Easy Ways to Get Your Air Conditioner Ready for Summer

We should start getting our houses ready for the summer months now, while we can still dream about it. In addition to the obvious summertime chores like washing the windows and getting the garden ready, do not forget to check on your air conditioner. Our air conditioners are working overtime to keep our homes cool and comfortable as the weather outside becomes hotter and the humidity rises.

By keeping up with routine AC maintenance, you can avoid expensive breakdowns and the inconvenience of sweating it out inside while waiting for your unit to be fixed. In order to get your air conditioner ready for summer, follow these simple procedures.

Schedule an Oil Change

Usually, a maintenance tune-up for air conditioners is performed in the spring, just before summer arrives. In order to keep the system running smoothly and avoid any possible malfunctions, a technician will check, troubleshoot, and maintain all of the critical parts.

If you have not had your HVAC system tuned up yet, you should prioritize preventative maintenance since it is just as necessary as regular maintenance.

Get the Thermostat to Your Preferences

New family routines begin as the summer months approach. To accommodate new habits and summer getaways, remember to change the thermostat. There will be no school, no extracurricular activities to keep you busy throughout the summer, so you could find yourself sleeping in later and spending more time at home during the summer.

Turning your thermostat to the “vacation” or “hold” position will allow you to conserve electricity while you are not home.

Verify Vents and Replace Air Filter

The secret to a well-maintained system is replacing the air filters on a regular basis. During the summer, the system operates more regularly, which means that filters tend to fill up more rapidly with debris. Make sure to check your air filter once a month to see whether it needs to be changed. Now is also an excellent opportunity to check that all of your vents are clear and open. Inspect the return air grilles, vents, and registers.

To make sure air can flow easily into your house and back into your air conditioning system, move rugs, furniture, and anything else away from the vents and grilles.

Exterior Maintenance

You should always wipe off the outside air conditioner after mowing the grass or doing other lawn care tasks. The fins that enable heat to exit the system might get clogged with grass clippings, mulch, leaves, and other debris if allowed to accumulate on your unit. Beyond that, you should not have any vegetation or other objects within a two-foot radius of the unit.

Remove any obstacles to airflow by trimming shrubs and branches, pulling out weeds, and moving equipment or storage to a more suitable location.

Using Fans to Their Full Potential

If you want to keep your home cool without overworking your air conditioner, a fan is a great investment. An excellent choice would be ceiling fans. During the summer, turn them clockwise to direct airflow downhill and keep the warmer air from escaping into your home’s upper floors.

You can also get the same effect with smaller, more portable fans, such as floor fans or tabletop fans.