Polar Bear Air Conditioning & Heating Inc. Blog: Archive for the ‘Air Conditioning Repair’ Category

Derecho Thunderstorm, No Phone Service, No Air Conditioning The Top 3 Reasons To Like Your A/C Company

Sunday, July 8th, 2012

Why “like” or “follow” your air conditioning company on Facebook or Twitter?  To communicate and get help in an emergency.  We all learned the importance of social networks from the Derecho thunderstorms on June 29.  At Polar Bear Air Conditioning, although our phone lines were powered by generator and our crews were working, our phone company did not have power and therefore our customers could not reach us through our main number, even forwarded to our cell phones.  Over one million DC area residents also lost power in our homes, but many of us were able to travel to Wifi hot spots with power to recharge our devices and access the Internet.

For those customers who were able to access our website, we posted an emergency number on our homepage.  Wouldn’t it be great in a similar State of Emergency to receive a Tweet or Facebook post from your air conditioning and heating company, with an emergency number to reach us?  Polar Bear Air Conditioning will do this in all future emergencies that involve heating, air conditioning and communication issues for our customers.  But we need your help.  In the coming weeks, we will be contacting our customers and asking you to like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, or you can do that now by choosing the links on our home page.  We will ask you if you only want to be contacted in emergencies, or would like to receive newsletters and special offers no more than 4 times a year.  You can also opt to be contacted by email.  We will never sell or share your information with 3rd parties, and you will not receive more than 4 promotional emails a year.

We hope to not experience another Derecho for several years.  However, our goal is to be ready to communicate with and help our customers through all States of Emergency in all four seasons.  Have a quiet and cool summer.

Your friends at Polar Bear Air Conditioning and Heating, Inc.

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Important Air Conditioning Tips for Derecho and other Electrical Storms

Thursday, July 5th, 2012

On June 29, a devastating thunderstorm complex known as a derecho created a State of Emergency in the Washington DC area, producing widespread destruction and leaving more than one million people without power.  Although derechos do not frequently move through our area, severe thunderstorms are common in the summer.  Do you know how to protect your family, home and air conditioning unit?  Here are some simple tips that can save lives and thousands of dollars.

1. Turn off your air conditioning at the thermostat during a thunderstorm.

Electrical control panels in air conditioning systems can be easily knocked out by power surges caused by lightning strikes.  In other words, the lightning does not have to hit your unit directly to damage your unit.

This applies to other electrical equipment as well.  Televisions and computers are at risk if running during an electrical storm.

2.  Don’t take showers or baths during a thunderstorm.

 Electricity can travel through metal pipes into your bathroom.   It is also wise to avoid other sources of water with metal pipes, such as faucets and sinks, until the thunderstorm passes.

3.  Are cell phones safe in electrical storms?

 Electricity will travel through electrical cords and outlets, not radio waves.  So, cordless phones and cell phones are safe inside, as long as they are not plugged in to an electrical outlet.  There have been reports of lightning strikes to cell phone users and iPod users outdoors, not due to radio wave transmission, but because the users are holding a metal object, and that metal attracts and conducts electricity.  It’s best to put away your cell phone and iPod if you are caught outside in an electrical storm.

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