3 Ways to Improve the Lifespan of Your Air Conditioner
Posted on: 14 June 2018
Your air conditioner is one of the largest and most important appliance systems within your home, as it works to regulate the temperature within your house during the summer months (or year round, depending on where you live). Due to the near constant operation an air conditioner experiences, and the size and complexity of the system, your unit can experience issues and require expensive repairs. Fortunately, there are a few things that you can do to help protect your system and extend its lifespan, and also reduce your repair and maintenance bills as a result.
Change the Filter
The most important and also the simplest thing that you can do to maintain your air conditioner and ensure that it is not placed under undue stress while operating is to regularly change the air filter, once every six months or so (more often depending on the amount of usage that your unit sees). You can remove most air filters from the interior casing of the air conditioner by hand or with a screwdriver, and can simply take the older filter in with you to a hardware store to match it to an appropriately sized replacement.
Clean the Condenser
Another important and fairly easy thing that you can do to improve the overall efficiency of your unit and reduce the risk of a mechanical malfunction is to clean the exterior unit of your air conditioner, known as the condenser. Branches, leaves, and other debris can impede the airflow into your home, making your unit work harder to provide the same amount of cooling. Cutting back branches and nearby plants, hosing down stuck on dirt and mud, and removing the grate on top of the unit to get rid of any leaves which may be stuck inside are all simple ways to ensure the greatest efficiency possible.
Address Vent Blockages
Another important thing that you can do to reduce the amount of wear and tear that your air conditioner experiences is to have the ductwork inside your home cleaned out regularly—once a season for best results. This removes dust and other blockages which may prevent chilled air from reaching the rest of your home, which means that your thermostat won't notice a change in temperature and will cause your air conditioner to run for longer periods—increasing wear and tear. In a similar vein, you should also make sure that your vents are not covered by furniture or carpeting, which can have the same effect.
To learn more about AC maintenance, contact local AC services.
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