The world is full of unique and interesting holidays, like National Hug Day in January and World Hello Day in November. But did you know that July 17th is National Air Conditioner Day?
Here in Winston-Salem, we definitely know how to appreciate our air conditioners. Whether you’ve ever sat at home without the AC for a full day or only a few hours, you truly don’t know what you have until it’s gone sometimes.
Today, we hope to help you learn more about your own air conditioner and how to keep it running so that you don’t have to appreciate it after it’s no longer working.
How to Maintain Your Air Conditioner
The best way to prevent your air conditioner from stopping on you is simple… maintenance! Not only is maintaining your air conditioner the cheaper option, but it also allows you to spend smaller amounts of money instead of having to hand over one lump sum to purchase an entirely new unit.
The number one, most important thing that you can do to maintain your air conditioner is to regularly replace (or at least just clean) your air filters. Regular, pleated one-inch air conditioner filters should be changed or cleaned once every month.
Filters from homes that are inhabited by pets or smokers, or just located in generally dusty parts of North Carolina should be even more vigilant. If your air conditioner takes a size other than that, it’s best to let your HVAC technician check it at a scheduled maintenance visit.
Also, make sure you check the outside portion of your air conditioner unit as well.
Trim back any encroaching plants and grass, and remove any obvious leaves and debris from the outside. An HVAC technician should also check the coils and attached coil fins inside the unit for wear and tear. These three simple steps can save you from having to make costly air conditioner repairs.
When It’s Time to Replace Your Air Conditioner
There may be a time, despite all of your attempts at maintaining your air conditioner, when it’s best to simply get a new unit.
Knowing when that time has come can save you some heartache and also allow you to save up ahead of time.
If your air conditioner is more than 10 to 15 years old and is going to require costly repairs, it’s often more cost-efficient to simply replace it. In some cases, even if your unit isn’t quite that old, you should weigh the cost of repair against the cost of the new unit.
It might not always be worth your while to repair it. When considering whether or not to replace your air conditioner, also take into account its SEER (or Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio).
It takes a lot to cool down a home in the middle of a Winston-Salem summer and, if your SEER rating is lower than 13 (ask your HVAC technician how to calculate this), you should definitely consider replacing it with a better, more energy-efficient air conditioner.
How to Clean Out Your Ducts
One last important air quality maintenance service to make sure to have your HVAC technician perform is air duct cleaning. This type of cleaning is just as important to the life and health of your air conditioner as any other regular care.
In addition to extending the life of your air conditioner, especially to make sure it can make it through our North Carolina summers, cleaning your air ducts regularly inhibits the growth of the molds that thrive there.
The combination of humidity, darkness, and water accumulation is a perfect growing ground, and those spores can quickly spread through your house through the vents. This is a health hazard for you as well as family members and even pets. Make sure to ask for the service during your annual check. Do you appreciate your air conditioner even more now?
The temperatures here in Winston-Salem have only begun to start to creep up, and knowing how to maintain your air conditioner, what services to ask for, and when it’s time to throw in the towel and replace your unit can help you save time, money, and heartache. Also, make sure you share this blog on your social media as well as giving a shout out and a hearty thank you to any HVAC technicians in your life! They really are lifesavers.
