HVAC Maintenance: Tips to Keep Your Equipment Running
Find Out Where YOUR Home is Losing Energy:
Efficiently
Your home’s HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems heat and cool your home, and maintain air quality. To maintain your comfort and make sure your system is working at maximum energy efficiency, you should have your system serviced regularly by certified technicians. Choose NATE certified contractors, and preferably members of ACCA – the American Air Conditioning Contractors Association. Having your HVAC equipment maintained by certified professionals is the key to energy savings, comfort and peace of mind. That’s because they’re trained in the latest techniques and technologies for energy efficiency and comfort.
Avoid Costly Repairs, Failure and Replacement
Aside from comfort and energy efficiency, it’s important to maintain HVAC equipment at all times to increase the lifespan of the equipment, avoid system failures during hot or cold seasons and reduce the likelihood of costly for repairs.
HVAC Maintenance Checklist
During your regular HVAC system maintenance, have your certified HVAC expert check the following:
- Check that the system starts properly operates well and shuts down safely.
- Inspect the unit for proper refrigeration and adjust when necessary.
- Inspect the gas furnace for gas leaks, pressure and combustion to prevent fire hazards.
- Lubricate all moving parts to avoid friction (and save on your electricity bill).
- Inspect the control box, wiring and connections, and measure the voltage and current on motors.
- Listen for any abnormal noises when the system is running.
- Check the ventilation system to ensure that it is running properly.
- Monitor system specialization according to the manufacturer’s specifications.
- Check thermostat settings and adjust them depending on your comfort.
In addition, it is important to clean the air conditioning evaporator and condenser to allow for proper cooling and to increase the life of the equipment. Cleaning and adjustment is performed on the blowers so that clean and dust-free air circulates well within the rooms. Air filters in the central air conditioner, furnace and heat pumps should also be cleaned or replaced regularly to avoid damage of the equipment and reduce energy costs.
In Case of System Failure
In case your HVAC system suddenly fails, troubleshooting by a certified technician will help to restore it back to normal. Your HVAC professional should check the breaker, disconnect it and ensure that the correct amount of power is supplied. They will check the evaporator and condenser fan motors and power circuits for grounds and shorts. If the power supply is functioning correctly, they must ensure that the thermostat is turned on and there is power control to it. Your HVAC professional should be able to find the problem and provide a solution.
Of course no one wants to be without heat in the winter or air conditioning in the summer. The key to reducing system failure is regular maintenance. Ask your local Building Energy Pros affiliate about their HVAC maintenance package.
Other HVAC solutions:
- HVAC Maintenance: Tips to Keep Your Equipment Running
- What is HVAC? HVAC is an acronym that stands for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning.
- Who Invented Air Conditioning? Air conditioning is a modern convenience that we take for granted.
- How to Choose an HVAC Contractor This article will help you choose an HVAC Contractor.
- Superior HVAC Energy Efficiency By Upgrading Your HVAC System…And Other Fixes
- HVAC: What is it? The Basics Explained
- HVAC Design: The Importance of Properly Sized HVAC Equipment
- HVAC / Air Conditioning: A Quick Primer and History
- Sizing Up HVAC Prices: How to Choose the Right Air Conditioner
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Your home energy audit proved to be very informative and helpful. I was not aware of the updraft created inside our walls because of the balloon framing construction. You said that that can cause heat to be pulled out of the house with the draft going up inside the walls and should be re-mediated. You also said that the attic insulation was insufficient and that fiberglass batts can leave spaces for around the edges causing heat loss and that it should have blown in insulation on top of what was there to seal the whole attic and increase the r factor. After going over your findings and telling me how you would fix the problems you told me how I could do it myself with stuff from the Home Center and for a quarter of the cost. Well, I did. I went into the basement and filled the bottom of the wall joist with unfaced insulation where they set on the sill plate. I then cut one inch foam board the size for each space and set it in and the sealed the edges of that with expanding foam as well as the sill plate to the foundation. I also sealed the sill plate to the foundation where the joist ran along it, as well as the top of those joist where it made contact with the subflooring. Next I went to the home center and rented their blown insulation machine and got ten bales of the insulation. I filled the attic on top of the batt insulation with about six inches giving another r-19 factor on top of the r-19 that was there. You said that the blown in would also help seal the heat loss around the edges of the batt. The work in the basement cost $144.00 and the work in the attic cost $328.00. After the 30% federal energy tax credit it will end up costing me about $330.00, which you said I should recover in savings in the first year. Thank You for all your advice and expertise. You made me aware of things I should consider and did.
Tommy Thompson