10 Air Conditioning Tips To Keep Your AC Unit Running All Summer Long

It seems like we’ve skipped spring this year and rocketed straight into summer!

With temperatures already threatening to hit record highs, home AC units are already running in most of America. But with those cool homes come higher utility bills and worse, the threat of the sudden breakdown of your HVAC, leaving you sweating in the heat.

Everyone knows that regular air conditioner maintenance means lower cooling costs and repair bills. But how can you make sure you’re taking good care of your unit?

We’re going to take you through ten of the best air conditioning tips for summer. Follow these ac tips and you’ll be able to something

Let’s jump right in.

10 Awesome Air Conditioning Tips For Summer

Good AC maintenance will ensure that your AC unit lasts as long as it can and that it doesn’t die in the middle of the first heat wave.

Most of the steps on this list are easy and can be done yourself. In fact, start-of-season maintenance can take less than a day. Get it done this weekend and you can be assured of a cool summer.

1. Replace Your Air Filter

When you’re talking air conditioner maintenance, this should always be step one.

Your air filter keeps the air in your home clean and ensures your AC unit doesn’t get chocked with dirt and debris. A clear AC is a happy AC, after all.

To keep your AC running at maximum efficiency, change your filter every three months. The beginning of the hot season is the perfect time to do this.

If you have a reusable filter, first of all, we bow to you and your budget-friendly ways. Second, give it a good cleaning before the start of the season.

Not only will your AC run better, but your air quality may go up as well.

2. Have Your Unit Inspected

Filed under the very best AC tips? Making sure to have your unit professionally inspected before you make it do any heavy lifting.

Your friendly local HVAC professionals can make sure your AC is running [perfectly and can help with periodic air conditioner maintenance if problems arise.

Forming a relationship with a quality company means having technician you trust. This ensures that you are getting the best air conditioner help at the best value.

3. Weatherize Your Home

Most people don’t think about weatherization during the summer months. After all, isn’t weatherization supposed to keep the heat in? And in the summer, we’re happy to let the heat go anywhere but in our homes.

In reality, one of the least well-known air conditing tips is to make sure your house is weatherized. This easy maintenance chore doesn’t just keep the warm air in during the winter but keeps the cool air from escaping during the summer.

4. Check Your Thermostat

Often, people skip over their thermostat when they are doing general air conditioner maintenance.

But if your thermostat isn’t working as well as it should, or is outdated, your ac unit may be working much harder than it needs to.

First, make sure the unit itself is working properly. Turn your unit to cool and make sure cool air is actually coming out of your vents. If you’re only getting hot air, you will need air conditioner help from a professional.

Even if your thermostat is working perfectly, the beginning of the season is the best time to consider an upgrade.

If you’re still using a mercury-bulb thermostat, it might be time to upgrade to a programmable digital model. This will give you more flexibility and more power over the temperature in your home, ensuring your system is staying efficient.

5. Clean Your Outdoor Unit

Do this. Do this now. If you read no other air conditioning tips this year, please read this one.

Take the time at the beginning of the summer to clean your outdoor unit. A dirty system is inefficient. Dirt covering up your units condenser coils means the whole system has to work harder to cool your home. The system runs longer and you pay more money.

To avoid this, give your unit a good cleaning.

You can have a professional do this for you, or you can do it yourself with a manufacturer-recommended air conditioner cleaner and a hose.

In addition to cleaning your coils, take the time to clean around your unit, clearing any yard debris or overgrowth from the base of the unit.

You want the area around your AC unit clean and free of obstruction. This makes it easier to access but also keeps the unit clean, clear, and functioning perfectly.

6. Learn To Love The Shade

Is it easier to keep cool on a hot day in the shade or in the sun?

The answer is obvious, and your air conditioner feels the same way.

Your air conditioner pulls in outside air and cools it to cool your house. If the air its pulling is already cooler, the air conditioner doesn’t have to work as hard.

Do your best to shade your outdoor unit so it can work more efficiently.

7. Keep Your Temps Wallet-Friendly

There are those among us who would happily keep their homes at a brisk 52 degrees all summer long. Those people also must enjoy sky-high energy bills.

According to the US Department of Energy, this is simply not necessary. Setting your thermostat to no less than 78 degrees Fahrenheit will keep you comfortable without breaking the bank.

For maximum savings, turn your thermostat up ten more degrees if you’re going to be gone four hours or more during the day.

8. Program Your Thermostat

Remember how we told you in step 4 to get a programmable thermostat? Here’s where it comes into play.

If you’re gone for predictable hours during the day, set your home thermostat to turn itself up and down with your personal rhythms throughout the day. It will keep itself energy-efficient without you having to worry.

9. Make Friends With Your Fan

Fans may seem like an inefficient option when compared to an HVAC system, but in reality, they serve two distinct purposes, and a fan can be your best friend when temperatures are high, but not sweltering.

Keep in mind the mantra that fans cool “people, not rooms”

Keeping a fan pointed at you, especially at your face or feet while you sleep, can keep you cool while ensuring you don’t need as much work from your ac unit through the night.

10. Know When To Say Goodbye

Even the best air conditioner maintenance can’t keep an AC young forever.

In the very best of conditions, with perfect maintenance, an AC unit will last about 15 years. If yours is older, consider calling in the professionals to outfit you with a newer, more efficient system.

Do You Need Air Conditioner Help This Summer?

You can do a lot of this air conditioner maintenance yourself. But even with the best air conditioner tips, sometimes a professional is needed.

If you find yourself in need of a pro for your air conditioner this summer, give us a call. Whether for maintenance or troubleshooting, we’ll get you cool in no time.