In the March issue of Plumbing & Mechanical, read about the 'living in place' movement and learn how to make your space stylish and comfortable. PM catches up with MCAA president Chuck Fell and spoke with him about his goals for the year. Also in this issue, see the top products of 2013, see who is the March Truck of the Month, and read the latest Tool Tips.
A little more than 25 years ago, I promised my wife an addition to our house. When we bought this house, we loved it. However, the master bedroom was nothing spectacular.
Every contractor understands the importance of having a strong, easily recognizable brand. Companies that develop exceptional brands outperform companies with a mediocre brand every day, regardless of their field.
Are you one of those contractors who believes if you service a customer once and do a great job, he’ll remember you forever? I wish it was true. Instead, studies show 55% of the customers you lose leave you because you paid them no attention.
Two simultaneous revelations right after the first of the year have magnified our predictions of industrial manufacturing and construction expansion, as the first quarter of 2014 gets off and running.
I stopped at the gas station the other day because one of my car’s tires looked a bit low. They charge us for air here on the Isle of Long. When I was a young man, it was free.
Well-designed and properly installed hydronic radiant heating systems have earned a deserved reputation for superior comfort. Even so, many people hesitate on using these systems because they can’t just push a button on their thermostat to change the system from heating to cooling.
Before my brothers and I became enlightened about staffing (meaning we got our teeth kicked in so many times we eventually woke up), we used to rely on the tried-and-true method of hiring people using the “Mirror Test.”
With the sheer numbers of baby boomers that are now heading into retirement age, they are definitely driving the trend toward aging in place — remodeling their homes so they can live in them longer as they age.
In 2013, the union membership rate was 11.3%, the same as in 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in late January.
March 17, 2014
The number of wage and salary workers belonging to unions, at 14.5 million, was little different from 2012. In 1983, the first year for which comparable union data is available, the union membership rate was 20.1% and there were 17.7 million union workers.
John Siegenthaler will present a seminar April 2, 2014, at the Mohawk Valley Community College.
March 17, 2014
Plumbing & Mechanical columnist and Hydronics Editor John Siegenthaler will present a seminar April 2 at the Mohawk Valley Community College’s Utica Campus on using renewable energy sources such as solar thermal collectors, heat pumps and solid fuel (wood and pellet) boilers with hydronic heating systems.
Severe weather in NYC didn’t stop thousands of determined attendees and exhibitors from filling the aisles and booths at the 2014 AHR Expo held at the Javits Convention Center, Jan. 21-23.
March 17, 2014
Despite a storm that dropped 10 in. of snow on New York City and created a state of emergency in parts of New York, the severe weather didn’t stop thousands of determined attendees and exhibitors from filling the aisles and booths at the 2014 AHR Expo held at the Javits Convention Center, Jan. 21-23.
Last month, Plumbing & Mechanical interviewed founder and President of CFI Mechanical Chuck Fell before he was installed as the next president of the Mechanical Contractors Association of America (MCAA).
Hundred of products come across the editorial desks at Plumbing & Mechanical each year. The products on these pages earned the special designation as PM’s Products of the Year for 2013.
Richard F. Kuntz, founder and now retired president, started Jupiter-Tequesta at the age of 30. He started out in new construction, saw the opportunity in service and repair, and has been focused on residential service and replacement ever since.
The Charlotte, North Carolina area has .75 to 1.5 parts per million of chlorine in its water and outlying areas have up to 3.5 ppm of chloramine, a derivitive of ammonia. It’s almost like drinking pool water, says Paul Stefano, general manager of the Charlotte Benjamin Franklin Plumbing franchise.
The average home’s water leaks can account for more than 10,000 gal. wasted each year — the amount of water needed to wash 270 loads of laundry. And 10% of homes have leaks that waste more than 90 gal. of water every day.
The MagnaTherm from Laars is a 95% thermal efficiency modulating-condensing boiler or volume water heater available in 2 million, 3 million and 4 million Btu/hr. sizes.
March 17, 2014
It features a VARI-PRIME pump control that matches boiler firing rate to pump flow. Its on-board control functionality balances combustion, air flow and water flow to optimize boiler efficiency.
Geberit’s Monolith, as detailed in this brochure, has a modular structure made of high-quality materials, such as safety glass and brushed metal, and is available in black or white.
March 17, 2014
Geberit’s Monolith, as detailed in this brochure, has a modular structure made of high-quality materials, such as safety glass and brushed metal, and is available in black or white.