{"id":1067,"date":"2017-02-06T11:00:22","date_gmt":"2017-02-06T16:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/?p=1067"},"modified":"2017-02-03T17:28:14","modified_gmt":"2017-02-03T22:28:14","slug":"groundhog-vs-groundhog-be-ready-more-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/groundhog-vs-groundhog-be-ready-more-winter\/","title":{"rendered":"Groundhog vs. Groundhog: No Matter Who\u2019s Right\u2014Be Ready for More Winter!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Weather_Seasons_Outdoors_iStock_000051471510_Full-me.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-1068\" src=\"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Weather_Seasons_Outdoors_iStock_000051471510_Full-me-300x268.jpg\" alt=\"child-welcomes-spring\" width=\"300\" height=\"268\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Weather_Seasons_Outdoors_iStock_000051471510_Full-me-300x268.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Weather_Seasons_Outdoors_iStock_000051471510_Full-me.jpg 663w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Here in Vermont and Northeast New York, we\u2019re divided between the two most famous Groundhog Day prognosticators. On the one hand, there\u2019s Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania. On the other hand, there\u2019s Staten Island Chuck in\u2026 Staten Island. Sometimes the two make similar predictions. This year it was different. We would love to think that Staten Island Chuck is right, <a href=\"http:\/\/newyork.cbslocal.com\/2017\/02\/02\/groundhog-day-2017-predictions\/\" target=\"_blank\">since he predicted an early spring<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But let\u2019s be honest: Groundhog Day accuracy isn\u2019t something you should use to plan for your home heating needs over the next six weeks. There\u2019s still cold weather ahead, and you want to make sure that your heating system will make it through to whenever it is that spring comes to the rescue. We have some advice on how to do this.<!--more--><\/p>\n<h3>If It\u2019s Time to Replace Your Heater, Arrange for the Service Now<\/h3>\n<p>This is probably the most important consideration to make. A heater that permanently breaks down on you during the winter cold\u2014no matter how close it may be to spring\u2014is a serious problem. In some homes with children and the elderly, it can even be life-threatening. Ask yourself a few questions about your heater that will help you determine <a href=\"\/heating\" target=\"_blank\">if it\u2019s time to replace it<\/a>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>How old is the heater? <\/strong>Different heaters have different service life expectancies. But if a heater is over 20 years old, then it\u2019s definitely <em>too old<\/em>. Have it professionally replaced as soon as you can.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Is the heater much noisier than before?<\/strong> A large increase in noise from a furnace, boiler, or heat pump often means the parts are so worn down that it\u2019s better to put in a new heating system.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Are energy bills rising for no apparent reason?<\/strong> Keep a close watch on your energy bills each winter. If they are rising steadily, and it isn\u2019t because of increased use or higher energy costs, then the heater is probably in a decline that can only be stopped by replacing it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Are you calling for repairs too often?<\/strong> More than once a year is too often. Paying more than $500 in repair bills is also a warning that the system should be replaced rather than to keep on with repairs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Continue to Change the Filter<\/h3>\n<p>For heat pumps and furnaces, it\u2019s vital that they have clean air filters. If the filter becomes heavily clogged with debris, which will take between 1 to 3 months for most systems, it will place heavy stress on the blower motor and will create a drop in airflow around the house. Keep a close watch on the filter and change when necessary.<\/p>\n<h3>Never Delay with Repair Calls<\/h3>\n<p>At the first signs of a heater that isn\u2019t working right\u2014unusual sounds, acrid smells from the vents, cold spots around the house, an abrupt spike in heating bills, the system shutting down early\u2014call our heating technicians for assistance. Don\u2019t ignore the problem and hope it goes away (it won\u2019t) or attempt to fix the issue yourself. The faster you have the problem professionally investigated, the more likely you\u2019ll stop a bigger problem.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>Red Rock Mechanical LLC <a href=\"\/contact\/contact\" target=\"_blank\">offers service to Plattsburgh, NY and throughout Northeast New York and Northwest Vermont<\/a>. We\u2019ve been offering exceptional heating, cooling, and plumbing for over 23 years.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s still cold weather ahead, and you want to make sure that your heating system will make it through to whenever it is that spring comes to the rescue.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[76],"tags":[122,99,91],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1067"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1070,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1067\/revisions\/1070"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.redrockmechanical.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}