The question of whether or not to repair or replace a furnace can be a challenging one. However, there are some key factors that can help you decide which is best for you and your home. One thing to keep in mind is that heating system replacement is a great opportunity to increase your energy efficiency and comfort. Should you decide to replace your furnace in Brighton, make sure that you hire trained professionals to perform the installation. The experts at FB Electrical Services can install both electric and gas furnaces, so call us today!

Reasons to Consider Replacement

Here are some reasons why it may be better to replace than continue to repair your current furnace:

Constant Repairs

If your furnace needed a lot of repairs last winter, and you are looking at more repairs this winter, it may be time to consider replacement. Nursing an ailing furnace along can add up quickly, sometimes even up to the cost of a new furnace. You may need to determine where your money is better spent.

Rust/Corrosion

Furnaces do not use water in any way, so if your unit has considerable rust and corrosion on it, it may need to be replaced. If rust and/or corrosion is localized, it may be repairable, but if the corrosion is significant, it can’t be repaired. Excess corrosion can be dangerous in gas furnaces because cracks and holes can potentially leak toxic fumes, which are very dangerous to your household.

Age

Age always plays a role in whether or not it’s time for replacement, and for good reasons. Aging systems can be challenged to effectively and reliably heat your home, and often do not have good energy efficiency. The average lifespan of a gas furnace is 15-20 years; for electric furnaces, it’s 20-30 years. If your furnace is at or over the average lifespan, it may be time to consider replacement.

Your furnace should be reliable, energy efficient and provide the Call FB Electrical Services today and schedule an appointment for your furnace with one of our heating specialists.

Once someone has discovered retrofitting as a read that by clicking here.

Let’s get started with the first question on the list, and that is what exactly is a retrofit kit?

What is a retrofit kit anyways? Well, we’ve actually reducing your energy consumption even more. Just make sure you are buying a LED retrofit kit that has the option to be dimmable, otherwise you will NOT be able to dim them.

Retrofit vs full replacement, why should you consider retrofitting with LED?

While a full replacement of an entire is fixture is very valid to do especially when they are outdated or literally falling apart; often times you can avoid that by retrofitting your fixtures. With retrofitting you get to keep your old fixture but just replace the light source in it with a new one. This will allow you to reduce the costs associated with the lighting upgrade tremendously, which will allow you to realize a much larger ROI.

Although there are benefits of both, you need to think about your facility or buildings own situation, and go from there. To recap; retrofitting is great if you can keep your old fixtures but if you can’t (due to reasons like outdated or near falling apart), then a full replacement is probably the better option.

For more info, check out this infographic (

Why should I even switch to LED in the first place?

Very good question, and this not only applies to those retrofitting but for any facility that plans to make a lighting system update. LED technology has vast benefits in almost every area of the definition “quality” for commercial lighting purposes. Here are just a few of the major benefits that more often than not win over businesses to commit to the conversion over to LED technology:

As you can see these are all some pretty big benefits, and that’s only the start. These reasons are why many companies are making the conversion over to LED products from other outdated technologies such as metal halide, HPS, and even fluorescent. Why not convert to LED with a retrofit LED kit and realize all of these benefits and more? It just makes sense!

Is it difficult to retrofit an existing light fixture?

Well, that can depend. To someone who has no knowledge about lighting fixtures and electrical wiring, then yes this will seem like an extremely difficult task. On the other hand for someone who is a professional, this isn’t a difficult task at all.

The process, in theory, is simple because all it consists of (for the most part) is a replacement of all the existing lamps, ballasts, sockets, and brackets with new ones to fit your retrofit kits. If you have no experience doing this, and even if you do, it is always recommended to bring in a licensed electrician if you can to ensure it is done right and to safety standards.

Are LED retrofits that are compatible with existing ballasts a good idea?

You need to consider the age of the ballast that is currently installed. In most cases, it will be nearing the end of it’s life and thus it won’t be the most up-to-date ballast that you could have. This adds for an additional point of failure, which could cost you more down the line in maintenance fees to replace them when they die out.

You have to consider that since you are considering the switch over to LEDs through retrofitting, you most likely haven’t recently upgraded you lighting system or replaced much. This means that the ballasts currently installed are most likely, at best, as old as the lights in your fixtures currently. But more often or not, they are even older than that which can definitely mean they are nearing the end of their lifespan.

Taking this all into account, it’s impossible to tell you if using existing ballasts is a contact us. We will gladly answer any question you may have!

Do you have enough smoke alarms in your home? The odds are probably not if we’re going by statistical averages, and if you’re here reading along then you also are probably thinking about installing more. Which is good! But you might also be thinking about wiring them yourself, and that might not be the best option you have. Why? Today the certified professionals at Hoffman Electrical are here to help you understand.

We’ve seen LED rope lights transform a staircase handrail, and accent outdoor This homeowner created an inspiring word art installation on the wall of her son’s playroom. She used the screw-in mounting clips that come with the product for wall hanging.

One great tip for a project like this is to place weights (or other heavy objects) on top of your rope light to shape it properly. Often our customers say that Image via www.prettyhandygirl.com

2. A Crocheted LED-Lit Rug:  This one blew us away! The single strand of LED rope lighting was crocheted into a generic spiral pattern to create this rug. For anyone who wants to emulate, the original Image via www.wonderhowto.com

3. A Backlit Bedroom Headboard:  Image via www.removeandreplace.com

Where are you seeing LED rope lighting used lately?