Are you a homeowner in Queen City Heating & Cooling or the surrounding areas? If so, you most likely have an HVAC system that you use throughout the year. Whether you’re keeping yourself warm in the chilly winter months, or desperately trying to cool off during our hot summers, it’s important to make sure that everything is running as it should.
Sadly, as HVAC experts ourselves, we’ve seen countless heaters and air conditioners that have suffered a lot of problems due to negligence. Most people aren’t as good at caring for their HVAC systems as they should, but we’re here to change that. We’ve seen every kind of problem you can experience with heating and air conditioning machines, and many of these are caused due to negligence or ignorance on the part of their owners. The best solution is to call the professionals for assistance, but it’s not like you can have them over every day. There are many mistakes you should be wary of at home when it comes to maintaining your HVAC system. Here are a few of them:
Unfortunately, much like a car, an HVAC system can experience a lot of problems if it’s not properly cared for. And to add to this, most average people aren’t too great at caring for their AC systems as much as they should. But as AC repair experts, we’re here to help! We’ve seen every kind of HVAC problem under the sun, and many common problems are caused by negligent owners. While the best solution is to call a team of professionals to perform preventative maintenance and repairs on your AC system, the second-best solution is to avoid common mistakes that may degrade your HVAC. Here are some to look out for:
Letting Your HVAC Reach Old Age
Air conditioners and heating systems are pretty durable, but they’re not invincible, and they certainly aren’t immune to the effects of old age. These machines are powered day-in and day-out, and they have a lot of moving parts. Natural wear-and-tear is inevitable, and you can bet that your system is going to run out of steam eventually. While the natural lifespan of an HVAC is pretty long, at 15-20 years or so, you can hit that limit pretty quickly. If you bought your home used, your HVAC might already be dangerously close to failure. But even if you bought new, you’d be surprised at how fast two decades can fly by.
Once your HVAC system starts wearing down, it can be fixed with repairs, but there’s no guarantee those repairs will last for long. The same old issues might pop up, or brand new ones to take their place. At a certain point, the cost of constant repairs just doesn’t justify the continued ownership of your HVAC system. Contact Queen City Heating & Cooling for an affordable system replacement instead.
Assuming You Have the Right AC System Installed
It’s easy to assume that your HVAC system came perfectly installed in your brand new or used home. In an ideal world, this would be the case. Unfortunately, we don’t live in an ideal world, and it’s quite possible that you might have an air conditioner, heater, or ventilation system that’s poorly fitted for your home. Some HVAC systems aren’t big enough or powerful enough to cover every room in the home, which means they either have to work harder (resulting in more expensive bills and more rapid wear-and-tear) or they’ll just provide subpar results. Nobody likes feeling like they can’t get warm or cool enough.
The bottom line is that you can’t always rely on your air conditioner being a perfect fit for your home. Maybe a less-than-honest HVAC company sold the homeowner on a system that wasn’t right for them. Maybe the homeowner picked the system themselves without a good knowledge of AC. Maybe the original installers thought they had the right system at the beginning, or maybe you’ve since expanded your home and it’s no longer good enough. Whatever the reason may be, it’s possible that your system can’t adequately cool your home at peak efficiency. If you have doubts about this, our team at Queen City Heating & Cooling can help by thoroughly inspecting your air conditioning system.
Forgetting Any of the Letters in “HVAC”
We talk about HVACs a lot here on our website, and if it wasn’t already clear, it’s an acronym that stands for heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. While Nebraska homeowners tend to utilize the full spectrum of their HVAC system throughout the year, you’d be surprised to see how many people forget about one of the major components.
Some folks run their air conditioner religiously while resorting to blankets and space heaters in the winter. Some do the opposite. Meanwhile, a whole lot of homeowners forget about the ventilation part. Your HVAC system relies on a vast arrangement of ducts and vents throughout your home that can spell trouble if they’re not properly maintained.
At Queen City Heating & Cooling, we’ve seen our fair share of homeowners who have had a perfectly pleasant air conditioner, only to find that their heater is busted once it’s time to warm up. It’s also possible for both your heating and cooling to technically work, but with subpar airflow throughout your home. Most of these problems result from one simple issue — forgetting any one of the letters in “HVAC.” If you want your system to be healthy throughout the whole year, you’ll want to make sure you’re keeping an eye on your heating, cooling, and ventilation. Each one of these components is essential!
Tampering With the Settings
HVAC systems have a variety of settings that you can mess with. We’re not talking about the thermostat — if you actually interface with your HVAC unit, you’ll likely see buttons and switches. The thing is, these settings are usually set to their most ideal values during installation, and if you go around messing with them — especially with no knowledge of what they’re really doing — you might do yourself and your home a huge disservice.
We’re not saying that you shouldn’t ever tamper with your settings. But for the most part, it’s not usually needed, and if it is, it’s something that should be done with knowledge and awareness. When in doubt, we encourage you to call our team of HVAC professionals to provide our professional consultation on how to maximize your HVAC efficiency.
Not Calling or Professional HVAC Services
Most of the problems listed above are things that you can cause — directly or indirectly — as a homeowner. But there are also many problems that develop on their own when it comes to HVAC systems. Your heater might stop working without warning. Your air conditioner might start feeling lukewarm instead of cool. You might start hearing funky sounds. If any of these things happen, we encourage you to contact us today for a professional tune-up or repair. If you’re a homeowner in Springfield, Nixa, Ozark, Branson, or other surrounding areas, we’re here to help.
