Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011
Looking to boost your air conditioners efficiency, don’t want to spend the money to have someone come out and tune up your system or perform potentially costly air conditioning repairs? Well, then you should probably keep reading, ‘cause this post just might have exactly what you’re looking for.
First off, check the connections. If a breaker has switched, or something has simply become loose or disconnected, it is rather easy to reattach or plug it back in, not to mention it will save you a good deal of embarrassment later down the road. If your air conditioning system is acting funny, check the various connections to make sure everything is plugged in nicely.
Alright, now that we know everything is connected properly, time to see if there is anything blocking the outdoor unit. Make sure there isn’t anything on top of the air compressor and that it has about 3 feet of room on either side. Blocked airflow to the compressor makes your whole central air conditioning system work harder and harder to achieve the same results, ultimately causing more damage to the system in the long run.
While we’re at the compressor, check the air filters. Yes, just like your car, your air conditioning air compressor has air filters. They’re there to prevent bugs, plants, dust and other nasty debris from making its way into your air conditioner, and by proxy, into your home. But, over time, these air filters get dirty and clogged and begin blocking air flow to the compressor themselves. Make sure you clean the filters and replace them when necessary to help ensure optimal airflow.
Last, but not least, to help boost the cooling power of your AC without having to pay for air conditioning maintenance, try adding or tuning on some fans inside. Ceiling, standing and desk fans all help circulate the cool air your AC is kicking out and sip the electricity from the wall, so they won’t raise your electric bills by too noticeable an amount.
Tags: air conditioners efficiency, air conditioning maintenance, air conditioning repairs, central air conditioning
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Monday, August 22nd, 2011
Air conditioning and heating systems, like any piece of machinery, requires regular maintenance from time to time. Nothing big, replacing an air filter here, swapping out damaged or worn our parts and pieces here. Regular maintenance isn’t a new concept or anything, we take our cars in every three months or so for an oil change and we keep up on all the little stuff to help ensure that the vehicle will run for a long time. The same applies to your heating and air system, so why do people tend to neglect these most valuable and precious appliances and put off maintenance or repairs until It’s too late?
That’s a tough question, and the best answer that I can give is that people just don’t realize that they should be doing regular maintenance for their heating and air conditioning system. Regardless of the reasons, though, the majority of people just don’t seem to be getting their systems maintenanced, instead putting it off until the problems have become too big to ignore. Like having your AC just stops working in the middle of a triple digit day.
Truth be told, most of the extensive repairs and replacements we perform could have been avoided with a little routine maintenance. Typically, we like to come out twice a year and make sure you’re entire system is up to par; once in the spring for your AC, and again in the fall for your heater. It’s important to make sure everything is working properly and correctly in order to avoid a costly and unexpected repair later down the road.
Not only will regular maintenance help maximize the lifespan of your equipment, but it will also help ensure that your heating and cooling system is operating correctly and efficiently, keeping its energy usage at a stable rate so you don’t see the gradual climb in utility bills that comes with a declining heating and cooling system.
Save yourself time, headaches and money by letting us perform your bi-annual maintenance checks. Give us a call today and find out how easy it is to get started.
Tags: AC Maintenance, AC units, Air conditioning, Air Conditioning Service, air quality, Heating Maintenance, Murrieta CA
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Monday, August 15th, 2011
With the weather as hot as it has been these past several weeks, it’s no surprise that more of us are spending more and more of our time indoors under the guard of the trusty air conditioner. With all that added time in air conditioned homes, it’s important to make the air quality a priority, and luckily there are a few simple things you can do to help keep the air quality in your home healthy and comfortable.
First, if you haven’t already, you’ll want to clean your air filter about once a month. A dirty air filter not only causes your AC to work harder to pump the same amount of air through your home, but it also makes that air less than what you may expect.
The next place to look is your air ducts themselves. Over time dust, lint and other debris build up in the air ducts and do their part to pollute the air going through them. Dirty air ducts also cause air restriction, making your whole system work harder to pump the air through the ducts. The cleaner the ducts, the better quality air you’ll have and the more efficiently your air conditioning system will run.
Now that you’ve got your air filters and your air ducts taken care of, it’s time to look at an air purification system. It’s a simple little device that’s pretty easy to install and setup, and can usually be done by a professional in little time. The whole things works by emitting high intensity ultra violet light to kill air born bacteria and viruses.
With these three simple steps, you can be well on your way to ensuring your home has a safe and healthy air quality level.
Tags: air quality
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Thursday, August 4th, 2011
One of the most annoying parts of summer has to be having an air conditioner that just doesn’t work the way you want it to. Chances are, many of you out there have an air conditioning unit or system that has to run all day to keep the house cool – or even worse, runs all day and DOESN’T keep the house cool. So, what’s causing it? I mean, it’s not as if your AC has been acting this way since it was installed.
First of all, you should check your thermostat. These days thermostats are much more than just a dial you set to your desired temperature, and having it on the wrong setting can make it seem like your AC isn’t cooling properly. Often times there will be a few different settings, typically ranging from OFF, ON and AUTO. When set to ON, the fan or blower will run regardless of the temperature of the house. When on AUTO, the blower and fan will only turn on to cool the house.
If all looks good with the thermostat, the next place you’ll want to check is the ductwork. The air ducts that run throughout your home accumulate dust, lint and other nasty debris that builds up and eventually begins blocking airflow. It may be a good idea to see if their dirty or not – if they are, you should probably have someone come out and clean them.
Dust buildup in the air ducts isn’t the only thing that can go wrong with them, so you’ll want to make sure there are no cracks or bends that might be affecting your system cooling abilities.
So, if your air ducts are good, and your thermostat is set to the right temperature and setting and your AC still isn’t cooling down your home, there’s one last part to check. The refrigerant itself. Overtime the inert gas housed in the compressor leaks and needs to be refilled, or “recharged” as it is commonly referred to. Basically, it’s the process of making sure your AC unit has enough refrigerant gas to actually cool the air. If the levels are too low, the system will run and run and run without much to show for it, accept for on the monthly utility bills.
There you have it. If your residential air conditioning system isn’t living up to your expectations and is costing you an arm and a leg for mediocre cooling, check these three parts first, then give us a call.
Tags: AC, air ducts, thermostat
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