this with several manufacturers that only have 1 distributor in the Tulsa area. Goodman has 5 to 7 distributors in and around the Tulsa area. Also, our Goodman distributors are open 6 days a week when other distributors who well other products are only open 5 days a week. This creates a far better accomodation for the customer. There is nothing that I hate more than to see a customer sweating in the middle of the summer waiting for a Major brand part to arrive that costs 5 times more than our Goodman and Daikin parts. I feel that Daikin and Goodman accomodate their customers rather than the customers having to accomodate the poor infrastructure of a failing manufacturer that is uninvested in their local area. I feel so strongly about the reliability and availability of Goodman and Daikin products that I began offering Lifetime Labor Warranties that cover, in full, any breakdown at any time. We have over 3,000 Goodman and Daikin products installed since 2006 and as of 2017 we have had less than 25 warranty issues. 17 of those warranty issues were simply capacitors on homes that went unsealed and untested at the time of installation at the homeowner's request.
An unsealed and untested house can offer a whole boatload of problems for a homeowner. The sad thing is that most homeowners do not associate these problems with the home. Most homeowners associate the problems that result from an unsealed home and duct system with the heating and air conditioning equipment. Building Performance Institute, or BPI, set standards for their contractors and it is highly recommended that when you choose a heat and air company, you choose a heat and air company that has BPI Certified Technicians on staff. Many contractors simply look over problems that exist within homes and focus on only the heating and cooling equipment. If the customer is uncomfortable, most heating and air conditioning companies resolve to simply increase the size of the heating and cooling equipment. The bad thing about increasing the size of the equipment is that it costs more to run the appliance and if you cannot accomodate the larger system with a porperly sized duct system, it adds more stress on the equipment which causes the equipment to breakdown more frequently. As a BPI Certified individual myself, I can honestly say that most home comfort issues are a direct result of a duct system and home being too leaky. Once again, we have standards that lay out the leakage allowances for both the home and duct systems. Morris Heat and Air is invested in several pieces of equipment that help us to better understand the condition of a home. Among these are Aeroseal's Duct Pressurization and Sealing Machine, Retrotec duct blasting equipment, Retrotec blower door testing equipment and Energy Conservatory's Pressure Pan device. I am a firm believer that if I can just conduct a BPI Certified Energy Analysis and ACCA Manual J and ACCA Manual D on your home, I can fix your home. A sealed home offers so many benefits, it really makes no sense to not explore opportunities to allow a BPI Certified individual to test your home and come up with a game plan to improve the performance of it. Unlike air conditioners, sealing a home and insulating a home correctly never uses electricity, never breaks down, and never requires maintenance. These kind of repairs are usually the best bang for your buck and are highly encouraged. The benefits are tremendous and include longer lasting heating and cooling equipment, less required maintenance, less frequent breakdowns and lower utility costs. So when you are looking to get your air conditioner fixed, be sure to find a heat and air contractor that is BPI Certified. Otherwise, you run the risk of less professional advice that is incapable of diagnosing problems due to ignorance. You can ask the contractor you call or you can explore BPI's website. Keep in mind that the National Code Council sets the same standards as BPI in their publication IECC or International Energy Conservation Code.
Last but not least, it always helps to have a contractor on your side that can fix your air conditioner, make it energy efficient and can come back at the end of the week and offset the power it uses with a small source of power production like a solar system or wind turbine. NABCEP or North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners lays out the standards of power production and teaches it's contractors to determine how power is being consumed and how to offset power usage with a source of power production. You can ask your contractor or look on NABCEP's website to find one in your area. I have saved homeowners a ton of money on a month to month basis by simply suggesting improvements to their home that pay for themselves in energy savings. Things like replacing the pool pump or replacing the incandescent light bulbs with LED light bulbs. Other customers have benefitted by downsizing their hot water tank from a 5500 watt 50 gallon water heater to a 1500 watt 19 gallon water heater. At the end of the day, if your contractor doesnt bring this to your attention, how will you ever know why your utility bill is so high. Even if you believe your utility bill is low, if your contractor can save you $10 per month by making an energy efficiency upgrade that may cost less than $200, it is worth it to know about it for the long haul.
I hope this helps you to better understand why we do what we do and what sets us apart from other companies that claim to be the best heat and air contractors in the business. The next time you consider hiring a heat and air professional in Northeast Oklahoma, please call Morris Heat and Air at (918) 734-0040. If you live outside of Oklahoma, make sure to find a contractor that is a member of ACCA, has BPI Certified individuals on staff and follows NABCEP Standards.