Three tips to minimize the strain on your AC during the summer

You depend on your air conditioner during the summer months. It works hard all day long to keep you comfortable in what can be an uncomfortable climate in Knightdale, North Carolina, during the summer months. But is it working too hard? It’s possible. How often have you thought of the ways you make your AC work harder than it needs to? 

In this article, we’ll dive into three ways you could be contributing to strain on your air conditioner and how you can rectify the problem. 

Replace your dirty HVAC filter

If your air handling unit is in the attic, you might be putting off changing it during the summer because it feels hot enough to boil water up there. Maybe you genuinely just forgot about your air filter schedule because things got busy. 

Either way, if you haven’t replaced your air filter in a while, your AC system might be experiencing way more strain than it needs to. It is already sucking hot air out of your home, blowing it outside, cooling new air, and pumping it into your living space. Your system doesn’t need to deal with a blocked filter to boot! Stay on schedule and avoid overloading your unit.

Replace your thermostat

This one might be a surprise, but thermostats play a critical role in regulating the temperature of your house (and how hard your air conditioner has to work). And with smart technology, there are even more ways to reduce strain on your unit. 

Is everyone out of the house from 9-5 on weekdays? Are you taking a weekend trip? Perhaps you’ll be out at the beach for a week? Newer thermostats give you tons of flexibility to set your target temperature remotely or program your system to automatically let your house warm up a bit during times when you’re not around, meaning your AC system might not have to work as hard during some of the hottest hours of the day (which saves you money as an added bonus). 

Avoid activities that warm your home

A third way to reduce strain on your air conditioner is to minimize activities that heat up your house, especially during the hottest times of day. Obvious examples include cooking and baking, but even watching TV, taking warm showers, or leaving the blinds or curtains open on the sunny side of your house can make cooling a lot harder for your system. 

Call All Hours to make sure your AC system is properly sealed and insulated

If you’re taking steps to reduce strain on your air conditioner but still feel like it’s struggling to keep up, give us a call! We can check out your system in Knightdale, North Carolina, and figure out what isn’t working. Sometimes the fix can be as simple as making sure your system is properly sealed and insulated, and it can help you avoid an emergency air conditioning repair!