Preventive Maintenance series

I thought annual maintenance was the whole assignment. Then I discovered our boiler expects daily attention, and a household fairy had been handling it all along.

A luxury boutique had a maintenance plan, a $23,427 vicuña sweater, and an air conditioner that was “working fine.” Then came 11:34 on a Tuesday and one very expensive lesson in preventive maintenance.

A 350-word blog felt like War and Peace to one completely fictional reader. Mechanical equipment can have an “effective age” too, and working harder than it should could lead to a premature death.

Your system can be doing exactly what it’s supposed to do and still be working way too hard to get there. I learned that lesson at 15, behind the wheel of a 1987 Ford Aerostar, stalled at a stop sign in front of the police department.

My name is Niki, and I am a recovering insurance agent. I've been "sober" for 7 years and 8 months. It's funny. After sixteen years in that industry...

The floors stayed warm while corrosion quietly destroyed the radiant heating system from the inside. By the time the heat stopped, the damage was already done.

A vacation home wakes up from winter, a fresh-lit pilot doesn't hold, and the homeowner proudly reports he's never once called a service tech — a tall tale about why an on/off check isn't maintenance, from Hydronix Mechanical's Preventive Maintenance series.

Switching your thermostat to Heat for the first time can feel a little like pressing Spin on a slot machine. Will the system respond, or will the mechanical room answer with silence? Learn why that first startup is only an operational test, and why waiting for the result can turn planned maintenance into an emergency service call.

A truck can run perfectly down the block and still have some very strong opinions about pulling a loaded trailer over a mountain pass. Your A/C may have a few things to say about summer too. Now is a good time to listen and get the rest of your system ready before the rush.

Preventive maintenance isn’t seasonal—but the rush to schedule it is. Here’s what years as an HVAC service dispatcher taught me about waiting for the weather to remind you.

A shiver jolts you awake. Did that really just happen? One look out the window confirms it. Colorado weather has done it again. It is freezing outside, even though you know it could still be 80 degrees this afternoon. You climb out of bed and tiptoe over to the thermostat. No problem. Just switch it from “Cool” to “Heat,” and the house will be warming up in no time. You change the setting and wait. And wait. And wait. Nothing happens. The thermostat says “Heat On,” but the ho