Many people struggle with the basic concepts of maintaining their HVAC system, but it is something they should know how to do. Learning the best HVAC professional to maintain or repair your system is a wise move for any smart homeowner. This article will help you with that.
Tour your home before calling a contractor. You will be looking to see which of your rooms feel hotter or colder than they should be. That knowledge can help the technician figure out what is going on.
If you’ve been having trouble with an HVAC system, take a look around the house prior to calling a contractor. This information will help the repairman determine what the problem is and how to fix it.
Clean your condenser’s fan blades and coils come spring. Before you clean the unit, be sure to turn off the power. In addition, always remove all debris such as leaves from the outside condenser unit.
Clean the debris off your condenser unit. You never know when things can pile up, especially after a windy or rainy storm, and that can ruin your system. It can cause your system by overheating.
Clean your condenser’s fan blades and coil in the spring. Be sure to turn the power off first; you don’t want anything to move. Next, pop the grill off, put the blades out and start to gently clean them along with the unit.
Don’t let grass clippings on your outdoor condenser.Aim the grass cuttings in a different direction away from your unit. This also applies when you are taking care of the leaves in debris.
You must keep your HVAC systems oil ports lubricated annually. You can find these ports covered with rubber or metal caps. Get an oil that is SAE 20 and put about 10 drops into each port, but don’t overfill it.
Put outdoor condensers in places with shade.
A shady spot is always a good choice for the placement of your outdoor compressor. The cooler air entering the unit will require less work to get to the proper temperature.
Have your HVAC system serviced at least yearly. This should be checked often for debris and the spring.
Make sure you have your HVAC system checked at least twice a year. This should happen in the fall and the spring. Even though it may seem as nothing is wrong with the unit, a simple inspection can prove otherwise.
A programmable thermostat can help you save money on air conditioning costs. Some of these thermostats can even be controlled from your smart phone or other device.
If you own your own home or have permission from your landlord, replace your single pane windows with double paned versions. Try to insulate your windows to prevent air from being lost. This will help you save a lot of money.
During a maintenance visit, they will inspect the motor of the system, oil the moving parts and check the freon levels in the system. These repairs will keep your system to run its best.
Get your HVAC unit serviced yearly. When it’s checked out, the motor will be inspected, moving parts well oiled and the level of freon adjusted if necessary. This will help keep your system performing at maximum efficiency.
Degrees Fahrenheit
Turn your AC off if no one is at home. Sure, the temp will rise, but no one is home anyway. If the A/C is on when you’re gone, it’ll be working hard constantly.
Don’t let your home to become dangerously hot. Air conditioners can only really cool your home down 20 degrees Fahrenheit in a reasonable time limit. If your home happens to get near 100 degrees Fahrenheit, you will only be able to cool it down to 80. This is not a healthy environment to live in.
Sometimes air conditioners get iced up. There are also occasional freezes in the drain line, which are often confused for plumbing leaks. If this happens, disable the compressor by switching the thermostat to run the fan only. You should leave the repair to a professional, but switching to the fan setting should start to melt the ice.
Look for calculators online to truly understand what size of unit is necessary for your home. Look in the manual to determine the recommended size for this information.
Use an online sizing calculator to help you calculate the proper size of the air conditioning unit you should purchase. While you might think that a larger HVAC system is always better, in fact, larger systems sometimes are not the best choice for a particular space. Look at the manual to figure out the manufacturing rates the unit for accurate cooling information.
Ask your friends and trust for their HVAC contractor recommendations. People that have had quality work done are usually more than willing to share the name of their contractor.This can also help you to figure out some names of businesses that should be avoided.
If you need a HVAC contractor, try and get recommendations from family and friends. If they know a good contractor, they will surely guide you right. This is also a great way to get names of companies that should be avoided.
There are a few sites now that allow customers talk about their experiences with different services. This is useful for finding people that you wish to work with and those you need to make the best hiring decisions.
