Simple Ways to Keep Your Home Cool Without Overworking Your AC
As the summer heat rolls into Florida, you’ll find yourself turning your air conditioning unit on more and more. It will quickly become your best friend. However, did you know it doesn’t have to do all the heavy lifting when it comes to cooling your home? You can take several simple, energy-smart steps to ensure your home stays comfortable, including summer AC maintenance. They can all be done without pushing your AC to its limit or skyrocketing your utility bill.
Here are a few easy ways to beat the heat without overworking your system.
Keep Blinds and Curtains Closed During the Day
You might be tempted to let the natural sunlight light up your home, but it’s also heating your home during the hottest parts of the day. During these hours, you should close your blinds or draw the curtains to block out the sun’s rays. If you want to take it a step further, you can use blackout curtains or thermal drapes to keep your rooms cool.
Use Ceiling Fans Wisely for Summer AC Maintenance
It’s a common misconception that fans cool the air. In truth, they just circulate the air. During the summer, ensure your ceiling fans turn counterclockwise to create a wind-chill effect. This can help you feel cooler while also giving your AC a break.
Limit Heat-Generating Appliances
Limiting heat-generating appliances is essential for summer AC maintenance. Using your oven or stove can raise the temperature of your home. If able, try grilling outside, prepping no-cook meals, or using a microwave when it’s particularly hot outside. Additionally, consider running your washer/dryer and your dishwasher in the evenings when it’s cooled down.
Seal Leaks and Insulate
If you have small cracks or poorly insulated areas in your home, it is easy for cool air to escape. This makes your HVAC system run even harder when cooling your home. This will cause it to degrade faster and cost you more money. To prevent this from happening, you should look into weather-stripping doors, sealing windows, and adding insulation to help your indoor temperatures stay level.
Regularly Change Your Air Filter
One more factor for summer AC maintenance is to regularly change your air filter. The air filter is easy to put in and forget about, but that is a mistake. If your air filter is dirty or clogged, it will force your HVAC system to work harder and become less efficient. Also, if your filter is dirty, your HVAC system will send those dirty particles throughout your home, impacting indoor air quality.
You want to replace your air filter every 1-3 months to ensure your AC runs smoother and cooler. If you have people with allergies or pets in your home, you will likely want to replace the filter every month. If you do not, every 2-3 months should suffice.
Schedule Preventive Summer AC Maintenance
One of the biggest mistakes homeowners make is waiting for an issue to crop up with their HVAC system before they call a professional in. Once there is an issue worthy of that, it will cost you. Instead, you should schedule periodic tune-ups. This way, a technician can diagnose small problems before they become bigger issues. While it will cost you money to have this maintenance done, it will save you money in the long run since you will avoid bigger, costly problems from occurring.
Final Thoughts
We hope you learned a lot regarding summer AC maintenance. While your air conditioning unit is critical to keeping your home cool during the summer, there are ways to stop it from being overworked. Implementing a few simple changes means you can stay comfortable in your home and extend the life of your cooling system.
Are you ready to give your AC some backup? Mid-Fla Heating & Air offers $69.95 Summer Tune-Ups for first-time customers. We’ll fix it right, or it’s free. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.
