Keepin’ it Clean
Any Arkansan will tell you that summers can be miserable in the South. With heat indexes already reaching the 115°F mark this year, the last thing you want is a zapped air conditioner. So what exactly can you do to keep your home nice and cool to beat this humid heat?
Keep it clean, folks!
One of the biggest problems homeowners face is a dirty filter. After the (very) short winter months, it’s easy to forget about changing out or cleaning your filter. This particular customer didn’t think about it until she noticed the dirt littering her living room.
Her unit hadn’t been serviced in two years, and the filter was so dirty that debris was breaking off and flying into her home along with the not-so-fresh air! Talk about a hypo-allergenic nightmare. Not only was there dust, but bugs and large bits of dirt found their way in as well. Luckily in this case, things were cleaned up quickly without any major damage. Not everyone is so fortunate though.
As your filter clogs, less air is able to travel through the vent. This is a tempting reason to up the thermostat. However, not only does this send your energy bill soaring, but it puts undue strain on your unit making it more likely to die.
No, that isn’t Rover sitting just behind that vent, but it is his winter coat. Two months is the maximum time cap for a filter change, dog people and cat people -- we know you’re out there.
On average, every Household should change out filters every 3 months. Two years is a bit past the due date! This timeframe is even shorter for those with pets as this particular customer quickly discovered.
Bottom line: change out the filter! Not only will you save some cash for that highly anticipated vacation, but you will also avoid permanent damage. We’re sure you’d rather lounge on the beach as opposed to shopping for a new air conditioning unit.