Two common frustrations in beachside properties are the HIGH FUEL EXPENSES, and the FREQUENT MAINTENANCE COSTS associated with HVAC systems.  These expenses can be caused by lack of preventive maintenance (periodic cleaning and inspections), and/or by undesired guest behaviors (setting temperatures at the extreme ranges, or running the system with the doors and window open).  What guests won’t do at home, they will do in your vacation rental.

To keep your system running at peak performance we recommend an annual service contract on your HVAC system.  Total Climate Control offers an annual contract for our owners at a discounted rate each year.  This includes:

• 2 service visits (June. November) for cleaning and inspection
• Priority response time for service calls
• Waiving the after hours, weekend, and holiday premium fee for service calls (and that’s often when guests tell you there is an issue)
• Discount on all parts and labor

Last year, 100% of our owners signed up for this service protection, which allowed them to extend their loyalty plan to everyone again this year, even our new owners.

ACTION ITEM #1:

The problem of controlling guest behavior is a challenging one.  No matter how many times you tell a guest or post a notice about keeping doors closed, or maintaining a proper temperature range, guests will ignore those instructions if no one is minding the store.  Rather than monitoring or punishing a guest for not following instructions (easier said than done), we recommend being proactive and creating an environment where only the desired behaviors are possible.

This solution requires installing a smart thermostat and door sensors.  You may even have one of these systems in your own home already.

One of the first systems like this to be installed was the CGA (Coastal Green Air) system, which was reported to be effective in most environments.  It operated automatically to restrict the temperature settings that were available to the guest, and to automatically turn off the system if doors were left open for more than 90 seconds.  This system was successful at controlling the guest behaviors and protecting the systems.

But the Coastal Green Air systems are reaching the end of their useful lives.  Support is nearly impossible to find for these systems now in Panama City Beach, and many of the older sensors are failing, even with updated batteries, rendering the system useless for these important door controls.  The systems are also not Wifi-enabled which means that you can’t tell when they’re working and when they’re not without being on site.  On our most recent pass through to update batteries we discovered that nearly all of the door sensors were not working, which means when guests open the doors – the AC keeps running…..$$$

One of our long-time owners recently allowed us to Beta Test the new Ecobee thermostat with motion and door sensors in their condo.  With the Wifi viewing, we were able to see first hand how often doors were left open for extended periods of time, and we watched the system shut down until the doors were closed again.  We often observed periods over an hour of open doors.  Imagine the expense and hardship on your system if it were running to cool the outside!

Along with the discounted contract for preventive services, Total Climate Control has offered us a discount for professional installation of these systems.  They have a high end system that is far more powerful than what we need in the condos, so I recommend the following:

Ecobee solution:

• Thermostat with 1-2 sensors – Purchased online only: $300 estimate.
• Professional installation – $202.50+tax
• Monthly software support for sensors – $5.34/month
• Total up front cost is estimated as $502.50+tax, plus the $5.34/mo
• Remember, we do not mark up these purchases on your behalf – you will only pay our costs, and we will coordinate the onsite installation with third party services on your behalf as part of our maintenance program.
• Also note that this system must be ordered with at least a 2 week lead time to get this pricing.  If you wait for your system to fail, we will not have the same pricing options.

ACTION ITEM #2:

To let us know your choices, just drop us an email or give us a call!

Jenny@premiumbeachcondos.com
(937) 790-2292