Think of your Air Conditioning system as you do with your personal automotive vehicle…if you get it tuned up regularly, you can avoid certain emergency breakdowns and prolong its useful life. This saves a significant amount of dollars, time and stress over time. It’s better to put preventative measures in place to save money over the long run and minimize costly headaches.
What is A/C Preventative Maintenance? There is an important checklist of A/C maintenance services that should be performed on a routine basis. For many reasons, the typical homeowner often is not able to effectively accomplish many of these services. Too busy at work and not enough time, or, the A/C system is located in tough to reach areas such as an attic or elevated in the garage and can’t be accessed, or, maybe just prefer to spend discretionary time doing other activities… the list of reasons goes on for homeowners. Important tasks to accomplish with A/C maintenance include clearing/priming/testing drain lines, checking refrigerant levels, changing air filters, tightening electrical connections, rinsing condenser coils, and a variety of other adjustments, checkpoints, and inspections on the system.
In the South Florida area, it’s highly recommended to change air filters every 30 to 90 days. Regarding important water circulation in the A/C system, homes often have been built in the 1970s or 1980s and the A/C drain line was part of the original building infrastructure. So, the drain lines are 40 or 50 years old. Drain lines are important to eliminate excess condensation and should be thoroughly cleared at least every 180 days. And, cleared more frequently if the drain lines are older and prone to excess buildup of algae, plaque and other obstructions.
Why is A/C Maintenance Important? Preventative Maintenance Programs keep A/C systems running at their peak efficiency. Regularly scheduled visits have a proven record of reducing expensive repairs and ensuring A/C systems are optimizing their consumption of electricity. Also, continued maintenance checkups over many years have proven to extend the operational life of A/C systems. You may get as much as 3-5 years more of a cooling life from your A/C systems that are proactively and routinely cared for over the years.
Bottom line, here are the key benefits to A/C Preventative Maintenance:
- Prolong the life of your A/C system
- Optimize the system’s operational efficiency and energy consumption
- Elevate the level of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) provided by your system
- Stay protected and compliant under your extended warranty program
- Reduce future system breakdowns and uncomfortable down time
How frequently is A/C Maintenance needed? The short answer is that a maintenance service frequency of every six months is highly recommended, but at least one time per year. However, requirements for important air filter changes and clearing stubborn drain lines may drive a logical need to setup routine maintenance visits every 90 days.
