One of the primary challenges in Western NC is the significant temperature fluctuations throughout the year. Summers can be sweltering, with temperatures soaring, while winters bring frigid temperatures and even snow in higher elevations.
Spring Cleaning Tasks to Benefit Your HVAC System
4 Spring Cleaning Tasks to Benefit Your HVAC System
Whether you’re aware of their presence or not, contaminant particles are all around your household. Even if you keep a clean home, it’s impossible to eliminate all the dust, dirt, and pet dander that floats around and clings to surfaces. During springtime, there’s the added issue of pollen, which typically shows up in abundance. Therefore, cleaning certain areas of your household can make a significant difference, especially when it comes to the health and efficiency of your HVAC system. This spring, make sure that you handle all the following cleaning tasks to prepare your HVAC unit for the Whittier, NC summer.
1. Clean Your Air Vents
Whenever your HVAC system circulates conditioned air around your home, it must pass through your air vents before it can warm or cool your home. When you ignore those vents for long enough, though, they will start to fill up with pollutants. Eventually, that can result in airflow obstructions, worsened air quality, or both. During your spring cleaning, take the time to visit each vent. Use a screwdriver to open them, then take a vacuum cleaner’s extension hose to remove all the contaminants from the interior.
2. Clean Your Ductwork
This is a task that you’ll likely need to outsource, but it’s extremely important. Your air ducts serve as the means for your HVAC system to spread air around your household, and it’s imperative that they remain clean. To keep them free of contaminants like dust, dirt, pollen, and mold, you need to schedule a professional duct cleaning appointment every year. Doing so will go a long way towards ensuring that your HVAC unit can always circulate conditioned air effectively, efficiently, and without straining itself. With the summer heat approaching, spring is the perfect time to get this service taken care of.
3. Clean Your Household Surfaces
All the contaminants that settle into your vents and air ducts must come from somewhere. Sure, plenty of airborne pollutants come in from outside, but many of them also get picked up from inside your home. Even if you’ll never eliminate all the dust and pollen from your household, it’s still worthwhile to remove as much of it as you can. So, this spring, try to wipe down all the surfaces that may be harboring dust or other contaminants. This includes all tables, countertops, floors, and cabinets; a damp rag should work well for the task. Your home’s pillows, rugs, and mats may also be dirty. To clean them, bring them outside of the house and either shake them vigorously or bat them together. That should knock loose most of the contaminating particles. Going forward, you’d be wise to repeat this task every month or two to keep your HVAC system as healthy as possible.
4. Clean or Replace Your HVAC Air Filter
Your HVAC system’s air filter is one of your biggest allies for keeping the appliance running smoothly. The filter has the important job of catching and trapping any airborne contaminants that it encounters before they can be pulled into the HVAC unit. Your air filter only has so much space for contaminant particles, though, and it will eventually become too packed with dust and debris to effectively do its job.
Once your HVAC air filter becomes too dirty or clogged, your HVAC system will likely begin to struggle. It will have to greatly increase its air pressure to pull oxygen through the filter, which will waste energy and jeopardize its health. You should clean or replace this filter regularly year-round, but spring is an especially important time for it. If you’re able to sufficiently remove the contaminants from the filter, cleaning it may serve as a temporary solution. However, it’s always a safer bet to simply dispose of the dirty filter and replace it with a new, clean one.
For quality heating, cooling, or indoor air quality services in the Whittier area, you’ll find no better team than our group of technicians at Premier Indoor Comfort Systems. Since 1999, we’ve been on the frontline of providing excellent services to this area. Your safety and indoor comfort are always our priorities, so we carry out background checks for all our employees to ensure that we only work with the best. Over the years, we’ve received numerous awards and certifications, and we maintain an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. If you want to learn more about what we offer or schedule an appointment, give our offices a call at Premier Indoor Comfort Systems now!