A New Year, often, means a new start — a fresh start. Among other things, the beginning of a new year is an excellent time to have a fresh look at your home’s HVAC system. Whether you’re contemplating purchasing a new system for your Franklin County home or you aim to manage the one you have to its absolute potential, the commencement of a new year is the perfect time to begin making these decisions. Whether it be modernizing your filters or getting regular checkups or performing other customary maintenance recommendations, we at Grove City Heating & Air prepared these top 10 New Year’s resolutions to keep your HVAC system in tip-top shape in 2020.
Simple Resolutions
1. How much do you value the quality of air in your home? Do you have people living with you with allergies? Selecting a more efficient type of filter next year will drastically improve your indoor air quality. These new, enhanced high-efficiency pleated filters have a charge that operates as an electromagnet to capture the smallest impurities from your air — especially some that carry bacteria. Just make sure to replenish it at least every 90 days.
2. Examine the expanses around your exterior AC system, and heat pumps to be sure you have at a minimum of two feet of space encompassing them.
3. Collect any rubble, litter, pollen, leaves, branches, and any additional yard waste from the top and sides of your AC units and heat pumps. This should be done at least once a week throughout the spring, summer, and autumn. Through the summer, while you are mowing your grass, keep an eye on your lawnmower to guarantee it isn’t launching any grass clippings towards the unit.
4. Every month, inspect the insulation on your refrigerant lines running into the house. If that insulation is missing or if it’s been compromised, replace them.
5. Ask yourself, how is your unit setting these days. New Year’s is a great time to guarantee your unit is still on a secure and level surface. Each year, be sure that your outdoor air-conditioning units and heat pumps still sit on firm and stable ground or concrete pads.
6. Ever tried to prevent clogs from forming or growing in your drain? Try this. Locate your condensate drains and pour some water mixed with bleach down them. Do this regularly. It should stop the development of algae and mold, a common cause for clogs.
7. During the hotter months, shut off the supply of water to your furnace humidifier. Once the weather cools, especially when you get near to needing to turn on the heat, purchase a new humidifier wick filter. Once you have that, set the humidistat to within 35 percent to 40 percent relative humidity. Once all that’s done, turn the supply of water on again.
8. Are you shutting off your home’s registers? Before you close too many, check to be sure you don’t close more than 20 percent of them. Keeping all of them open will prevent avoidable strain on your HVAC system. Also, it’ll guarantee proper airflow throughout your home, helping you maintain an even temperature.
9. We can never emphasize this one too much. Replace the batteries in your home’s smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector on an annual basis. Check them more than that, but replace them at least once a year.
10. While we list this one last, it’s realistically the most significant. Because the bulk of home systems have heating and air conditioning, we strongly urge homeowners to schedule HVAC system checkups twice a year. For your home’s cooling equipment, having a pro come out in the spring will prevent breakdowns. For your home’s heating system equipment, another checkup is necessary in the fall. It saves you money in the long run and thwarts costly maintenance and breakdowns.
One of the most essential aspects of preventative maintenance is finding the right contractor with the right skills and expertise for the job. We at Grove City Heating & Air believe we are that right contractor, and our customers agree. Call us today at 614-490-7540 or schedule an appointment online now at www.grovecityheatingandair.com/schedule-now/. Thank you, and Happy New Year!
