If you’re looking to get the most out of your air conditioning this summer, it is essential that you schedule an AC tune-up. Air conditioners require quite a bit of maintenance in order to continue functioning properly and at their peak efficiency level. In general, your entire air conditioning system should always be fully inspected, cleaned, and maintained at least once a year. The best time to have this done is in the early spring before you turn the system on for the first time each year.
If you neglect this important maintenance, it is almost guaranteed that your AC won’t function as well as it should. A poorly maintained air conditioning system is also much more likely to break down and need repairs. To help you understand just why an AC tune-up is so important, here is an overview of what exactly it involves and what benefits it can provide.
What Does an AC Tune-Up Entail?
An AC tune-up is quite complex and involves numerous essential tasks. When performing a tune-up, the HVAC technician will fully inspect your entire AC system both inside and outside the home. This is essential for ensuring that the system doesn’t have any issues that could hamper its performance or potentially cause it to break down and stop working altogether.
Having your air conditioning suddenly give out in the middle of the summer can be a nightmare and could leave you stuck suffering in the heat for days, potentially even longer. Summer is the time when HVAC companies are generally at their busiest, which means you might have to wait a long time to even get your system inspected if your AC were to quit working.
This is one reason why we always recommend scheduling your maintenance and tune-up for early spring as it will ensure your system is ready to go when needed and is free of any major issues. If the technician does find any problems, you’ll still have plenty of time to get any repairs done before you actually need your air conditioning. This is important as even fairly minor problems can quickly spiral into something much more serious that could cause your air conditioning to stop working or even lead to the outdoor AC unit failing altogether, requiring a full replacement.
In addition to inspecting all of the various components, the technician will also thoroughly clean everything to make sure the whole system is free of dust and debris. This includes the blower fan and evaporator coil inside the home as well as the fan, condenser coil, and fins in the outdoor AC unit. Having your system cleaned regularly is also essential as dust is one of the main causes of many common AC issues.
Now that you know what all is involved in an AC tune-up, here are some of the benefits that it can provide.
Improved Indoor Comfort
One of the biggest benefits of a professional AC tune-up is that it will help to ensure that your air conditioning is working just as it should. There are a wide variety of different issues that can impact an air conditioning system’s performance and cause it to not cool as effectively, and having your system professionally maintained should ensure it is free from any of these problems.
A poorly functioning AC system may be able to keep up on milder days, but it will often struggle to ever cool the home quickly enough once the hotter weather sets in. As a result, your home may end up always feeling too hot even though your air conditioning is running constantly. If your AC isn’t working effectively, you may also have issues with high indoor humidity since air conditioners always work to remove both heat and moisture from the air inside the home.
If your air conditioning isn’t working properly, it will also often lead to issues with uneven cooling. This means it may be able to properly cool some more central parts of the home but won’t work effectively to keep those areas towards the end of the ductwork system from becoming too hot.
Lower Cooling Costs
Another major benefit of an AC tune-up is that it can help to lower your overall cooling costs. If your AC isn’t functioning effectively, it will cool your home much more slowly. As a result, your system will end up running for much longer than it normally would, leading to your energy costs being much higher. Even seemingly minor issues like leaky ducts can drastically reduce the effectiveness of your air conditioning and potentially lead to the system using 30 to 50% more energy than it would when functioning effectively.
Avoiding Making Your AC Freeze Up
Cleaning the evaporator coil is one of the most important parts of AC maintenance. Even though the system’s air filter is designed to prevent dust and debris from getting inside, some dust will still always collect on the evaporator coil. If the coil is too densely coated in dust, the warm air coming into the system won’t come into contact with the coil. This not only means that the system will cool much more slowly, but it can also result in the coil starting to develop ice and freeze up.
If there isn’t sufficient warm air blowing over the coil, the refrigerant will stay too cold and lead to the condensation that forms on the coil starting to freeze. If the system does ever freeze up, you will be left without air conditioning for however long it takes for the ice to completely melt and the coil to thaw. A frozen coil also has the potential to ruin the compressor motor in the outdoor AC unit if the system continues to run.
Having the blower cleaned is also important for the same reason. A dirty blower will often struggle to bring in enough warm air and, again, lead to the coil starting to freeze up. The blower motor will also have to work harder and may start to overheat or break down and need repairs. If the motor does ever overheat, there is also the chance it could lead to it burning out and needing to be replaced.
Cleaning the outdoor unit is also essential as dust and debris can easily start to clog up the sides of the unit. This will make it much harder for the heat the system absorbed to be properly dispersed, which can lead to the compressor motor or fan motor overheating and potentially burning out.
Longer Lifespan for Your AC Unit and Blower Motor
Neglecting to have your air conditioning maintained every year will almost always lead to the system breaking down much more quickly. A new AC unit or blower motor should last for around 15 years. However, if you don’t have the system maintained every spring, there is a good chance that it may not even last for 10 years.
At Allbritten, we specialize in AC tune-ups and have a team of certified HVAC technicians that have the knowledge and skills to ensure that your system is working effectively and ready to go for the summer. We work on all models and brands of air conditioners, and we can also help if you need any repairs or a new AC unit installed. We also specialize in all types of heating and plumbing services and serve both residential and commercial customers throughout the Fresno area. Give us a call today to schedule an AC tune-up so you can know your system is ready for summer.
