With warm weather fast approaching, you’ll soon be getting frequent use from your air conditioner in your Mooresville, NC home. Annual tune-ups are necessary for your AC unit to remain functional, reliable, and energy-efficient. Air conditioning maintenance will improve your comfort, reduce your monthly utility bills, and decrease the likelihood of serious AC equipment problems. Typically, licensed, experienced HVAC technicians offer this service, but to save money this spring, you might consider handling the job yourself. Here, we explain why air conditioner maintenance should generally be left to professionals and explain which jobs you as a homeowner can take care of to support your cooling system.
Why You Should Leave AC Maintenance to the Professionals
As a standard rule, you should not attempt an AC tune-up if you are not trained to work with HVAC equipment. Covered below are a few primary reasons why contacting trusted local AC professionals is a better move.
1. Professionals Have Special Equipment
If you aren’t a certified HVAC technician, then you are unlikely to have the specialized equipment needed for proper AC maintenance. Without these tools, you cannot do the job safely or effectively. Furthermore, the costs of acquiring the equipment would likely be more than the cost of hiring a trained professional for your AC tune-up in the first place.
2. Professionals Have Training and Experience
Certified HVAC technicians have years of training and experience under their belts. The hours they’ve put in are vital for staying safe and correctly handling the equipment when performing AC maintenance. Additionally, a primary aspect of an AC tune-up is recognizing potential problems with the appliance. Without proper training, you may not be able to accurately evaluate the state of your cooling system.
3. You Could Damage the Unit
When untrained homeowners attempt to service their air conditioners, they could inadvertently damage their appliances. You might accidentally bend a fin, damage tubing, or disconnect wiring, resulting in serious harm to the system that would necessitate a costly repair or even a complete replacement. All these issues are avoidable when an expert handles the job for you.
4. You Could Void Your Warranty
Typically, when you purchase a new air conditioner, it will come with a warranty. These warranties ensure that if something serious goes wrong with the appliance, financial aid will be available to repair or replace it. However, air conditioner warranties are generally conditional, and they only remain active if the homeowner keeps up with regular AC maintenance. If your AC warranty has this type of stipulation, you’ll need to schedule professional maintenance to remain protected. Remember, if your cooling system breaks down without warranty protection, you’ll probably spend significantly more than you would have on professional tune-ups.
Types of AC Maintenance You Can Do
Although you shouldn’t attempt to perform full maintenance on your home’s air conditioner, that doesn’t mean you can’t do any upkeep at all. While you may not be trained or equipped to work closely with the equipment, some necessary routine tasks do not require any special training or tools. For example, you will need to replace your AC unit’s air filter periodically. Most of us should replace our HVAC filters at least once every few months, but you might need to replace yours more often if your family suffers from allergies, you have pets, or you live in a dusty environment. If the air filter gets overly dirty or clogged, the appliance will have trouble pulling air through. This puts additional strain on the air conditioner, worsening its performance and energy efficiency and increasing the odds of a breakdown.
There are also several other things you can do as a homeowner to maintain your AC unit.
- Clean the condenser coils
- Periodically check the thermostat’s calibration
- Clear the area around the outdoor unit
- Monitor refrigerant levels
- Avoid running the appliance too frequently
If you consistently do these things while scheduling professional maintenance at least once per year, your AC unit should run like new for many years.
Local AC Professionals
At Putnam Mechanical, we’re proud to provide Mooresville residents with optimal HVAC services. We believe that no job is too big or too small for us to devote our full attention to. In addition to our comprehensive heating and air conditioning services, we offer various electrical services. These include ceiling fan installation, electrical inspections, lighting installation, electrical panel installation, outlet services, electrical remodeling, and whole-home wiring. Our skilled team also offers commercial refrigeration services.
Give us a call at Putnam Mechanical today to learn more or schedule an appointment!
