FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Today marks the first day of spring, and while we can enjoy milder temperatures, the TCEQ says now is the time to prepare our living and outdoor spaces for the eventual arrival of summer heat. The agencys Take Care of Texas program makes it easier for everyone to do their part to help conserve our states natural resources, and save money at the same time.

As Texans, we all take on a personal responsibility to our state, says TCEQ Commissioner Zak Covar. Preparing for the summer heat now, with these simple, cost-effective water and energy conservation measures, will help us all to do our part to Take Care of Texas.

Lawn and garden watering can make up nearly 40 percent of a Texans total household water use; but if you prepare your yard this spring, you can do your part to save water.

Fine-tune your irrigation system. Properly zone the system so turf areas are watered separately from the landscape and flowerbeds. Schedule each irrigation zone to account for the type of sprinkler, sun exposure, and soil type. Check sprinkler heads for dirt and debris that clogs the nozzle and adjust the heads to avoid watering pavement.

Capture spring showers and use them to water your landscape. Rainwater is better for plants than chemically treated water and its free.

Add mulch and compost. Mulch helps prevent erosion, suppress weeds, moderate soil temperature, and adds nutrients to your lawn and garden. Compost serves as a soil conditioner that will help improve your garden and reduce your water usage. By using mulch and compost on lawns and gardens, Texans could reduce the need for outdoor watering by 30 to 60 percent.

Use native plants. Plants native to Texas are beautiful; and they typically require less water, pesticides, fertilizers, and maintenancesaving you time and money. The deep root systems of many native plants also increase the soil's capacity to store water and reduce runoff. In addition, native plants attract a variety of birds, and butterflies, by providing diverse habitats and food sources.

In Texas, cooling and heating accounts for as much as 50 percent of annual home energy expenses. This spring, you can do your part to prepare your home for the summer heat while helping to keep our air clean.

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Take Care of Texas offers tips to save water, energy and money this spring

Etobicoke Guardian

Ontario Power Authority (OPA) officials are sounding the alarm after an Etobicoke resident reported she received a solicitation call to inspect her furnace from someone purporting to be with the authority.

The OPA co-ordinates province-wide conservation efforts, plans the electricity system long-term and contracts for clean electricity sources.

The authority does not inspect residents heating or cooling systems or solicit participation in its programs by phone or at the door, a spokesperson said Tuesday.

We want to make sure all residents are aware the OPA takes very seriously unauthorized use of its name, logos, brands and program information, OPA spokesperson John Cannella said. We do not call consumers to solicit participation in our saveONenergy for Home programs. Our programs do not require door-to-door sales or calls, or the inspection of any heating and cooling equipment.

Etobicoke Centre MPP Donna Cansfields office confirmed a constituent recently called her office to report the solicitation call. Cansfields office then contacted the OPA.

The three-term Liberal MPP said Wednesday she has received a solicitation call at her door to inspect her furnace.

I had someone actually come to my door about my furnace who claimed to represent the Ontario government, she said. I found that fascinating, obviously. When I started to grill him, he took off.

Cansfield said she repeatedly cautions her constituents to be on the lookout for fraud and misrepresentation whenever they receive a solicitation call or knock on their door.

Her advice?

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Ontario Power Authority urges residents to be wary if someone wants to inspect your furnace

Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) March 18, 2014

Heating and air repair company, Bardi Heating Cooling and Plumbing has expanded their technical staff to serve the growing needs of its five-county service area. The technicians, Johnathon Ward, Alex Bond and Corey Davis, increase the growing Bardi staff to nearly 80 employees. The new technicians agree that joining a company where its own employees voted it as an "AJC Top Workplace" three years running was an appealing factor in working for Bardi. The technicians started with the company on March 3, 2014.

The technicians will be responsible for installing new furnaces and air conditioners and additional HVAC accessories including germicidal UV lights, whole home media filters, humidifiers and dehumidifiers and programmable digital thermostats. Technicians also perform emergency services, inspections and planned maintenance on heating and cooling systems.

Bardis technicians are certified by the North American Technician Excellence (NATE). The HVAC company conducts thorough background checks and ensures all employees are drug-free, including abstaining from cigarette smoke. In fact, Bardi was one the first heating and air conditioning contractor to become a certified Drug-Free Work Place (DFWP) in the state of Georgia.

