HVAC companies say a lot about maintenance, but they don’t do a good job of telling homeowners what actually prevents breakdowns. Homeowners get service agreements with no idea what services are actually preventative and which ones are just busy work.
Air conditioning systems fail for the same reasons over and over again. Issues with airflow, dirty parts, electrical issues, drain issues, and refrigerant leaks plague dozens of AC systems each summer. Maintenance that prevents these specific issues is what keeps an air conditioning unit alive. Everything else might improve performance in some way, but it won’t save the system from quitting on a 110-degree afternoon.
Why Air Filters Actually Matter
Dirty air filters cause more system failures than most homeowners realise. Dust and debris build up on air filters and reduce the system’s airflow. The blower motor has to work much harder to pull the same amount of air, which wears it out.
Airflow issues also cause the evaporator coil to drop to such a low temperature that it freezes up and prevents the entire cooling system from functioning.
Changing air filters once a month is good advice, but it only works if the system is in the right environment. A home with multiple pets will need filters changed out every couple of weeks. An individual living alone in a relatively new home can probably stretch it out to three months. The filter itself will indicate when it needs changing. If it looks caked with dirt, it needed to be changed weeks ago.
Avoiding the airflow issues that freeze coils and burn out blowers is as simple as checking your filter once a month or so and changing it if it’s starting to look dirty.
The Coil Cleaning Most People Skip
The evaporator coil just behind the blower in an air conditioning unit isn’t the only coil that gets dirty. There’s also a condenser coil that’s located outside. It gathers its own layers of dust that prevent it from transferring heat effectively. Inefficient heat transfer causes compressors to work much harder than they need to on a daily basis. This wear and tear makes failures more likely when compressors experience heavy demand.
Homeowners can’t effectively clean coils on their own. The evaporator coil is behind other components in the air conditioning unit, so homeowners would have to dismantle the whole thing to get to it. The outside coil is much more accessible, but homeowners can’t just spray it with a hose to get it cleaned. It takes experience and chemicals to clean coils properly.
Getting a coil cleaning once a year goes a long way toward improving the efficiency of an AC system and preventing breakdowns. A reputable service provider like Platinum Air Heating & Cooling offers coil cleaning as part of its service agreements. This rids systems of that impenetrable grime that forces compressors to work much harder than necessary.
Drain Lines That Nobody Thinks About
Air conditioning systems produce condensation that has to drain somewhere. Drain lines can easily be plugged by algae and slime. Sometimes this prevents the drain safety switch from doing its job of shutting down the system, which results in water damage to the air handler and surrounding floors. Other times, the safety switch kicks in but stops the whole cooling operation until a technician can be called in to help.
Pouring one cup of bleach or vinegar down an AC drain line every couple of months takes less than 30 seconds but can save technicians thousands of calls during every summer.
Homeowners should also peek in on the drain pan beneath the air handler every now and then. It can rust out just like any other pan.
Electrical Issues That Get Worse Over Time
Normal vibrations during a cooling cycle loosen electrical connections and make them less efficient. Loose connections create resistance, which generates heat. This heat will melt insulation off wires eventually, and may even cause arcing.
Someone should perform electrical service on an air conditioning unit when it gets serviced. This isn’t something that an average homeowner should try to do, though, because AC electrical systems require specialised tools and skill to service safely. It’s definitely something that an average homeowner should ask about when purchasing an AC service agreement, however.
Capacitors are electrical components that need special attention when systems are being serviced, though. They’re different from batteries in that they give electrical motors the extra boost they need to start running. They wear out much faster than other electrical components as well. Testing and replacing them during service appointments prevents ruinous failures if a capacitor dies unexpectedly.
The Refrigerant Reality
AC systems don’t consume refrigerants like gas, even if manufacturers classify them as consumable products. AC systems recycle refrigerants constantly through a loop system. If refrigerant levels in a system ever get low or abnormally low, it indicates a leak somewhere in the system.
Running low on refrigerant makes compressors work much harder than expected, which quickly kills them. A small leak is an expensive replacement cost. Catching a leak early can be avoided through regular testing.
Getting refrigerants tested once every year enables technicians to fix small leaks before they become expensive problems.
Focusing Maintenance Where It Matters
AC maintenance that prevents breakdowns involves tasks that address known causes of failure, such as dirt buildup leading to airflow issues, dirty coils, clogged drain lines, loose electrical connections, and refrigerant leaks.
Regularly changing air filters in a home means homeowners only need to pay someone to clean their coils once a year. Also, getting electrical components tested and refrigerant levels checked once a year prevents most of the mechanical issues that lead to air conditioning failures.
Everything else might be fun to get done, but it won’t help the system when it finally gives out on an unbearable day. Knowing which tasks are worth paying for helps homeowners allocate their service agreement budgets wisely.
DISCLOSURE – This is a collaborative post.
