Want Reliable Hot Water? Check Your Heating System’s PTR Valve Regularly

Regular checks and services to its PTR valve, and replacement every 5 years as stated on side of hot water will make your home’s water heating system last twice or thrice as long. Checks are easily done, though you must take safety precautions. Service It Australia offers affordable repairs anywhere in Melbourne.

Introduction

Winter is coming to Melbourne – and the just the time when your house’s hot water system gives up on you, leaving unwashed dishes in the sink, unwashed clothes piling up, and unshaven husbands… did your PTR valve just breakdown?

A few simple checks done regularly will make sure that your home’s heating system works for twice or thrice as many years than otherwise, and you don’t have to call services every now and then. This is more urgent if your hot water comes from a storage tank system, where the risk of pressure accumulating can be high. Continuous flow systems are a lower risk, but still need checks.

How Do I Test My Heating System’s (PTR) Valve?

PTR stands for Pressure, Temperature Relief. The PTR valve is the one that makes sure your storage tank heater does not burst because of overheating and a build-up of steam pressure. It’s easy to check if it is working fine.

1. Check for leaks: if hot water is coming out of the outlet pipe, your PTR valve needs to be serviced or changed, else your heater will not generate water that’s hot enough.
2. Flush it: Put on thick, long pants, gloves and shoes. Clean up the area below the PTR valve. Stand as far as possible and lift its handle. Extremely hot water should rush out. If it seems stuck, don’t force it. It probably needs servicing/replacing as it may be clogged or rusted. Close it. Hot water should stop flowing immediately.

How Often Should I Test My Heating System’s PTR Valve?

Your heater’s manufacturer will have given you a manual, with advice on how frequently to test your PTR Valve. Usually it is six months, but you may need more frequent tests if the water is hard.

The manual, if you haven’t lost it, might also tell you when to replace it, since they come with a limited life. Usually, you are recommended to change it once every two or three years.

My PTR Valve Keeps Leaking. Why?

Your system needs to give space to the steam to expand as it becomes hot. The PTR valve helps discharge 3-7% of the hot water so that excess pressure does not build up as steam accumulates. A faulty valve can cause doming: a bulging of the heater as the metal expands under the force of heat. This reduces the life of your residential system.

If the hot water is hard, salts may accumulate in the outlet, adding to the pressure. Too much pressure on the valve may cause it to fail altogether. Other failure can be because its parts have worn away with use. All this causes leaking, and therefore insufficient heating.

Conclusion

Keeping your PTR Valves healthy gives your house hot water when you want it. At Service It Australia, we offer affordable repair and replacement services, as well as annual maintenance contracts anywhere in Melbourne. We’re just a call away.

Author Bio

Mark O'Brien set up Service It Australia with a focus on heater repairs and maintenance, anywhere in Melbourne. He specialises in gas hot water systems, and also solar hot water systems.

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Making the Best Use of Your Evaporative Cooler

Heating pumps can be the most energy-efficient cooling systems but most homes are fitted with evaporative coolers. An evaporative cooler is a box shaped appliance that lets air pass through. The fan inside pulls in the air from outside the house and emits it into the house. The cool air that comes through it comes from the water stored at the bottom of the appliance. To effectively cool the house, it is best to keep the pads, at the bottom of the appliance, damp and not soaked.

It is easy to adjust the air the flows from the cooler. This usually depends on the air balance and the climate control in the home. There is a big chance of your home getting humid and so you need to ensure that the volume of air that flows out of your home is the same as that being pumped in.

The best way to achieve less humidity in your home is to leave a window slightly open a when you use the cooler. This allows the perfect adjustment of air pressure inside the room.

Getting the right size

When it comes to choosing the right sized cooler for your home, you need to understand how many cubic feet of air is being pumped in per minute. You can do this by either checking the manual for details or calculating the square footage of your home by an average height of the ceiling. Divide the result by two and you get the right size for your home.

Maintenance Is Must!

It is always recommended to service your cooler twice a year. Usually these services are done prior to the cooling season and midway through the summer. But the oldest trick in the book for extended life and efficiency of any appliance is regular maintenance. Make sure you clean out the frames and change out the old pads for new ones

• Painting the cooler frames ensures great protection during any weather
• Collection of water in the cooler can get stagnant and so flushing it out will keep it clean
• Leaks can cause it to lose its potency, and so make sure you change the pipes and clean it
• Worn out wiring can short circuit the cooler and can be hazardous. Ensure that they are well kept. And that the motor belt is running smooth
• A cooler only works efficiently if the pads are damp. Changing the pads seasonally can improve its life to a great extent

Low on energy usage; high on efficiency

You can purchase an evaporative cooler thermostat, available at any hardware store. These thermostats turn off when the temperature of the room has reached a certain level and switches off. This prolongs the life of the appliance and makes it amazingly cost and energy effective.

