Heat the Town Heats Up Homes

TACCA  South Plains and Greater Austin Provide the Gift of Warmth

Every year there are many deaths in our country related to faulty heating systems or to the lack of heating all together. Whether the cause is carbon monoxide leakage, gas leakage in a confined space, or simply the lack of funds to afford repairs, our communities are faced with the grim results year after year. The fact is most of these heating related casualties could be prevented with a simple and thorough heating check in the fall. However, the elderly and/or disabled, low-income homeowner, living on a fixed income must make a critical choice: food and medicine, or a heat check service call.

For the 20th year in a row, the Texas Air Conditioning Contractors Association (TACCA) South Plains chapter has partnered with the South Plains Association of Governments Area Agency on Aging to help the elderly, disabled, and those with low income get a safe, free source of a heating check-up as part of the Heat the Town program.

On Saturday, October 31, 40 contractors came together in Lubbock to service heaters in over 70 homes in the Lubbock community. TACCA South Plains went out into the community to clean furnaces and make sure carbon monoxide is not getting into living spaces. About 10 of the 70 service calls made that day require follow-up to help with system replacements and additional repairs that required more extensive work that could not be conducted during the one-day event.

Local vendors donated tools and gifts for the technicians who volunteered their time for the event, along with carbon monoxide detectors. Thank you to Atmos Energy for donating t-shirts for all who were involved in the event. 

Every winter residents in the Austin area go through the winter and cold temperatures without adequate heat and many with units that need repairs or parts that they cannot afford. In an unprecedented year when so many are spending their days indoors, Texas Air Conditioning Contractors Association of Greater Austin (TACCA GA) has partnered with area suppliers to host Heat the Town to assist those who need a safe way to stay warm.

From November 9-20, 2020, TACCA GA contractors conducted inspections on furnaces and repaired units to over 25 homes, and on November 23, 2020 TACCA GA replaced three full HVAC units at no cost to three local families. One of the individuals that received a full replacement unit is a Vietnam War veteran and is currently receiving chemotherapy cancer treatment. Mr. Ramirez has lived in South Austin for many years and we learned that he has been without a functional unit since 1985. He had been surviving the cold temperatures with a space heater and hot summers a window fan that he recently had upgraded to a window A/C unit.

The TACCA GA contractors that participated and donated their time last month include Fox Services, Stan’s Heating and Air, McCullough Heating and Air Conditioning, Trusted Heating and Cooling and ABC Home and Commercial. The partnering suppliers for this project were Lennox Ind., American Standard, Aces Supply, Ferguson Supply, and JB Warranties. A huge thank you to all involved in making this a success!