The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/61487
The Press-Dispatch Donald was following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather when he start- ed Mac's Heating and Air Conditioning on Center St., Winslow last year. McDonald's grandfather Winslow native Josh Mc- By Andy Heuring Winslow and was working with his father and grand- father, before he decided to open Mac's Heating and Air-conditioning. His younger brother Edwin McDonald Jr., main- ly known as "Junior" worked at Whirlpool building appli- ances. He put his expertise to use repairing applianc- es in and around Winslow, which he has been doing for nearly six decades. Josh's father Robert and Junior expanded on that in 1982 by opening a busi- ness that installed new systems as well as repair- ing appliances. Last year Josh expanded his father and grandfather's business by opening up the shop in Winslow. Josh spent his summers Ben works with him and Rachel Linn takes care of his office and paper work. "We do basic heating and So he returned home to Spring Home and Garden Wednesday, April 11, 2012 D-11 Mac's Heating and Cooling is a reliable and friendly business working with his father and grandfather in the heating and air-conditioning busi- ness. After graduation Josh spent five years in the heat- ing and air-conditioning business. He worked for a heating and air-conditioner company for two years and then worked for a distrib- utor of Frigidaire and Gib- son Air-conditioners and Furnaces. He also spent his summers working for his grandfather in the business. McDonald said when the economy went down, his job went with it. Gibson units that are man- ufactured in St. Louis. Mc- Donald said the gas units are 95 percent efficient and carry a 10-year warranty. "If the heat exchanger in furnaces goes out within 10 years or the compressor on an air-conditioning unit they will replace the whole unit," said McDonald. McDonald also said the air-conditioning service and installation. I also ser- vice appliances and mini- mal refrigeration work, but I try to lean toward heating and air-conditioning," said McDonald. He sells Frigidaire and ditioning units as well as service of other household appliances. Josh McDonald started Mac's Heating and Air-condition as an expansion of his grandfather Edwin "Junior" McDonald and father Robert Mc- Donald's appliance repair, heating and air-conditioning business operated in Winslow since 1982. Brothers Ben and Josh McDonald provide service and installation of Frigidaire furnaces and air-con- new units have a variable motor on them. "They are much quieter. You can bare- ly hear them when they kick on." Mac's also keeps in stock replacement parts that are self-serviceable. "Things like filters and hoses. I keep quite a few of them in stock and if you need them I have them." He also buys and sells used appliances. "I'm pretty hands-on with a lot of stuff," said McDonald. "I will be doing the ser- vice work and repair work. On new systems I do all the wiring and gas hook-ups," said Josh. He explained if someone calls after hours he is the person who will answer the phone. "If someone calls me I will go if I'm at all able to. If not, someone will go. We have never not had some- body here to take care of the problem," said McDonald. and done I learned from grandpa if you treat people right they will keep com- ing back. He left me a pretty good thing," said McDonald. "Grandpa did a lot of stuff "Whenever it was all said for people. He was doing it as a hobby. It was hard for me to get people to under- stand I have to charge for it. He would sometimes do a service call for $6 just to help people out," said Mc- Donald. his grandfather taught him to do is take care of church- es. "I give churches and po- lice a 10 percent discount. They are important to the community." McDonald said his re- Josh said another thing turn to Winslow "was the best decision I made." He takes pride in being from Winslow and Pike County. "It would have been cheaper for me to run this business out of my ga- rage. But I wanted to have something downtown. The more businesses we have in the downtown area the bet- ter it is for all of us," said McDonald on why he decid- ed to locate on Center St. "Grandpa did mostly work here in town. I would like to do more in Peters- burg and Otwell," said Mc- Donald. "I enjoy the people more Maps reveal new plant hardiness zones ber of factors when deciding on what to plant in their gar- dens and around their prop- erty. One of the most impor- tant things to take into con- sideration is the climate. Since 1960, the go-to Gardeners rely on a num- source for climate and rela- tion to agriculture has been the U.S. Department of Ag- riculture's (USDA) Plant Hardiness Zone map. In 1967, Agriculture Canada developed their own map that took into consideration Canadian plant survival data and a wider range of climat- ic variables. The maps re- mained constant until now. In January 2012, the US- DAreleased an updated zone map. The map is now more precise and reflects microclimates, heat is- lands, prevailing wind, el- evation, and generally bet- ter data. It breaks down the country into 13 unique zones from the previous 11. Individuals who once re- sided in a particular zone may find that they are now moved into another zone. This updated map has tak- en into consideration cli- mate changes that have oc- curred between 1976 and 2005. You now may be able to try plants that you may have been skeptical about in the past. a Geographic Information System, orGIS, -based, in- teractive format and is spe- cifically designed to be In- ternet-friendly. The map website also incorporates a "find your zone by ZIP code" function. Static im- ages of national, regional and state maps have also been included to ensure the map is readily accessible to those who lack broadband Internet access. The new version of the The new map now offers map includes 13 zones, with the addition for the first time of zones 12 (50-60 degrees F) and 13 (60-70 degrees F). Each zone is a 10-degree Fahrenheit band, further di- vided into A and B 5-degree Fahrenheit zones. A hardiness zone de- than anything. You get to meet a lot of people." scribes a geographically de- fined area in which a specific category of plant life is capa- ble of growing, as defined by climatic conditions, includ- ing its ability to withstand the minimum temperatures of the zone. Summer tem- peratures are not factored into the mix. Therefore, ar- eas with similar winter pat- terns and average lows may be in the same zone despite having drastically different highs. Hardiness zones may not take into consideration snow cover, either. Snow helps insulate the soil and hibernating plants. There- fore hardiness zones are more like guidelines instead of foolproof methods of de- termining viable plants. version of this map will not be available for purchase from USDA, as in the past, anyone may download the map free of charge from the Although a poster-sized Internet onto their personal computer and print copies of the map as needed. When shopping for plants, most will display a hardi- ness zone right on the con- PAINT SALE SPRING F&M BUILDING and HOME SUPPLIES, INC. EXPERIENCE MAKES THE DIFFERENCE 2 2001 E. BROADWAY, PRINCETON Phone: (812) 385-3479 Fax: 812-385-4201 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 7-6, Sat. 7-5 Sun. Closed Email: Sales@FandMBuilding.com Web: FandMBuilding.com (CDT) s tainer to help you determine whether this particular plant will be acceptable outdoors in your zone. To learn more about hardiness zones, visit www.planthardiness.gc.ca. stop by for more Spring SALE$