Is Your Home Prepared for The Summer Heat?
Just as soon as your home becomes accustomed to the cold weather, Old Man Winter packs up his things to make room for the harsh summer sun to come and take over. Being too hot comes with a whole new set of problems than being too cold. You’ll want to make sure that your home is just as capable of keeping you and your family comfortable when the seasons change.
Should you turn your heating system off in the summer?
The first step to preparing your home for summer is to properly see to your heating system. This is an excellent time to clean and perform any regular maintenance for the system so that it isn’t sitting for months with dirt and grime all over it. If you don’t take the precautions of cleaning your system, you’re just allowing bacteria and germs to grow and populate so that they can be spread across your home once the heating system is turned back on.
After being properly serviced, you may want to shut down your system, depending on its type. Gas and oil furnaces that have their pilot light left on will continue to burn gas all through the season, just wasting your money. When shutting down your furnace, you want to make sure it is done correctly so you don’t risk damaging the system or harming the inhabitants in the home. It is always a good idea to have your HVAC company come and do this service to avoid any mistakes.
How do you prep your AC for the heat?
Homeowners will want to first make sure that it is warm enough to turn on the air conditioning. Most people find their homes are comfortable around 72°F, so any time it is hotter than that would be a good time to turn it on. While you can run an AC on colder days, you will run the risk of freezing up the unit. Running your AC on days that are cooler than 60°F can actually damage the unit.
Once you’ve determined it is time to turn your air conditioning on, you can make sure your unit is still in operating condition. If you did not have your AC serviced when you went into the winter, you may have to clean the ducts, change filters, and see to other parts that may be too difficult for a non-professional to reach and address. Having your AC expertly serviced will keep it running properly during the season.
If you activate your AC and find that your home isn’t being cooled by, at least, 20° or it seems to be running constantly, it may need additional servicing. Should you run across any of these problems, have a professional look at your air conditioning to determine if it can be repaired or if it needs a full replacement. Once these issues are addressed, you’ll be ready to face the harsh summer heat!
