Boston is another one of those cities in the New England area that gets the full brunt of the seasons. So now we’re edging out of spring and moving into the warmer, sunnier days of summer, and that means one thing; it’s going to get hot and humid.
Thanks to modern technology, this isn’t something that’s such a big deal for homes with air conditioning.
But if you have an integrated, centralized AC system built into your home, there are probably a few things you should do before you get your hardware to start putting in the work for the next few months.
Inspect & Clean the Condenser
Central AC has a condenser, which is that large unit with the fan that sits just outside your home.
The function of this piece of hardware is to draw in air from outdoors, cool it, and then pump that into your home to be circulated around.
This means that the hardware is designed to permit the easy flow of air, and that means there are a lot of spaces in the equipment that can allow foreign matter inside.
If you have trees or other plants on your property, the leaves from the vegetation can accumulate inside your condenser, and that can affect the efficiency.
Clean this out in time for the heavy summer usage.
Replace Your Filter or Clean It
In modern heating and cooling systems, the furnace and air conditioner often share the same filter.
This means that it should be regularly replaced throughout the year.
Every seasonal change, in other words, four times a year, every three months, is about the right replacement schedule.
It’s important to do this, because the filter both protects residents against contaminants and keeps the operational efficiency of the AC up, meaning lower bills.
You can either use disposable filters that you replace on schedule or a buy a more expensive permanent filter that needs to be periodically cleaned out.
Get the Most from Your Thermostat
If you have an older thermostat, you may want to consider upgrading to a modern one.
Older thermostats may not be as accurate in measuring the temperature in your home, resulting in you paying more than you should on your energy bills.
But if you do have a modern thermostat, are you using it efficiently?
New thermostats don’t just turn on and stay on to maintain one fixed temperature.
They can be programmed to power down the AC if the house is empty during the day and doesn’t need to be cooled.
Then they can automatically start cooling the home at the time that residents start arriving and needing the comfort.
This is a much more efficient use of your energy.
