These are condensed versions of the Radio Program

05/05/04

We mentioned last week about Quality Service receiving the award as “Small Business of the Year” from the Chamber of Commerce. It is a terrific honor, and we were surprised and very happy to get it. We want to start today by saying “Thank you” to our customers. It is our customers that make our business possible and that are responsible for whatever level of success we’ve reached. This is a sincere thanks for letting us do your installation and service work, and for telling your friends and relatives about us. We’ve been in business for over twenty years in an industry where the average life of a business is 3-5 years. Along with our customers, we also want to thank the people that work with us every day. Cindy Brabec keeps our office running smoothly, and gets a lot of help from Chris Roberts. Our servicemen are wonderful at their jobs and keep hundreds of home comfort systems and commercial equipment running properly all over Lauderdale County and beyond. Tommy Buck, our sheet metal master-with more years of experience than he’d like us to mention, can make anything out of sheet metal. (He does a fine job on ductwork and connections, too.) All of our installation crews take pride in everything they do, and Paul Hankins has worked hard to get the word out about Quality Service through our radio show, newspaper articles, and visits everyday with current and potential clients. All of these factors have come together and made us the best heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractor in these here parts. Maybe you’d like to get involved with our Maintenance Program or you’re interested in discussing a new system for your home. It may be that you have a question about your unit or how it’s operating. If you have any thing at all we can help you with, just call us at 635-3452. You can visit us on the web at www.qualityserviceinc.com, and you can hear our “Ask Mike” radio show every week at 10 on WTRB.

05/12/04

The heat is on so it’s time this week to answer some air conditioning questions. Here goes: Once my air runs for a while, ice forms on the big pipe outside and it stops cooling. What could be the problem? Two things usually cause a “freeze up”. It’s probably low on refrigerant or the airflow is restricted. Try this, allow the unit to thaw and change the filter(s). If this doesn’t correct the freezing issue, it’s time to contact a professional. I suggest you call Quality Service, Inc., but I’m a little biased. You need to call a pro because it’s most likely a low refrigerant issue. If your a/c is low on refrigerant that means it’s escaped somehow, and that MUST be corrected to prevent any further damage to your compressor. I often hear the word “SEER” when you or someone is talking about air conditioning. What is it? SEER is an acronym for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating. The best way to explain it is to compare it to MPG, or miles per gallon in gasoline efficiency ratings. A few years ago, the most efficient equipment you could get was rated 10 SEER. Today, it’s the minimum the government will allow to be manufactured. In about a year that minimum rating will change to 13 SEER. Just for your information, for each SEER rating point you can figure about 8 to 9 percent in energy use difference. So if you have, for example, an old 8 SEER air conditioner, you could save somewhere between 40 and 45% in cooling costs with 13 SEER rated equipment. We have models available up to 19 SEER. The higher the SEER rating, the more you’ll pay up front, but you’ll save far more in the long run in energy costs. If you have a question you’d like us to address here, please contact us with it. Call us at 635-3452, or you can “Ask Mike” on our website at www.qualityserviceinc.com. You can hear “Ask Mike” every Saturday morning at 10 on WTRB.

05/19/04

 It’s allergy season outside, and that means it’s allergy season INSIDE your home, too! Today’s questions concern indoor air quality. We address the problems associated with these allergy-causing particles with air cleaners. What does an air cleaner do? It filters out things that cause irritation such as pollen, spores, dust, and other contaminates that circulate in every home every day. These particles MUST pass through the cleaner to be removed. How does the air cleaner help with allergies? Most any doctor will tell you that the best way to treat someone with allergies is to remove the offending allergen. One of the best ways to do this is a whole house cleaner that works in conjunction with the forced air home comfort system in your home. What kinds of filters are there? There’s the standard blue filter that only stops the largest of particles and is really for the benefit of the equipment. There’s media filters, which are pleated paper filters that are far more efficient that the standard ones. They can cause trouble in some return air ducts by making it pull too hard to get the right amount of air. There are HEPA filters that are supposed to remove 99.97% of all particles larger that 0.3 microns. (That’s about dust or mold spore size) But they are so expensive they’re usually used residentially in portable one-room units. There’s also our favorite…the electronic air cleaner. These filters electrically charge particles and attract them to a collection “plate”. They are about 95% efficient at removing these particles and are extremely effective when used along with a UV light that kills all the live stuff. When you combine these two, as we do often, you have air quality inside your home that is close to hospital quality. For more information, call us at 635-3452.

05/26/04

We have an awesome question for this week. How do I decide which company should install my central home comfort system? The easiest answer is just to call us at Quality Service! But here are some things to ponder. Just because you get a cheap price, that’s not reason enough to go with a particular contractor. Remember what your folks always told you, you get what you pay for. There’s a reason their price is cheap. Maybe they operate without the cost of insurance. They have no insurance on their employees, maybe not even worker’s comp, so their overhead remains real low. Never mind the fact that YOU can be held responsible if there’s an accident on your property while they’re working. Of course, if they have no insurance, you would have to pay or any property damage to your home an accident might cause. Maybe they’re cheap because they don’t purchase the required permits and/or licenses the government wants them to carry. They may be cheap because they sell inferior equipment that they don’t even know how to service after the sale. Maybe they are cheap because there’s no office personnel to handle paperwork and billing and warranties. Maybe there’s no office at all and no warranties at all. Another sign may be when the contractor asks for half or more of he money up front. That can certainly be a flag because many of those folks have to have your money up front so they can run somewhere with it and buy equipment to install in your home! Now, if he has no insurance, and accidentally throws your central unit out of the back of his pickup onto the highway and totals it, who gets stuck? At Quality Service, Inc., we are fully insured and licensed. We ALWAYS buy any required permits and inspections. We carry top of the line equipment and accessories and offer the industries best warranties. Our service department can service any brand and we usually have the parts on our trucks! We have a full time office staff here everyday to assist you, and we won’t ask for a dime until after your equipment is installed and you are comfortable. Thanks for the question, and come see us! Call 635-3452.

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