If you have a home, you have an heating and cooling system. Heating and cooling units make it possible to live throughout some parts of the United States. It is a huge industry and some have estimated the number of people it employs is about 301,123. It is said to be worth about $71 billion. There are some things you can do to keep your system running smoothly and help you avoid costly emergency furnace repair. A well maintainted heating a cooling system will last you between 12 and 15 years.
- Change the filter. At the very least the filter for your heating a cooling units needs to be changed every 90 days. When you are doing an inspection, these should be completed once every month, check the filter. If it clogged or dirty, change it even it has not been 90 days. When the filter gets too clogged, it will not run as efficiently and it will use more power than if it is well maintained.
- Look at your attic. If you have an attic, you can reduce your electricity bill by 10 to 12%.
- Get a programmable thermostat. These allow you to control your heating and cooling units when you cannot be at home to do if yourself. Match your schedule to your thermostat. Have your heating and cooling operating when you are at home. Some thermostats allow you to set different temperatures for different rooms.
- Do not close more than 20% of your systems registers at any given time. That can overwhelm them and lead to your systems to fail.
- Protect your heating and cooling units from debris and sun. Some people put in an awning to keep these from exposure to the sun. They run better when you do this. Also keep the area around your heating and cooling units free of branches, leaves or other debris which gets in and clogs the system, preventing it from working at peak levels. Shrubbery can get in and cause real damage to your system. If enough gets in, you can have a real problem that will require expensive furnace repair service.
- Check your vents. Check your vents and make sure they are clean and clear and also free of debris. This simple task can make a real difference in the running of your system. If you notice a room is not heating or cooling the way it used you, you should start with a check of your vents.
- Think in terms of gravity. Heat rises. Use ceiling fans to move air out and around your home. This is a great way to cool off in the summer months when it is really hot.
- Use a dehumidifier. These can be great additions to any home in a hot and humid part of the country. These lower the humidity in your home and lowering the temperature at the same time.
- Once a year, have a heating and air conditioning repair service come out to your home and make any repairs that you need done. They can often spot small problems before they grow into big ones and save you some money on your repair costs.
Our heating and cooling systems always seem to pick the absolute times to break down. It is usually over the holidays when we have family visiting when the heat decides to break down on us. You can make a difference by paying attention to your system and keeping up with maintenance. Having to deal with heating and cooling units’ repair costs is never fun but it has to be done if you own a home. They are a necessary part of modern life in the United States. And really, would you want to live in the country without cooling and heating units?
A fun fact about air conditioning, the first building to get air conditioning was the New York Stock Exchange, which got it in 1903. The Packard was the first car company to put air conditioning in its cars in 1936.