Furnace Inspections and Outdoor Taps Shut-off Reminder

Submitted by Mollie Mithaug-Cook on behalf of the Buildings Committee

Dear Members,

We realize it's past due time for our regular furnace inspections. We have beenn unable to get a response on availability from Fagnans and have now reached out to ARPI's instead.

The furnace inspections will likely be pushed into the spring, since this is the busiest time of year and we have 66 units to inspect. However, if you have any immediate concerns with your furnace please let us know and we will have someone in to look at it right away.

Fall Reminders:

Fagnans has previously advised us to use the light duty furnace filters. Our older furnaces do not pack a lot of power for the thick hepa filters. So unfortunately these good quality filters only cause the blower to work harder and let less airflow through. It is recommended to change your filter every 1-3 months.

Homedepot has a 3 pack for $6 bucks, this can also come out of your unit fund:

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/hdg-16-inch-x-25-inch-x-1-inch-fibreglass-furnace-air-filter-3-pack-/1000417261?rrec=true

Also, please remember to turn off your outdoor taps. If you haven't done this before or can't remember where your shut-off is, please reach out to Buildings and we will be happy to help.

1. Remove hose and any splitter off your outdoor faucets

2. Locate water shut-off valve(s) on ground level. Often they are located near the outdoor spigot on the interior wall, or sometimes they are placed near the water main. It typically looks like this:

3. Close the water shut off valve until it cannot turn any further.

4. Go back to the faucet outside and open it to let out any remaining water. Leave it open for a minute to be sure it's empty.

5. Now that the water between the shut off valve and the faucet is drained, you can go ahead and close the faucet and you're done!

This is supposedly going to be a cold winter so please ensure this is done ASAP.

Thank you for your patience, and see you at the AGM this Saturday!

Hot Weather Cooling Tip

Submitted by Belle Auld

Here is a cooling tip from Bob Bott:

Turn the furnace fan on for 20 minutes several times a day. You can find the switch for the furnace fan either on the furnace itself or on your thermostat. Thanks Bob!

Keeping Our Homes Well-ventilated During the Winter

Submitted by Heidi Mithaug-Cook on behalf of Buildings

Hi Sunnyhill!

In the cold winter months we want to keep the ventilation of our homes clean and operating smoothly. Here are a couple of important reminders:

Make sure you are changing out your furnace filter. This should be done every 3 months. This keeps your furnace in good working condition and eases stress on the motor.

Don't forget to empty the lint collector in your dryer before every use! This ensures lint build up in your dryer and dryer vent is kept to a minimum, reducing hazard and a cleaner exhaust.

Furnace maintenance reminder

Submitted by Jacky Durrie on behalf of Buildings Committee

Dear members,

After this cold (freezing your fanny) weather please consider changing your furnace filter. A clean filter improves the wear and tear of the furnace, improves furnace efficiency (and your energy bill!) as well as reducing some dust from your home (but not enough to prevent having to dust).

If you use the pleated filters replace your filter at least every three months-with more or less time depending on how much your furnace runs. Your Unit Fund can re-imburse your expense. The Unit Fund cheque request form for this is available on the Documents page of the website, from the external office mail box or from Andrea in the office.

Please call a member of the buildings committee for help when you encounter difficulties.

Duct and Dryer Vent Cleaning Deal

Submitted by Sarah Reimer

‘Tis the season for duct and dryer vent cleaning! I recently had Fagnan's come for this purpose, and thought I'd share the pricing structure for members of the co-op. Because Fagnans's maintains our furnaces, they will charge co-op members only $10/ vent and $25 for the dryer vent cleaning. This is a significant savings, but they did say that the cleaning (and this pricing) makes the most sense very nearly after our furnace maintenance. They suggest that dryer vents be cleaned every 2 years to ensure peak performance and lowest fire-risk, but that duct/ heating vents can be on a 3-5 year rotation depending on personal preference. The best person to speak to is Fred Holgate at 403-272-0443.

Hope we can all breathe easier this winter!

Bulk Purchase Offer

Submitted by Sarah R

BULK PURCHASE OFFER!!  

Are you interested in a furnace based humidifier?  A water-softener?  My application for these improvements has just been granted, and the provider has offered a lower price if more than 5 units are installed at the same time.  I am currently looking for interested members/units who would like to improve their home experience with these one or both these items.  Please contact Sarah 403 918 3421 or message me on Facebook if you're interested (this does not commit you to install).  

Do you suffer from dry, cracked skin, bleeding noses, static electric shocks when you touch a light switch?  These are all symptoms of air that is too dry and can easily be remedied with a furnace-based humidifier.  

*** Costs will be borne by individual members, but you can use your unit fund to off-set the cost.

*** An application for built-in dishwasher was granted in 2015... apply for yours now!

Buildings Committee Update

Submitted by Andrea Bergen

The Buildings Committee continues to meet on the 3rd Wednesday of every month, in the Sunnyhill office.

September has been a busy month for the Buildings Committee. Some of the highlights are:

• Furnace inspections are now complete. There are a total of 6 furnaces that require some repair.
• Motion sensor information has been received at the office and the installs will be starting within the next few weeks.

Outside faucets:

I would like to remind everyone that it’s almost that time of year again where you need to make sure you shut off the water to your outside tap so it doesn’t freeze and cause damage to your unit.

The procedure to do this is to leave the outside tap opened and then shut off the tap from the inside in order to drain the remaining water.