The 5 Biggest Benefits of Annual AC Maintenance

If you aren’t scheduling yearly tune ups for your air conditioner, you’re missing out on the important benefits of annual AC maintenance! An AC tune up each year helps your system stay in shape and serve you well through the summer season. In our most recent blog, the technicians at Novak Heating and Cooling discuss what a tune up includes and what it does for your HVAC system.

What’s Involved in an AC Tune Up?

An air conditioning tune up addresses the needs of your entire cooling system. A technician delivers service to components that can suffer due to wear and tear. The function and performance of critical systems are also verified and adjusted as needed. Annual AC maintenance provides everything your air conditioning system needs to start summer on the right foot.

Here’s what’s included with our regular maintenance for your AC system:

  • Measuring refrigerant levels
  • Cleaning and inspecting condenser coil
  • Cleaning condensate drain
  • Lubricating fan motor
  • Tightening and inspecting electrical connections
  • Inspecting condensate line connections
  • Testing pressure switches
  • Measuring equipment running amps
  • Measuring evaporator coil temperature drop
  • Cleaning unit’s interior
  • Testing for noise and vibration

5 Benefits of Annual AC Maintenance

An AC tune up is an affordable service that pays you back big time. You’ll save money on energy bills, experience better comfort, and keep surprises to a minimum.

1. Improved Energy Efficiency

An annual tune up gives air conditioner components the TLC necessary to eliminate wear and tear damage and ensure everything is running as it should. When your air conditioner’s performance is optimal, so is its energy efficiency. Your air conditioner will use less energy to cool your home over the coming season, benefitting your home and the environment!

2. Save on Cooling Costs

When your air conditioner uses less energy, your energy costs drop. This will cause your monthly utility bills to lower, allowing you to save up for summer fun and other priorities instead of electricity. Having a tune up performed year after year helps your air conditioner preserve its efficiency levels for the long run, so you don’t experience bill increases each year as your system loses its ability to use energy optimally.

3. A More Comfortable Home

Annual AC maintenance helps Cedar Rapids homeowners experience a higher level of comfort indoors. An air conditioner that runs at peak performance produces precise temperatures, limits fluctuations, and helps keep summer humidity in check as well. Plus, you’ll feel more comfortable knowing your air conditioner is less likely to break down this season.

4. Fewer Repairs

Sometimes malfunctions exist within cooling systems that are not easily detected. When these issues aren’t fixed, they can become worse as the system continues to operate. Eventually, your system may break down, leaving you without cooling in the middle of summer. During a tune up, your technician can catch sneaky problems like this before they cause serious trouble, meaning your air conditioner won’t be as likely to break down over the hot season.

5. Longer System Life

All of the above benefits of annual AC maintenance contribute to keeping your cooling system in service longer. Proper maintenance can add years to your equipment’s life! The longer your air conditioner remains in good condition and properly cools your home, the more value you gain from the money spent on its purchase and upkeep. Plus, you can spread out the big expenditures of HVAC equipment replacement as much as possible, making these upgrades more budget-friendly.

Schedule Your AC Tune Up Today!

Schedule your yearly air conditioning tune up with the heating, cooling, and indoor air quality technicians at Novak Heating and Cooling, and we will make sure your system is well maintained and in top shape for the hot days to come. Call us today to request an appointment.

Proper Steps for Turning Your AC Unit On After Winter

When the weather starts warming up, Cedar Rapids area homeowners are eager to restart their air conditioners and keep their living spaces cool. After a long dormant period for your cooling equipment, there are important steps you should take before turning on your home’s AC after winter. In our most recent blog, Novak Heating and Cooling in Cedar Rapids, IA shares the steps that will help ensure your air conditioner runs optimally all summer long.

1. Schedule a Maintenance Tune Up

Before turning on your air conditioning system for the first time after winter, it’s best to schedule a professional maintenance tune up first. After the previous year’s cooling season and several months of rest, your air conditioning system needs some care before it kicks back into high gear. A tune up improves system efficiency and corrects flaws that cause energy waste and performance issues. Plus, any repair issues are taken care of right away, so you’re not stuck discovering them on the first hot day of the year!

If you don’t have time to schedule this service prior to turning on your air conditioner after winter, do so as soon as possible, as maintenance care is needed every year. If your heating, cooling and indoor air quality technician isn’t available to do so in the spring, try to take your cooling system for a test run before hot weather hits so you can identify possible repair needs and have them completed before summer. Just don’t turn the system on too early – air conditioners are designed to operate only in outdoor temperatures around 60 degrees or higher. Turning on your air conditioner when it is too cold outside can damage the system.

2. Uncover Outdoor Equipment

Some homeowners put a cover on their outdoor condensing units for the winter season. While this isn’t necessary, it typically won’t hurt anything as long as you remember to remove it before turning on your air conditioning system after winter. Accidentally running the air conditioner with the cover on will cause your system to experience severe airflow restriction, which could cause overheating and system damage in just a short time.

3. Clean and Inspect the Outdoor Unit

As you spend more time outside in the spring, make it a point to clean the AC’s outdoor condenser unit prior to turning it on after winter. Remove grass, leaves, and other matter that has stuck to the condenser’s fins. Weed around the unit’s base, and remove any vegetation growing up against the air conditioner. Prune close shrubs, and remove any items you’ve stored in the area directly around the unit. Give your air conditioner at least two feet of space on all sides for good airflow and accessibility for your technician.

4. Change Your Air Filter

It’s probably been a few months since your air conditioner’s air filter was replaced, as they generally don’t fill up as quickly during the spring due to reduced HVAC system use. Start the season off right by giving your air conditioner a fresh filter, which helps ensure correct airflow through the indoor system and protects inner components from debris buildup.

5. Open Vents in the Home

Before turning your air conditioning unit on after winter, walk through the house and make sure all supply vent covers are opened. Closed louvers don’t really help you save energy. Instead, they just increase pressure in the ducts, which can damage them.

Get Your Air Conditioner Ready for Summer!

Novak Heating and Cooling is ready to help you get your air conditioner in Cedar Rapids, Robins, Marion, North Liberty, or Hiawatha, Iowa ready for summer! Before turning on your AC after a long winter, be sure you schedule your maintenance visit and any repair work your system needs. We’ll make sure this work is completed ahead of time so you have a reliable air conditioner going into summer. Call us, or contact us online today to schedule service in the Cedar Rapids, IA area.