Expanding our technician team allows us to quickly respond to both emergencies and scheduled maintenance appointments, and accommodate homeowners during service calls so they never feel rushed, said Gresham Ard, Residential General Manager at Bardi. We look forward to expanding our services and providing our customers with timely installations, repairs and inspections.

Bardi Heating, Cooling and Plumbing is a family-owned HVAC and plumbing company in Atlanta. Founded in 1989 by Alex and Susan Bardi, the company has been providing the Atlanta area with quality HVAC services for almost 25 years. Bardi also offers plumbing repairs and services, and is home to an experienced management team as well as an outstanding team of NATE certified technicians, whose number one priority is to keep their customers satisfied by always, always, always doing the right thing. Bardi provides free electronics pick-up and recycling on all service calls benefiting Nobis Works. For more information about furnace repair, visit bardi.com or call 770-263-5355.

The rest is here:
Atlanta Heating and Cooling Company Adds to Technical Staff to Increase Customer Support in Expanding Service Area

Scottsdale AZ (PRWEB) March 16, 2014

Although its efficient, reliable and durable, the Trane XR15 Heat Pump may not be the right fit for every Scottsdale home. But thats ok. Its also not the only Trane Air Conditioning listed in the American Cooling and Heating 2014 winter, spring, summer or fall HVAC super sale. Every Trane system in stock is on sale, priced right, ready to move quickly, and fully backed by the ACH lifetime limited workmanship warranty.

ACH is on-call 24/7 to ensure that Arizona residents get the quickest possible heating and cooling installation, services or maintenance, along with the best A/C pricing too.

The Trane XR15 Heat Pump

It may not be the right size for every AZ home, but for many Scottsdale, Phoenix and other regional residents, the XR15 is the perfect heating and cooling comfort solution. And ACH has it priced as a "best value" heat pump system.

An American Cooling and Heating installed Trane XR15 heat pump provides economical operation at 1/3 again better energy efficiency than a 13 SEER model. Its a small up-step in pricing that effectively lowers the cost of heating and cooling a Scottsdale, AZ home. Plus add Trane CleanEffects advanced air filtration system. Ensure better air quality by removing as much dust, pollen and other irritants as possible.

Take a look at the features linked to the XR15 heat pump models:

For a full list of available models and the associated cooling specs, see the attached Trane XR15 HP spec-spreadsheet image.

Other Popular Trane Heating and Cooling Products

American Cooling and Heating 2014 Air Conditioning Sale Back By the ACH Workmanship Warranty

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Trane XR15 Heat Pump, an ACH 2014 Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall Air Conditioning Comfort Solution Throughout Arizona

Critical research on Minnesota's aquatic pests and food supply is being conducted in a century-old tractor garage and a condemned workshop on the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus.

The school's bee laboratory is lodged in a small, unfinished cinder block structure tucked away on a muddy road on the northwest edge of the campus.

The Minnesota Aquatic Invasive Species Research Center is studying ways to control carp and zebra mussels with Rube Goldberg-like contraptions housed in the tractor garage built in 1911.

Both labs are headed by world-renowned researchers: Marla Spivak at the bee lab and Peter Sorensen at the invasive species lab.

"They put the best minds to work on two very problematic issues in a garage and a shed!" an incredulous Rep. Alice Hausman, DFL-St. Paul, said last week.

University officials are asking lawmakers to help them remedy that situation this year. They have requested $6 million from the state to help pay for a $6 million upgrade at the invasive species lab and a new, $3 million bee lab. (The U would pay the remaining $3 million of the projects' costs.)

Those two labs are small fish in the U's application for $232.7 million from this year's state bonding bill for public works projects. Yet they are examples of the challenges faced by many projects vying for state money.

Hausman, chairwoman of the House Capital Investments Committee, is championing the labs, saying she would include them in the bonding bill she plans to introduce this month.

Gov. Mark Dayton recommended allocating money for the two projects in his $986 million bonding proposal.

And Hausman's Senate counterpart, Capital Investment Committee Chairman Sen. LeRoy Stumpf, DFL-Plummer, said both labs "should be funded."

Original post:
UMN professors say they need $6M to continue important work

TORONTO, ONTARIO (PRWEB) March 13, 2014

AirPlus Heating & Cooling Inc., today announced that it is now an authorized dealer of Trane branded equipment in the Greater Toronto Area.