When using an evaporative cooler, using the central air conditioning unit at the same time isn't advisable. This causes the two systems to work against each other. If you do decide to use the air conditioner make sure you do not keep windows or doors open as the unit works harder and raises your electricity bills.

About the Author: Mark O'Brien is the head of Service It Australia. They are perfect to install any evaporative cooling systems in your home. They won't let you down and have excellent results. Call them for more details and information about evaporative cooler and heating system service in Melbourne.

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Maintaining Evaporative Coolers 101

When you invest in an expensive appliance like an evaporative cooler you need to maintain it. Maintaining the evaporative cooler can help it run smoothly for a long time and to run efficiently.

Homes can get warm during the summer and the best way to keep them cool is to let the freeze flow and changing the temperature on the thermostat. During cold nights you can maybe use the fireplace, change the temperature on the thermostat.

This way you can save costs and it can save output of the cooling system. There are many ways you can keep your home the right temperature during any season.

Here are Some Simple Tips That Can Help You Maintain Your Cooler by Yourself.

Clean Those Filters:

There can be a lot of dust and pollen that accumulates and clogs up the cooling system. Your system works harder when the filters are all clogged up and this stress can slowly ruin the evaporative cooling system. You need to replace the air filters at least twice a year to keep the cooler working at full capacity and giving up the best quality air.

Check The Ducted Systems:

These systems are the best when it comes to the weather in Australia. These systems can bring in small leaks and cause heat to slip through. These leaks can just ruin the cool air that keeps coming in and as well as ruin the evaporative cooling system.

Clean Those Vents:

Vents are the main source of airflow from your cooling system into your home. Vents tend to accumulate a lot of dust and other rubble can hinder the air flow. You have to clean those vents regularly for a better functioning evaporative cooler. Cleaned up vents can help the cooling system push out clean air. The dust can get pushed out and into the home which can cause allergies.

Service Calls:

You have to get a licensed professional to come in and service your cooler at least once a year. They can check for any faults and even improve on your cooler for a better cooling machine.

You have to get a licensed professional to come in and service your cooler at least once a year. They can check for any faults and even improve on your cooler for a better cooling machine.

And if you sense there is something wrong with your evaporative cooler do not wait for the last minute to call in a professional.

Lastly, do not hesitate to ask your technician for advice on how your system works. It is always better to know more about the cooling system and help it function smoothly. This will increase the shelf life of the cooler by many years.

Clean Those Compressors:

Evaporative coolers rely on compressors. They work best when they don’t have anything obstructing their flow. So when the seasons pass by, check your cooler and clear out the rubble that hinders the flow. This will keep the cooler running smoothly and will be worth the investment.

Thermostats:

The best way to save energy is to work with a programmable thermostat. With these thermostats you can fiddle with the temperature and turn down the heat instead of turning on the cooler.
This way you can turn it up when needed. This way you’re saving energy and cost.

About The Author:

Mark O'Brien is the managing director of Service it Australia. When it comes to cooling and heating systems, Service It Australia has some of the best people on the job. Call them if you need advice and some of the best people to work on your evaporative cooler.

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Aquamax hot water

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Why You Need Ducted Heating in Melbourne?

As a home owner, a time will come when you have to replace your home’s heating system when the current one has fully ran it is course or get one installed in a newly built house. In both these circumstances, you will not only have to decide on the best heating system to use but also weigh up all the pros and cons in a bid to identify the best one for you. As a company specializing in the installation of ducted heating in Melbourne we have some important knowledge that we would like to share with you to make your decision much easier as well as provide the value that you are looking for.

In our experience, we have installed a variety of heating systems over our company’s existence. Below we will look at why homeowners stand to gain by opting for gas ducted heating instead of the other options available.

Why Choose Ducted Heating?

Gas ducted heating is the best for homes today. It is the most efficient when it comes to heating up spaces as compared to other heating methods. It has also been observed that ducted heating systems, usually heat your home without negatively the quality and condition of the air within. With these systems, you can forget about the drying effect that electric heating is associated with. Most importantly, ducted heating has the least level of greenhouse gas emissions as compared to electric and other fuel based heating systems.

Efficiency

If you are looking for the most efficient way to keep your home warm in cold weather, then ducted heating systems are your best bet. Reverse cycle heating systems have been known to lose their efficiency as the outside weather gets colder. This is, however, unheard of when it comes to ducted heating systems. This is very important as you want a system that will be able to keep up with the outside temperatures without consuming a lot of energy. This cannot be said for electrical heating systems. Service it Australia can install a highly efficient gas ducted heating system in Melbourne.

Gas ducted heating systems are designed for the most efficient use. This is seen in the fact that it is possible to divert heating to certain rooms depending on the home owner’s needs and preferences. This means that fuel is only used in heating up important rooms depending on the occupants needs. Call us for our Brivis ducted heating service Melbourne and enjoy the most efficient home heating system.

