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www.FredericksburgParent.NeT 15 Your home's HVaC will be more efficient and last longer if you receive bi-annual maintenance. One check for the cooling season and one check for the heating season. Sponsored Material Join us for the live conversation on Q: What is the most common plumbing mistake you see people making? There are four mistakes we see more than others. • Not having a leak repaired right away when they no ce a problem. • DIY/homeowner correc ng problems themselves and not using the proper materials, such as connec ng galvanized pipes to copper pipes without using a dielectric union that will keep it from corroding and crea ng addi onal problems. • Wai ng un l the water heater leaks before replacing it versus having it checked annually and replaced before the leak happens, possibly causing major damage to your home. • Turning the water heater temperature too high and crea ng the dan- ger of ge ng burned or scalded. The Department of Energy recom- mends se ng your water heater to 120 degrees Fahrenheit. (A big safety concern) Q: Going into the colder months, what steps should we be taking to prep our homes? Taking steps to prep your home for the colder months will poten ally save you money and protect your home in the future. Here's what should be done: • Turn off the water spigots, the water source to the outside of the home, as well as remove the hoses from the spigots to make sure they don't freeze, break and leak when they thaw. • Make sure all gas appliances are in proper working order. If you have any form of gas in your home, you need carbon monoxide detectors in working order both near any gas appliances and on each level of the home to keep the occupants safe from possible dangers. • Run fans in reverse. Switching to a clockwise rota on circulates the warm air pooled near the ceiling back into the living space. • Have a winter maintenance checkup performed to make sure the hea ng system is performing effi ciently. • Install storm doors and windows to assist with sealing dra s and reducing air fl ow. • Check that the home's insula on and infi ltra on areas to the home are up to the tasks of keeping the home comfortable and as effi - cient as possible. Do you have ques ons for Total Comfort Hea ng, Air & Plumb- ing? Be sure to join us during our Facebook Live interview this month! Details to follow on our social media pages: Facebook: @fredericksburgparent Twitter: @FredParent Instagram: @fredparentmagazine a sk t h e e x p e rt Q: How often are we supposed to be changing our air filters? Depending on the fi lter type the answer could be as short as one month for standard fi lters or up to 6 months with media type fi lters. Changing your fi lters may possibly be the single most important thing you can do for your home. Think about all the pollen, dust, dander and smog that is fl oa ng around in the outside air. Your HVAC fi lter is what protects you from redistribu ng it back through your home. The air fi lter is also the fi rst line of defense against larger objects such as bits of loose insula on being pulled into the system. When a fi lter gets clogged with these types of contaminates, it becomes hard for your unit to distribute air. This makes it run harder, become more ineffi cient, and reduces the life span it was designed to reach. " Excellent service provided ... installing our new AC unit! Very courteous and professional. Would highly recommend them without hesitation. - Karen R.