Since commencing operations under new management in February 2013, AirPlus Heating & Cooling Inc. has made significant improvements in how they do business. In a continued effort to improve, they are thrilled to offer their customers AirPlus Home Comfort solutions that include a top of the line brand such as Trane heating and air conditioning equipment.

The Trane brand and equipment aligns with AirPlus philosophy by being of superior quality, providing high energy efficiency and significant ROI. said Bill Watson, President. The addition of Trane to the group of products we represent will help us to continue deliver first rate professional, customer oriented, service that is backed by a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee.

About Trane Inc. Trane is a global provider of heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, as well as building management systems and controls. Its offerings include service and parts support and financial solutions. They employ more than 29,000 people at 104 manufacturing locations in 28 countries, and have annual sales of more than $8 billion. In addition to their activity in HVAC systems, Trane is involved in energy conservation and renewable energy projects.

About AirPlus Heating & Cooling Inc. AirPlus has been providing the Greater Toronto Area with state of the art HVAC installation and repair since 1993. With over 20 years of experience in heating and air conditioning installations and repairs. We install all makes and models of home comfort equipment including: Air Conditioners, Furnaces, Gas Fireplaces, Humidifiers, Heat Pumps, Boilers, Energy Recovery Ventilator Systems, Hot water Tanks and Tankless water heaters.

AirPlus is a member of the Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI), ASHRAE and BBB, and is licensed and insured by TSSA and WSIB. AirPlus serves Southern Ontarios Golden Horseshoe including: Toronto, Scarborough, Etobicoke, Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington, Markham, Richmond Hill, Woodbridge, Newmarket, Whitby, Pickering, Ajax, Maple, Georgetown, Bolton, and Milton.

For more information, visit: http://www.airplus.ca , phone 416-298-6874

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Airplus Heating & Cooling Inc. Becomes the Greater Toronto Areas Newest Trane Dealer

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The Watertown Urban Mission's food pantry already serves hundreds of families, but may soon be able to help out more. That's because major renovations will kick off at the non-profit's building next week. Our Elizabeth Jeneault caught up with the mission to discuss their excitement for the organization's future.

WATERTOWN, N.Y. -- Although the Urban Mission has served locals for decades, their ability to help out others greatly improved in 2004. That was when they moved into their first building. But even then, they knew everything wasn't perfect.

"It was apparent on day one that this building had several issues. We have safety concerns, we have inefficiencies, both weather wise and also with work flow," explained Urban Mission's Executive Director Erika Flint.

As those issues became more apparent over the years, and the community's needs grew, the mission decided to launch its first capital campaign.

That, was two years ago.

"We were at a place with a new strategic plan, some new leadership and the timing was not only necessary, but it was the right time," said Flint.

And now, with the project's $2 million worth of funding in place, the non-profit is making preparations to break ground.

Those preparations include moving part of the thrift shop. It'll be relocated to the food pantry's current waiting area.

Both the food pantry and thrift shop will remain open in the building during construction, while some other services will move.

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Watertown Urban Mission gearing up for groundbreaking

WATERFORD The Waterford Home and Commerce Show will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at Waterford High School, 100 Field Drive.

Several businesses will give spotlight presentations where attendees can enter to win prizes. The schedule:

* 10 a.m. Enter to win in-home design and window coverings for an entire home from Budget Blinds (up to $2,000).

* 11 a.m. Enter to win design and installation of a raised fire pit and landscaping from Skyline Landscape Design and Henning Landscape ($3,000 value).

* 1 p.m. Enter to win a bathroom facelift from Southport Heating and Cooling ($1,000 value). Learn to install a kitchen faucet, garbage disposal and drain.

Admission is $3. There is no charge for youth ages 15 and younger. Those who bring a nonperishable food donation for Love, Inc. will receive $1 off admission.

For more information, contact the Waterford Chamber of Commerce office at 262-534-5911 or via email at chamber@waterford-wi.org, or go to http://www.waterford-wi.org/home_commerce.html.

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Home & Commerce Show is Saturday

VRV heating and cooling systems are used throughout the world in commercial, industrial and residential applications. Daikin was the first company to design and install a VRV system in Japan in1982. From that date it has continued to set some of the highest performance standards in the HVAC industry. Until now, North American installations of VRV systems relied on imported systems.

