Hello World! Welcome Friends! We’re enjoying (or maybe suffering through) the cooler part of the year currently. Winter is here, and with it comes big jackets, heaters, and maybe the warmth of a nice fire.
However, time passes fast and soon the hot and sweaty days of summer will be upon us. The transition can come at us faster than we expect, and it’s important to keep on top of what you need to survive these sweltering months.
For example, it’s a smart idea to perform an air conditioning check during the winter so you know that you’re prepared during the summer months. Do you know how to properly test your A/C unit for proper performance? Read on and we’ll walk you through what you need to know.
Change Your Filters Ahead of Time
The easiest and most efficient way to improve that performance of your air conditioning unit is also the task that homeowners seem to forget about most often. What is it? Changing the air filter.
Swapping an A/C filter out for a new one is a job that takes all of thirty seconds if you know what you’re doing, and yet many people let weeks go by without changing them.
also easy enough to get them ordered directly to your home. They’re available on all your favorite online retailers like Amazon, Wal-Mart, and other such places.
If you really want to keep your air conditioner in tip-top shape, it’s recommended that you change the filters in your system every two months. That’s by the decree of the United States Department of Energy, who should certainly know what they’re talking about.
Keeping your filters clean allows fresh air to pass more easily through and to better cool your home.
Clean the Fins on the Exterior
If you’re A/C isn’t running at max efficiency, you might want to take a look at the many metal fins that exist on the exterior of the body. Cleaning the fins on an A/C unit will help it to run better.
However, given their material and small size, these fins can be difficult to clean.
The best way to approach the job is to take a soft brush, like a toothbrush or the kind of small brush you’d use to clean an automobile. If you gently brush across each layer of fins on the unit, you should get a fairly good clean going.
During your clean, you may realize that some of the fins are bent out of shape or damaged. If just a few are bent, you should be able to use a tool to straighten them back into the proper place.
However, if a large portion of full sections of fins is damaged, you likely can’t do the job yourself. You’ll need to look into air conditioner repair to get your unit back up and running at full efficiency.
Check the Leveling
One thing that can really disrupt the proper function of an air conditioning unit is the balance of the unit itself. As such, it’s important to check and ensure that the concrete slab the unit is placed on is level.
An unbalanced unit will have a hard time functioning properly. It will require more energy to properly cool your home, which also means higher charges on your electric bill (something no one wants!).
If your unit isn’t level, you might have to put a little work in to get everything back to the status quo. The best move is to pry a board underneath the concrete slab. Then, shovel gravel in until the slab and unit are lifted back up to a balanced state. Once you’ve achieved this, you can pull the board back out.
If there is any high grass surrounding your unit, it’s also worth cutting that away from the slab your unit sits on. Not only can this eventually cause unbalancing to reoccur, but the high grass might block airflow and decrease your unit’s performance.
As the summer rolls around, you’ll want to check the exterior of your unit for grass and debris on a weekly basis.
Set Up a Programmable Thermostat
Many modern homes are set up with a thermostat that can be used to control the temperature in a home. However, if you’re living in an older home or an apartment, you might not have one already built-in.
Installing a thermostat yourself is one of the best ways to stay in control of the climate situation within your home. Not only will it help you to stay more comfortable depending on how you’re feeling, but it can also actually save you a lot of money as well.
With a thermostat installed, you can control when heat and air conditioning is being used and not used in your home. That means you can turn it off when you plan to be away for an extended amount of time.
The savings this can mean for your energy bill are no small thing!
How to Perform an Air Conditioning Check
If you plan to enjoy the cool and refreshing benefits of an air conditioning unit when the summer rolls around, you need to prepare ahead of time.
Performing an air conditioning check will ensure that your system is ready to go when the hot weather rolls into town. Fail to check ahead of time and you might find yourself sweating away in your home!
Need more homeowner advice, tips, and tricks? Check out the rest of our blog for more information.
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Toodles,
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