There is nothing worse than when you have an HVAC unit breakdown on your home, and you have to consider replacing it with a new one. A good working unit in necessary for every house and the longer they last, the better for your wallet. This takes a little effort on your part but in the scheme of things, it will save you save you money on energy bills and repairs while also keeping your unit running longer. Our professionals at Franklin HVAC want to shed some DIY maintenance you can do to extend your unit’s lifespan.
Before you start to clean your unit, ensure that you have turned the power off so that no injury may come upon you. After you have turned the power off to the unit, the first step you should take is to clean the area around your HVAC unit. During the fall and winter months, rake away any leaves that are surrounding your unit and during the summer after cutting the grass, be sure to clean up any cut grass hanging around your unit. This will ensure that your unit is getting a proper flow of air without picking up any dirt or other debris. By doing this, you will also keep the interior of your unit free of any clogging that can come from sucking in too much debris.
After you have cleaned the surrounding area to your unit, it is now time to turn to the actual unit itself. Our professional technicians at Franklin HVAC say that cleaning the fins of any debris caught inside them is a vital step to keeping your unit running longer. You can purchase a fin cleaner from your local home improvement store that will clean out the dirt from inside your fins without doing any harm to your unit. This will once again ensure your unit is getting a proper flow of air, and it will improve the quality of air that is coming into your house.
Another area you want to keep an eye on with your HVAC unit is indoor vents. Clean indoor vents may seem like they have nothing to do with your actual unit but if you have a blocked or clogged vent, then it will, in turn, affect your unit outside. By taking the brush attachment from your vacuum and sucking up any dirt or dust that has collected around/in the vent will keep the airflow in your home steady. Also, you should always ensure that your vents are free from being blocked by items such as curtains, toys, or furniture. This will keep the steady airflow circulating in your house instead of staying trapped in your vents.
A new HVAC unit can last and run efficiently for a good many years as long as you are taking care of it. If you follow these simple DIY maintenance steps, you are not only saving money on bills and repairs but it will also keep the unit you have now running longer.
