As a state, Utah boasts one of the most attractive year-round climates in the United States, with a comfort index of 69 — well above the national average of 54. Yet winters in Utah can still prove challenging, especially for those in parts of the state that receive heavier amounts of snow. In such regions, keeping your driveway safe and accessible can prove a Herculean task.

Fortunately, homeowner’s no longer need to break their backs manually shoveling snow. Driveway snow-melt systems provide an effortless solution to the yearly task of snow clearing. If you would like to learn more about the types of snow-melt systems available today, keep reading. This article outlines three different styles currently on the market. 

1. Hydronic Radiant Heating

You may already be familiar with the concept of radiant heating systems, which can be found in many homes. Radiant heating systems do away with furnaces and forced air vents. Instead, heat flows into the home through a network of PEX piping installed in or just beneath the floor. Hydronic systems circulate a heated mixture of water and glycol through the piping. 

The exact same principles used in outdoor hydronic systems also apply to driveway snow-melt systems. A boiler heats the mixture of water and glycol, which manifolds then circulate through the sub-driveway piping. The heat generated by this system easily melts existing snow and ice, while ensuring that any snow that continues to fall on the driveway will melt instantly. 

Hydronic radiant heating systems can work with a variety of different driveway materials, including concrete, asphalt, and stone pavers. That said, contractors almost always install such systems when building a new driveway from scratch. Those who want to retrofit an existing driveway should consider one of the two options below instead. 

1. Electric Radiant Heating

Electric radiant heating systems work in much the same way as hydronic systems, taking a sub-surface approach to heat distribution. As you may have already guessed, the key difference involves the source of the heat. Electric systems generate heat by circulating electricity through special cables buried in the driveway. 

Electric radiant heating systems have an advantage when it comes to installation costs. Unlike hydronic systems, you won’t need to invest in costly components like boilers and manifolds. That said, in some cases, the operating costs of a hydronic system may prove somewhat lower than an equivalent electric system. 

Electric radiant snow melt systems offer another key benefit in that contractors can retrofit existing driveways with such systems. This process involves first designing a system appropriate to your region’s needs. Then the contractor marks your driveway with chalk where the cables will go, before cutting into the driveway using a saw cutting machine. 

In this manner, the contractor creates grooves with precisely the right size for housing the heating cable. With the cables in place, the contractor then places protective backer rods in the grooves, and uses sealant to fill in any remaining void spaces.

1. Electric Snow-Melt Mats

Homeowners don’t always have the option of installing a new driveway or retrofitting an existing one. In the meantime, you can still get the benefits of radiant heating systems using electric snow-melt mats. These mats work in virtually the same way as embedded electrical radiant systems, except that they sit directly on top of your driveway. 

Simply unroll the mat, attach it to a power source, and let it do its job. The heating cables thread through a mesh designed to keep them in a stable position. The heavy-duty nature of snow-melt mats means that you can drive directly over them without risking damage. 

Snow-melt systems make wintertime driveway maintenance a lot easier. For more information about selecting the right type of system for your home, contact Centerville’s experts at Custom Comfort Plumbing, Heating & Cooling LLC.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that water heating makes up around 16 percent of your household’s annual energy costs. You can reduce water heating costs by making some changes. Here are three smart ways to reduce your expenses for household hot water.

1. Reduce Your Consumption of Water

One of the best ways to lower hot water costs is to reduce your household’s hot water usage. Replace older plumbing fixtures with new, water-efficient fixtures.

Plumbing fixtures and appliances that are available in water-wise models include:

• Bathroom sink and tub faucets
• Showerheads
• Kitchen faucets
• Dishwashers
• Washing machines

Another water-saving trick is to replace faucet aerators with low-flow aerators. Your plumbing service can replace aerators for you if you aren’t sure how to change them. Repair any leaks in your plumbing fixtures and appliances that use hot water, or call a plumbing service to find and repair leaks in hot-water lines and fixtures.

Encourage your family to use less hot water. Use a timer in the bathroom to limit showering to 10 minutes or less. Offer a reward to family members who reduce their showering times. Use cold water for clothes washing, and rinse dishes with cold water only before placing the dishes in the dishwasher.

1. Insulate Your Water Heater and Hot-Water Pipes

Less heat escapes from your hot water heater and pipes when these plumbing components are insulated. Various water-heater blankets are available to wrap around your water heater.

Ensure that you get the right size and type of insulating cover for your water heater, and install it correctly. If your water heater is a gas-fired water heater, make sure you don’t inadvertently cover the air inlet. Your plumbing service can source and install water-heater insulation for you if you can’t find the right water-heater cover for your model.

