Hurray! We all managed to survive another winter, now is the time to get going on firewood for the next season.
      With the sharp rise in petroleum fuel costs over the last several years, more people are looking to wood, or wood based products, as a supplemental or primary heat source. A cord of seasoned birch has about the same energy as 165 gallons of fuel oil.
      By this time of year you should be well on your way to having your firewood ready as it needs time to season, approximately six months. When wood is stacked outdoors in a open, dry, and sunny area it will become dry enough to support efficient combustion in about six months . Seasoned wood has a higher heating value, since you are not using as much energy to boil all that moisture out of the wood. In general a cord of green wood will weigh 70 percent more than the same type of wood that has been seasoned.
      Different types of wood all offer the same amount of energy per pound Since they all differ in density the wood with greater weight per cord is going to offer more energy. In other words, a cord of oak is going to give you twice the energy of an equal volume of pine, since it weighs twice as much.
      In closing, please don't use salt and pepper to season your firewood; it's a matter of thyme.

Springtime HVAC Maintenance and Upgrades

      Well spring is finally here, the birds are singing, the trees are again putting on their summer best and soon we'll all be hopefully enjoying the best that summer can offer, regardless if it's golf, tennis, swimming, fishing (my favorite) or whatever it is that puts a smile on your face.It maybe nothing more than a summer BBQ but whatever it is get out there and do it.
      Summer is also the time when we need to start thinking about creature comfort in our homes, the time to maybe consider some kind of upgrade to make next winter more comfortable and maybe save a few bucks doing it in the process. It could be something as complex as a complete overhaul of an outdated heating system, maybe installing a new woodstove and chimney, or possibly something as simple as installing a auto setback thermostat.
      Maybe something like a bypass humidifier, a HEPA air filtration system, or even a Heat Recovery Ventilator, these are all products that are out in the world with the intent of helping you towards a goal that we all want more of, comfort. If you're in the HVAC industry then of course this is a great way to enhance your sales while giving your customer more of what they contacted you for in the first place. If you are the end user then of course you want to be more comfortable, healthy, and get the most bang for your heating, ventilation and air conditioning dollar.
      Some of these products are more important than ever just because we are putting in better doors and windows and putting more insulation in our structures than ever before, this is good from the point of making the most out of every dollar we spend to control our enviorment, however the downside is the air in our homes is certainly not changing over as frequently as it used to, the end result being we are not getting as much fresh air through natural infiltration as we used to, therefore we need to look at other means of either getting fresh air without throwing away heat or at least finding ways to process the air in our homes to keep it healthy.
      This is definitely the time to get ready for next winter, many qualified people have time to go over these type of projects with you this time of year, if you wait until fall they quite often find themselves overburdened just trying to give their customers the basics, never mind the frills that make a house a home. So the next time the blackflys chase you inside and away from the garden maybe that is the time to think, "Am I as ready as I want to be?".

Introduction

      Welcome to Jeffrey's Jibberish, a little monthly prattle in which I will attempt to keep you informed on the happenings at Atlas Supply Corporation, also I will try to provide intelligent answers to your questions.
      If you are reading this then you likely know about our website, www.atlassupplycorp.com, that Alan and Lise have worked very hard to get up to speed. This of course is the kind of project that will continually evolve, please feel free to check back and visit at any time.
      Most recently Alan has gotten our catalog onto a CD format for our wholesale customers. Not only does the CD contain the catalog, but the spiffy Atlas Supply logo is burned into the top of the CD. There is no getting this confused with your favorite video game.
      As part of this jibberish you'll find an area for comments: a great place to post suggestions, questions, or even throw up some constructive criticism; it's all welcome. If you're more comfortable with e-mail, feel free to write me at atlastinman@gmail.com.
      Please throw in plenty of suggestions on topics you would like me to address. I may not have all the answers, but after 29 years of light gauge sheet metal fabrication and wholesale I possibly have a few nuggets of wisdom to share.