As we get to the end of the cold winter season and start to transition into warmer spring weather, many of us are planning more outdoor activities. While getting your landscape ready for your summer garden is important, so is taking care of your HVAC system. We’re going to go in-depth on the things you need to be doing at the end of the winter season to ensure that your HVAC system remains in tip-top condition throughout the coming year.
Switch Your Thermostat Settings
One of the best places to start transitioning from heating your home to cooling it is by switching the settings on your thermostat. You want to switch from heat mode over to cool mode. Be sure to program in a schedule for your summertime cooling to help better optimize your energy usage throughout the upcoming season. If you don’t have a programmable or smart thermostat, you should highly consider getting one as it can save you a bundle on your summertime cooling bills.
Check Your Air Vents
Now is the perfect time to go ahead and walk around all the different rooms of your home and check your supply and return vents. You want to check for three basic things. First, you want to ensure that the vent is completely open. Second, you want to check for any dirt or grime that’s on the vent and clean it off. Lastly, you want to ensure that there’s enough open space around the vent to allow adequate airflow with no restrictions.
Change HVAC Air Filter
As we transition into the spring weather, it can be really helpful to change out the air filter on your HVAC system. If you or another family member suffers from a respiratory condition, asthma, or allergies, you may want to consider investing in a filter that has a high rating. Ideally, you’ll want a filter that has a rating between 10 and 13, as this will give you the best balance of filtering capability alongside system operating efficiency. Be sure to have an extra filter at your home so that you can do replacements throughout the summer whenever necessary.
Uncover and Clean Around the Outdoor Unit
It’s important to take a few moments and head outside to open up your outdoor condenser unit for the summer season. If you have a cover that goes over your unit, go ahead and remove that cover and put it into storage. You want to clean up any debris that you find pushed up against the sides or on the top of the unit like leaves.
If you see that any of the fins on the outside of the unit have become bent, it’s a good rule of thumb to go ahead and straighten those back out with a fin comb or a flathead screwdriver. All the fins should be in their original position in order to allow for optimal dispersion of heat from your outdoor condenser unit.
Switch Ceiling Fan Direction
There’s no doubt that ceiling fans can make a world of difference when it comes to reducing your heating and cooling bills throughout the year. However, for them to work appropriately, they need to spin in the right direction depending on the specific season that you’re in. During the summer months, you want your fans to spend in a forward or counterclockwise direction. This forces a downward breeze onto you and helps to cool down your body without the need to turn down the temperature on your thermostat.
Get Professional Maintenance Service
One thing that you never want to skip over is getting professional maintenance service for your air conditioning system. This is absolutely imperative to maintain the warranty coverage on your system and extend its overall operating lifespan. This service can be great for identifying any potential problems with your system so that you can have them repaired before the issue gets worse. Additionally, maintenance service is a great way to help provide you with peace of mind about the state of your unit and how much longer it’s likely to last you.
Test Run Your Cooling System
You never want to wait until the weather gets so hot that you need your air conditioning system to work to try it for the first time. It’s best to turn on your air conditioning system and give it a test run during the spring months to ensure that everything’s working correctly.
If you do this before having maintenance service done on the unit, it can be helpful to open up doors and windows as your system’s likely going to produce a burning smell as dust gets burnt off its internal components. During this test run, it’s vital that you walk around to all the supply vents and verify that they have adequate cold air coming out of them.
Consider Ducting Services
As your heating and air conditioning systems run, they’re going to be pulling in debris that can get built up inside your ductwork over time. This debris will not only restrict airflow throughout the air ducts and cause your HVAC system to work harder but can also decrease the quality of air inside your home. It’s a good idea to have your ductwork cleaned around every five years by one of our HVAC technicians who has the appropriate tools to do the job.
It’s also important to note that, because your air ducts are made out of metal, they naturally expand and contract with temperature extremes. This can cause some of their joints to loosen up over time and create air gaps in your ductwork. These gaps can allow your hot and cold air to escape and cause your HVAC system to run overtime to make up for the loss. One great way to help get rid of this issue at your home is to have your ductwork properly sealed. Typically, duct cleaning and sealing services are done at the same time for the best results.
Check Your Roof Vents
One other necessary maintenance step that you want to take as a homeowner is to check the vents in your attic to ensure that they’re open. Contrary to some of the stuff that you may see online, you never want to close the air vents in your attic. Your attic should always be kept at the same temperature as the outdoors for optimal HVAC performance.
If you’re worried about critters entering your attic, then simply use a wire mesh-like material to block off entry while still allowing for adequate airflow. Your insulation provides the barrier between the temperature inside your home and your attic. While up in your attic, be sure to check the state of your insulation and add new insulation in spots that are missing coverage.
Exceptional HVAC Maintenance Service
Pioneer Valley Environmental offers exceptional HVAC maintenance service to the Belchertown, MA area. We can also assist with all your heating and cooling repair and installation needs.
Call Pioneer Valley Environmental today to book your next HVAC service consultation.