Insulate all accessible plumbing lines that deliver hot water. You won’t waste water waiting for the taps to deliver hot water, and less heat will escape from the hot-water pipes.

Talk with your plumbing service about installing heat traps or anti-convection valves. These two devices solve the problem of heat being siphoned from the water heater.

1. Purchase an Energy-Efficient Water Heater

If your water heater is approaching 10 to 15 years of use, the appliance is at the end of its life span. Install a new water heater before your existing water heater fails. You save money on emergency plumbing repairs and future water-heating costs by replacing an old, inefficient water heater before it breaks down.

New water heaters are available in highly efficient versions of both conventional and on-demand appliances. Conventional water heaters have storage tanks that heat and hold hot water. On-demand water heaters — also called tankless water heaters — only heat water as needed, so no energy is wasted keeping a tank full of heated water hot.

Smaller tank-style water heaters are generally more efficient than larger tank-style water heaters. Larger storage tanks have more surface area for heat loss. However, if you have a large family, a small tank-style water heater is not practical. Insulating the water heater makes more sense than settling for a too-small water heater.

On-demand water heaters have limitations, too. A household gas-fired tankless heater can deliver only around 5 gallons of hot water per minute.

The amount of water supplied by an on-demand water heater often won’t allow for multiple fixture uses. For example, your household can’t run the dishwasher, wash clothes in hot water, run a bath, and take a shower all at the same time with most on-demand household water heaters.

Replace your aging water heater in Northern Utah with a new ENERGY STAR certified water heater by contacting Custom Comfort Plumbing, Heating, & Cooling LLC today. We repair, install, and service water heaters for homeowners in and around the Centerville, Ogden, Park City, and Salt Lake City regions.

Whether you like vanilla, cinnamon, cranberry, linen, pine, or some out-there scent, candles are lovely, they smell good, and they can help transform the atmosphere of a space. For years, people have used candles for heat, light, scent, and even rituals. Today, candles are used for these reasons still, and they are used in 7 out of 10 households in the U.S.

Unfortunately, candles may harm your health, especially if you use them frequently. While they provide all those benefits listed above, some candles can negatively change the indoor air quality of your home.

Why Candles Are Harmful

According to studies, candles have the ability to produce chemical reactions, and when this happens, the candles release certain carcinogens including acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, and acrolein — all in concentration levels that are higher than the air quality standards that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deemed safe.

These carcinogens can result in a variety of health conditions, such as skin irritation, respiratory reactions, asthma, allergies, headaches, and more.

In some cases, the chemicals that are found in certain candles can contribute to certain forms of cancer. For example, someone who uses paraffin candles every day — or just frequently — inhales dangerous chemicals like toluene, alkenes, and alkans, all of which are reported to result in negative effects to humans and can contribute to asthma, common allergies, and even cancer.

In addition to the invisible chemicals that the candles release, there is also the risk of soot forming (black smoke). You have probably seen soot form around the glass of the candles before, but it can also occur outside of the candle jar itself. For instance, it could potentially stain your ceiling, walls, and even upholstery in the home.

Research shows that candles with scent are more likely to produce soot than candles with no scent. While studies show that soot from candles is not necessarily harmful to your health, the soot may be able to get caught in your nostrils and create difficulty breathing — especially for babies — when candles are burned in small spaces.

What Steps Can You Take To Be Safer?

While never burning a candle again may be your best option, it isn’t realistic. If you don’t want to stop burning candles, we understand. However, you do want to make sure to protect yourself, your family, and your home while burning candles indoors.

So when burning candles from here on out, don’t burn candles in an unventilated room. To ensure that the harmful chemicals are able to dissipate, slightly open a window and keep the door open. Avoid burning candles for extended period of times; limit your candle-burning time to one or two hours a day.

Also, invest in a home air purifier. A home air purifier will help to extract many of the pollutants in the home air, which includes those that the candles produce when burning.

Then, to help reduce the amount of soot that candles produce, only purchase candles that have thin wicks. Before burning them, trim them to about ¼ inch.

Finally, purchase the right candles. While you may love those extravagant scents, they are not the best ones to have for your home health-wise. Natural candles, such as those that are made from beeswax or soy, don’t contain as many of those harmful chemicals that have been discussed here. Also, avoid purchasing candles that have a metal insert to hold the wick in place. You could also opt for electric.

If you are interested in having your home’s indoor air levels tested or would like to have a whole-home air purifier installed, contact the professionals at Custom Comfort Plumbing, Heating, & Cooling LLC today. It may be tough to cut back on candle use, but your health is the most important thing, and we are happy to help in any way we can.