Daikin, one of the world's largest manufacturers of indoor heating, cooling and refrigerant products made the announcement at the company's newly expanded residential cooling products and commercial VRV manufacturing facility. The announcement has a positive economic impact in the Houston community with the addition of over 250 jobs.

VRV products are modular, commercially applied heating and cooling systems that provide energy efficiency, individual user control and reliability in one integrated system.

Daikin's VRV IV heat pumps have set the standard again by offering up three main attributes to further optimize the total LCC of the system: variable refrigerant temperature control, larger capacity single modules and systems and a configurator designed for simplified commissioning and servicing of the unit.

The variable refrigerant temperature auto climate adjustment technology allows the VRV IV to deliver up to a 28% increase in seasonal energy efficiency operation compared to traditional VRV heat pump systems. This feature allows continuous adjustment of the VRV IV refrigerant temperature as determined by the total required heating or cooling capacity of the unit coupled with outdoor weather conditions.

The larger capacity single modules and systems allow for a more flexible design and provide the opportunity to reduce electrical requirements, piping connections and outdoor unit mounting fixtures, all of which positively impact the overall installed cost of a VRV system.

The VRV IV configurator is a software package that allows for the remote configuration of operational settings that can then be used at several installation sites. The result is less time and labor spent preparing and programing the unit settings to achieve optimal performance. Further, this software helps to reduce the time required for ongoing maintenance of the system. The configurator allows access to operational data and error codes, if any, using a graphical interface during routine servicing of the VRV IV units.

Daikin's VRV IV heat pump systems, assembled in Houston, will be sold through a growing network of sales associates across North America.

With the addition of VRV IV heat pump systems, the Daikin brand will be one of the most extensive lines of heating and cooling systems in North America. The product line will extend from ductless systems for residential use, ducted systems for residential and commercial use, packaged products for residential and commercial installations, and VRV systems for commercial, industrial and residential installations.

About Daikin North America, LLC Daikin North America LLC (DNA) is a subsidiary of Daikin Industries, Ltd. (DIL). DNA and its affiliates manufacture heating and cooling systems for residential, commercial and industrial use and are sold via a select group of independent HVAC contractors. DIL manufacturing operations include facilities at Houston, TX, Fayetteville, TN, and Dayton, TN. For additional information, visit http://www.daikincomfort.com.

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Heat Pump System is optimized for total life cycle expense.

Murfey Home Construction built this La Jolla Shores custom home using extensive green products and technology. Courtesy Photo

By Marti Gacioch

Building green is thinking green, said Russell Murfey, who co-owns and operates Murfey Construction with his brother Scott. Murfey Home Construction, known for its high-end custom homes, remodels and commercial projects throughout San Diego, is building with green products and technology to provide big savings for both homeowners and the environment.

The company recently completed a custom-built, energy-efficient beach home facing La Jolla Shores Beach. The state-of-the-art home typifies the high-level quality and long-term savings that Murfeys design and construction team provide by using green elements.

The 4,200-square-foot, four-bedroom, four-bath solar-powered home with elevator features well-insulated windows and doors and a high-efficiency heating and cooling system.

It exceeds Californias Title 24 energy requirements with its installed water-efficient plumbing fixtures, including tankless water heaters, Energy Star appliances and LED lighting. Recycled and sustainable materials (such as insulation made from denim blue jeans, engineered wood flooring, sustainable tile and countertop materials, recycled wood and concrete products) were beautifully blended into the building process.

For the Murfey team, building efficiently is a hallmark of the design process. Russell said any well-planned project will provide good exposure to natural lighting and good ventilation.

As with all Murfey-built projects, the team is also using state-of-the-art building products that emphasize green technology to construct Famosa, a mixed-use residential-commercial project on the corner of Voltaire Street and Catalina Boulevard in Point Loma.

The property will include nine contemporary-styled three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bath townhomes with two-car garages. A few of the 1400-1500 square foot townhomes will include a rooftop deck. The project will also feature 2,128 square feet of retail space for a business suitable to the pedestrian neighborhood, such as a coffeehouse, cafe and shops. Famosa is scheduled for completion this spring.

With our projects, we install highly efficient, cost-effective products whenever possible, including gas appliances, which are less expensive to operate than electric appliances, Murfey said. We build with Quartz countertops and recycled wood flooring, including bamboo and try to keep products out of the landfill by recycling more than 50 percent of the materials we use.

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Murfey Construction builds green for homeowner savings in La Jolla and San Diego County