For homeowners gearing up for the hotter summer months, now is the best time to check on the household’s air conditioner and air system. It’s best to ensure that the HVAC is running smoothly and is ready to pump cold air throughout the house. During the rest of the year, a good practice for any homeowner is to have regular maintenance on the air system, monitoring both the HVAC and the heater to inspect for possible problems.
However, before the seasons change, this is the most important time to be sure that air conditioner is ready to keep your family comfortable and safe. Here, we will look at just three of the most common HVAC problems and how you can fix them yourself.
1. Your HVAC isn’t blowing cold air.
The most common issue with an air conditioner unit is if the machine isn’t blowing cold air throughout the house. Unlike a similar issue, such as a heat pump that isn’t blowing warm air, checking on a traditional HVAC system is a slightly easier task. With a more modern heat pump, the unit is removing the outside air, cooling it, and distributing it throughout the home. With a traditional air conditioner, however, the most likely issue for cool air solutions has to do with the air filters or refrigerant. Before you call a technician for a maintenance call, check your unit’s air filters. Those filters are responsible for catching and removing debris, dust, and other harmful allergens from the air and purifying your family’s indoor air quality. To ensure this doesn’t become an issue, you should be swapping out your dirty air filter for a clean one every few months. Not only does this improve the air quality, but your machine will get better air flow and use less energy, lowering your monthly energy bills.
However, if the air filters aren’t the issue, double-check your HVAC system’s refrigerant levels. If possible, give your home’s ductwork a quick glance and be sure there isn’t a refrigerant leak. If there is a leak, you may be losing cold air. While this will require the assistant of a professional technician, it’s not an expensive repair. A refrigerant charge is pretty cost-efficient by comparison.
2. Your HVAC doesn’t hit the right temperature.
As the weather gets hotter, you may be noticing that your home isn’t hitting the right room temperature that’s stated on your household’s thermostat. If your thermostat is at a set temperature, yet you don’t feel the cool air circulating around your home, check the smaller unit itself. The good news is that replacing the batteries of your thermostat is significantly cheaper than repairing your HVAC. If possible, try not to adjust the levels of your thermostat too often, as the wear and tear of AC system can lead to larger issues. However, if it’s easier to keep this tip in mind, your family may benefit from a programmable thermostat, ensuring that your monthly energy bills remain consistent the entire season that the air conditioner is in use.
3. Your utility bills keep going up.
If you’ve noticed that your monthly energy bills are higher than usual, or continue to go up, there are a number of ways to figure out the solution. The above-listed tips are the first order of business. Be sure to change out your dirty air filter for a clean one, thus removing any blockages within the vents and ductwork that are hindering your airflow. When the airflow builds up, your family is forced to run the air conditioning unit more frequently and at higher levels. This will immediately drive up your utility bill.
Likewise, keeping your thermostat at a consistent level should help ease the financial burden of cooling your home throughout the summer. If you’ve taken these steps already, yet still see an increase in your home’s energy use, it may be time to call a professional HVAC technician. While you may not have any major issues with your air conditioner, a tech will be able to tell you immediately what’s driving up your bill.
