As the warm spring weather starts to shine through, many of us are spending more time prepping our homes for the upcoming summer season. One thing that you don’t want to forget is your HVAC system. There are various maintenance tasks that need to be done in order to keep it in good working condition for the upcoming season.
One of the best places to start is by changing the air filter inside your HVAC system. You’ll want to put in a filter that matches the size of your current one. From there, you can choose a filter with the right MERV rating—which stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value. This rating helps you understand how well the filter captures airborne particles.
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<li>MERV 6–8 filters are ideal for most standard residential systems and do a good job capturing dust and pollen.</li>
<li>MERV 9–12 filters offer a higher level of filtration and are great for households with pets, allergy sufferers, or anyone with asthma.</li>
<li>MERV 13 and higher can trap even finer particles, including some bacteria and smoke, but may restrict airflow if your system isn’t built for it.</li>
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Before upgrading to a higher-rated filter, it’s a good idea to check your system’s specifications or speak with our technician to make sure it can handle the increased filtration without reducing efficiency.
It’s also smart to keep an extra filter on hand so you can replace it as needed throughout the summer—especially during allergy season or high-use months.
It isn’t uncommon over the winter months for heavy wind gusts to push debris against your outdoor condenser unit. For your condenser unit to function optimally, it needs to have open space all around it. It’s best to aim for around 3 feet of open space to ensure optimal operating efficiency of your air conditioning system. Take a few moments to not only clear away debris but also trim back any bushes or trees that are too close to your unit.
While you’re at your condenser unit, you’ll want to take a look at the metal fins on the outside of it. These should be horizontal to allow for optimal heat release. If any of those metal fins are bent, you’ll want to bend them back into position with something like a screwdriver so they continue to function optimally.
Spring is the perfect time of year to climb up into your attic before it gets super hot. You want to look for a couple of different things. First, ensure that all your attic vents are open. Don’t fall for closing those vents to try to keep more of your air conditioning indoors. Your insulation is the barrier between the temperature inside your home and the air outside.
The air inside your attic should be the exact same temperature as the air outside. If you close off your attic vents, your attic is going to get extremely hot and end up prematurely deteriorating your roofing material. If you’re worried about any sort of rodents or pests coming in through your roof vents, you can cover them with a wire mesh that still allows for great airflow.
Another thing you want to take a look at is your insulation. If you notice that any areas of your attic are missing insulation, fill them in. If your existing insulation is sitting below the floor joist, you should add to it to beef up the amount of insulation in your home.
If you rely on a forced-air cooling system that has ductwork, it’s a good idea to head around to all your air vents and give them a once over. You want to ensure that each vent is fully open and there are no obstructions that would block the airflow in or out of it. If you have removable covers, consider washing them thoroughly to help reduce airborne contaminants in your home.
One thing you never want to forget to do is schedule professional maintenance service for your cooling system. This will help sustain your warranty and extend the overall longevity of your system. It’s great for giving you peace of mind about the performance of your system and for detecting any potential problems that it may have so you can repair them before the upcoming summer season.
Spring is a great time to go ahead and switch your thermostat from heating mode over to cooling mode. Take a little bit of time and program in your desired temperature settings for the upcoming season. Aim to turn the temperature up at times you know that you’re not going to be home to help conserve your energy usage.
One thing you might consider doing to prep your air conditioning system for the upcoming summer season is to install a surge protector. Unfortunately, surge protection devices are not standard with most air conditioning systems, which means they’re more susceptible to any power surges that may happen to your area.
Nasty thunderstorms that may cause power outages can end up creating a power surge that damages your equipment. A whole-home surge protector or a simple point surge protector for your air conditioning system can be a great choice to help protect your AC system from unexpected damage.
Apart from prepping your HVAC system, there are some other things that you want to do with your home to help reduce the need to run your cooling system as often. One of these is going to be blocking off direct sunlight coming into your home during the summer. Make sure that you have blinds or curtains ready to go. Or, you can invest in solar screens or window films that will actually block out the UV radiation while still allowing natural illumination of your rooms.
If you use ceiling fans to help your family remain more comfortable in your home during the summertime without relying heavily on your air conditioning system, then you want to make sure you set your ceiling fans appropriately.
Throughout the summer months, your ceiling fans need to be spinning in a counterclockwise or forward direction. Now is the perfect time to go ahead and set all of your ceiling fans and give them a test run to make sure that they’re working properly.
Any air leaks that develop in your exterior walls can allow hot outside air to come into your home and raise your home’s internal temperature. This leads to costly cooling bills and an uncomfortable indoor environment. A great way to curb this problem is to seal up any air leaks that are on your exterior walls.
You can run your hand around door and window frames as well as your outlets and light switches. If you notice a change in temperature, then you want to seal off that location with something like weather stripping or spray foam.
One other thing that you may want to do to prep your home is to get a professional home energy audit. This is where an energy assessor will come out to your home and identify any weak spots in your home’s air conditioning system, ductwork, insulation, and so forth. This will give you actionable advice on how to make your home more efficient so that you can lower your energy bills throughout the summer season.
Ready & Able Plumbing, Heating & Air offers trustworthy AC maintenance service for the community. We can also help with all your cooling system repair, replacement, and new installation needs. Call our office today to book your next service appointment.