Over and above the benefits listed above, ducted heating also comes with simple and straight forward installation without numerous additions and installations to the entire house taking up valuable space.
If you are having trouble with your current heating system and are contemplating getting it fixed, take a minute and think about how much you could save by installing ducted heating. Even with the start-up cost you can be sure that with rising electricity cost in Australia, you will be able to recoup your investment from the savings on running costs.

For more information call us on 1300 665 137.

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3 Cost Saving Tips to Manage Energy Bills during winter

Winter in Melbourne is associated with cold mornings and the weather is characterized by amounts of rainfall as well gusty winds making the season a lot colder. So people, in defense to the unbearable cold prefer to stay home comfortably, tucking in a warm blanket while the heaters are set to full capacity. As a result of the comfort of their ducted heating in Melbourne , heating bills rises. People will end up paying a huge sum. To help you manage heating bills, here are three simple tips you can follow:

1. Regulate your thermostat. Studies point out a one percent decrease in winter heating bills in every eight hours of setting the thermostat of your heating and cooling in Melbourne device by one degree lower. It may sound inefficient since one percent cannot actually help reduce a large sum from your billing. But getting idea from this theory, you can save five percent of your bill by regulating your thermostat to five degrees lower when you sleep. You will be tucked under the covers and enjoy warm comforter once you sleep which means cold is a lot tolerable even if you decrease the thermostat say from 70 degrees to 65 degrees.
   
   If you are not staying at home, say you are going to work or you are having a winter vacation, setting your ducted heating thermostat to the lowest level possible or about 10 to 15 degrees lower is a good cost-cutting mechanism.


2. Check for air leaks. One of the major cause of the rise of your energy bills is air leaks. They are wasting your home energy consumption and let you pay a bounty despite the inefficiency. So it is important to check your device for hot water and heating and cooling Melbourne equipment if they are sealed properly and do not have air leaks to cut atleast10 percent of your energy consumption cost.
   
   Look for a heater repairs in Melbourne to help you when you find leaks. There are a lot of experts that can help you in sealing your home efficiently. Service It Australia is one of the best heating and cooling repair based in Melbourne They can also install some weather stripping when you find out that your stripping has already been worn by time of use.
   
   Service It Australia is one of the best heating and cooling repair service providers based in Melbourne. The service provider specializes in ducted heaters, gas hot water, space heating and evaporative coolers.


3. Ask for help. If you do not find any problems with your heating and cooling equipment but still getting large sum of monthly heating bills, you can call Service It Australia to do an intensive checkup of your unit. Your heater may need gas pressure adjustments, air filter replacement or just a regular maintenance. An expert’s evaluation will help you identify and fix the problems in the shortest time possible.

Prevent heating bills and energy bills increase during the winter. Make a move to implement low-cost enhancements to your heating and cooling device. Increase your energy efficiency. Follow these three simple tips for excellent and cost saving heating!

For heating and cooling Melbourne problems, contact one of the most excellent service providers to date. Call Service It Australia at 1300 66 51 37 now!

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Maintenance of Evaporative Cooler is the Key to Efficiency and Longevity

The qualified professionals at Service It Australia recommend regular servicing of your Evaporative cooling system in Melbourne and in the surrounding regions. When the weather conditions are more severe, it is vital that you have your unit checked-out more frequently.

In order to keep the system running smoothly, it is a great idea to have your cooling system evaluated at the beginning of the summer season. Regular maintenance of your home's evaporative cooling unit prevents it from breaking down and thus needing greater evaporative cooling service and possibly more expensive repairs. Also, your cooling system will thank you!

What Are the Signs That You Definitely Need Evaporative Cooling Service?

1. Obvious Water Stagnation 
2. A Rise in Water Temperatures to a Range Between 25 and 50 Degrees C.; and/or 
3. Dust and Other Apparent Bacteria Which May Lead to Legionella and Various Other Diseases

We Provide Specific Evaporative Cooling Service to Our Customers. They Are as Follows:

1.  Servicing and Disinfecting of the Water Inlet, Reservoir and Outlet Systems
2.  Motor Repair, Servicing and Replacement of Cooling Systems
3.  Fan Repair and Maintenance and Replacement of the Fan, if needed

Our servicing of both heating and cooling systems involves an appropriate analysis by well-trained technicians, who respond courteously and professionally here at Service It Australia in Melbourne. The company maintains the highest standards concerning our worker's quality of training and measured competency. We provide only the very best to the people of Melbourne and its surrounding areas.

We at Service It Australia work with high industry standards, concerning the areas of installation in addition to servicing. Whatever your needs, we are the very best at maintaining and caring for any and all brands of heating or cooling systems. 

Our cooling services are always available from the experts at Service It Australia by calling 1300 66 51 37 or by contacting us on the Internet (serviceitaustralia). We will be happy to help you deal with any heating or cooling problems that you may have. We will respond to your needs promptly. We stay on top of all service requests with a quick return call. Looking forward to speaking with you in the future.

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