Air conditioner is a quality machine that can provide you with substantial cooling easily for more than a decade. But as with any quality mechanical appliances, an AC needs to have regular maintenance and the required tune-ups to ensure that it continues to perform at its best without wasting energy. Maintaining your AC provides a number of benefits – from making your home environment healthier to increasing your monthly savings in terms of energy bills. Many people think of annual AC maintenance as only an additional bite on their pocket but in reality, it provides much more savings in the long run. Annual maintenance of an AC is as crucial as the regular tune-ups or oil changes of your car. Without proper maintenance, you’re most likely to have a malfunction-prone system that would wear down quickly and need a replacement years before its time. In this post, we’ve outlined the steps that you can expect during your AC maintenance visit.
1. Complete inspection
The most crucial part of an AC maintenance is to identify whether any wear and tear is there which can trigger any repair hazards in the near future. Hence, the first thing a technician will do is a complete AC check of the system. During a maintenance visit, he will make sure that everything is running efficiently and seamlessly and nothing needs to be replaced or repaired. An overall checkup includes inspecting both the indoor as well as outdoor components of your AC machine. The AC technician will
- Check for appropriate refrigerant level
- Inspect components such as condenser, compressor and evaporator
- Check the drains, which include the condensate drain and tray
- Inspect various electrical components such as circuits and wires
In case the technician finds that the water panel or air filter needs to be replaced, he is most likely to replace those items. If the technician identifies any issue that doesn’t require immediate repair or replacement, she/he will let you know and you’ll have plenty of time to manage the work.
2. Cleaning of all components
Though there are some components in an AC that you can clean yourself, a routine maintenance visit is simply must for the way that the technician will clean those components of your AC machine that you can’t. It’s important to note that not every part of an AC needs to be thoroughly cleaned on each maintenance visit but there’re some crucial parts that need it to be done on a regular basis. For instance, the technician will clean the outdoor coil of the AC with the help of special equipment’s such as chemical foam to ensure that the system works at its highest efficiency. He will also check the indoor evaporator coil and, if required, clean it thoroughly. In addition, the dusty motors will be cleaned and clogged air filters will be changed. If you live in a high humid area, the condensate pan of your AC will most likely collect a substantial amount of moisture. Growth of algal in the AC’s drain or corrosion can make the drain to overflow, which will shut off the system and promote water damage in your house.
3. Repair components if need arises
Your AC machine experiences different kinds of wear and tear over time, which is absolutely normal. These may include stretch belts, loosened screws and de-lubricated parts such as ball bearings. During a maintenance visit, a technician will take care of these together with other minor issues that may have cropped up such as aligning and tightening of belts or changing worn our parts etc. In addition to these tune-ups, the technician may recharge the refrigerant, or straighten bent fins using a superior comb, amongst others. He will also check whether the thermostat of the AC is properly measuring the temperature and recalibrate in case it isn’t.
4. A written report of all the work done
Finally, a safety check will be performed by the technician to determine whether your air conditioner is completely safe for you to use or not. Once all the steps of inspection are completed, the technician may make recommendations related to improvements or repairs which will help to enhance the efficiency as well as lifespan of your AC. At the end of an AC maintenance visit, you should be provided with a written report by the technician that summarizes what the maintenance visit entailed and the problems, if there’re any, along with repairing works that were performed. This is important for your reference, especially if any problems crop up immediately after the visit, or if you’ve any query in the near future related to the maintenance.
Why you should maintain your AC?
1. To ensure proper efficiency
Energy efficiency is one of the top priorities of most of the homeowners having an AC system. Unfortunately, many people assume since the system is cooling or heating their home without any obvious issue, everything is completely fine. However, this negligence takes a toll on their energy bills later on. In case you’ve not thought of maintaining your AC system, over time, you may find that the air conditioner provides you with poor efficiency. Remember that a neglected AC system gradually loses its ability to keep a home comfortable at an efficiency level similar to what it once did. An inefficient AC system can cost you dear when it comes to your monthly energy bills. Preventive maintenance will help you to reinstate the efficiency of the AC system, which in turn will prevent any spike in your energy bills
2. To avoid maintenance emergencies
Like any mechanical equipment, AC systems breakdowns when they continually need to work at their hardest level. For instance, when you’re hosting a party in the midst of the hot summer, the doors are likely to be continually opening and closing – for hours on end. In this case, your AC system needs to work really hard to keep the room temperature cool and this greatly increases the chance of a system failure if it’s not maintained properly. After all, everybody wants a hassle-free AC system that provides optimum performance through the heating and cooling seasons. And it’s extremely uncomfortable and inconvenient when your AC breaks down on a frigid winter night or a hot summer afternoon, right when you need the system the most. Proper maintenance of your AC system can greatly aid you to avoid sudden breakdowns as well as emergency maintenances.
3. Promote good indoor air quality and safer operation
When you fail to take some time out to maintain your AC system, your home could experience a degradation of the overall air quality. Dirty ducts and blocked air filters can easily place toxins and contaminants in the air, which you and your family breathe. For example, if the furnace of your AC system develops a crack in its heat exchanger, the air of your room can be contaminated with carbon monoxide gas. In addition, electric AC systems can trigger short circuits, which can lead to serious fire hazards if not taken care of properly. Simply put, ensuring your family’s safety is yet another crucial reason to schedule annual maintenance of your AC system. So, if you’ve not arranged for a maintenance visit for your AC for a year or so, now is the perfect time to schedule an appointment.