Make your HVAC work efficiently when you consider what way your home faces. Trees in certain areas can provide shade, which means your house will stay cooler. The less heat inside the house, the less time that the AC has to work.
Contractors determine their own fee levels, so make sure that you acquire multiple estimates. You can save quite a bit of money this way. Call at least four or five different HVAC specialist to find the best deal possible.
Your HVAC system will be more efficient if your doors and windows are efficient as well. Make certain they have tight seals to keep air inside. Ask a contractor to test them for you.
Think about having a radiant barrier in your attic so support the efficient functioning of your HVAC system. It blocks outside heat from coming in which will serve as a barrier between your home and the outside. You may even find that you can use the attic space if it is done right.
The very least you should be doing to care for your HVAC system is making sure to change out the old filter, and replacing it with a new one every single month. It is the easiest way to take care of it. It only costs a couple of bucks to replace the filter.
If you hear a clicking noise coming from your HVAC unit, check for any sort of obstructions immediately. Often it is being caused by debris that’s hitting fans in the cooling system. Check it out yourself first before calling a repairman.
Understand where the air flows in your home and use that information to determine where to put your AC unit. Put it in a corner where the air does not flow into the wall.
Make sure they have tight seals to keep air inside. You can also hire a professional to test them.
Make sure that your contractor can be reached at all times. They should be available to you if a problem arises.
If you can only put the unit in the corner, use one that doesn’t blow into the wall.
Find out what exactly your contractor plans to do. Do not get scammed with material fees and fuel charges. This is why getting estimates in writing is so important.
Any HVAC contractor or installer should have a 24-hour emergency number available to customers around the clock. They need to be able to come to you when they are needed, be it in the middle of a heatwave or in the worst snowstorm of the year.
Use a fully-enclosing cover to protect your condenser unit in the winter. This can help it last longer when it is not in use. Additionally, do not use it when the temperature dips below 60. You should use the fan instead since this will stop your unit from getting strained.
Some contractors will attempt to charge you later for items like materials and fuel. Having a solid written contract can help to avoid any issues like that.
Take advantage of the opportunity to add a programmable thermostat when you are putting in new heating and air-conditioning or repairing your old system. A programmable thermostat will save you tons on your power bills and even gives your system a chance to rest at night while everyone sleeps or is not at home.
Cover your condenser when the winter. This will help it to last longer when it is not in use. Use the fan instead to avoid straining the condenser unit.
Look for a unit that has the Energy Star emblem. These qualified energy products are known to meet strict guidelines for efficiency. The guidelines are established by the United States. The EPA is the Environmental Protection Agency. Choosing an Energy Star system will save you money over the life of the unit.
This will tell you how much BTU your new system will be used.
Seek out HVAC contractors that only use products that carry the Energy Star label. These products are high quality and are known for efficiency, as they meet the requirements of the EPA. This helps save you money on your energy bills during the year.
Consider have a programmable thermostat. This can save you a great deal on your bills because your settings to ensure optimal performance.
The heating ducts must be cleaned on a regular basis for best performance. Inspect the ducts frequently to ensure there are not dents, debris or punctures. A bit of damage can drastically effect efficiency.
You might be surprised that as much as 66% of households have ducts that leak. These can cost you as much as twenty five percent of your utility costs. It is easy and cheap to fix the ducts yourself, and you will see a noticeable change in the amount you pay for electricity.
Protect the condenser unit when it gets cold. Just cover it with a thick top. Also, make sure you don’t use the condenser unit when the temperature is in the 50s and below.
There aren’t many things that make a home more comfortable than a functioning HVAC system. But, if you aren’t sure who to call, it can be quite frustrating. Luckily you were given this great information so you know what you need to put into all of this.
Keep the owner’s manual close to you while you’re working on any kind of unit. It will provide you with specific and vital information regarding the functioning of your system. You can get a replacement manual from the manufacturer if you need one.
