Fall Fun, Winterizing Your HVAC – Don’t get left out in the cold
Fall means cooler mornings, pumpkins everywhere, and the perfect time of year to winterize your HVAC. If you own a home you’ve probably heard of an HVAC, meaning heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. The HVAC system keeps your home cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
With cooler weather quickly approaching, now is the time to think about winterizing your HVAC as it’s a vital piece of maintenance that will help protect your investment.
Why should you winterize your HVAC?
You may be asking yourself why you should winterize your HVAC. Your HVAC unit is made to withstand the wear and tear of the outdoors, right? It is, but performing general maintenance on you HVAC unit, such as winterizing, helps increase the efficiency and lifespan of your heating and cooling system. This can save you time and money in the long run.
Imagine this: The first chill of winter hits and you reach to turn your heat on to keep cozy, but there’s a problem that now requires professional HVAC repair. No one wants to turn on their heat on the first cold day of winter to find that something is wrong with their unit. By taking these steps and winterizing your unit, you can help decrease the chances of this happening.
How to winterize your HVAC.
Now that you know why you should winterize your HVAC, it’s time to take a deep dive into how to winterize your HVAC.
Turn off your unit.
First, you will want to turn off the power to your HVAC unit. Turning off the unit keeps it from being damaged and protects you from electrocution during the winterizing process. Frequently, there is an outdoor panel near the unit where you can switch off the power to the unit.
Make sure your unit is dry before restoring the power to the unit.
Clean
Then, you want to clean your HVAC unit. Use a rag to clean any dirt, bugs, bird droppings, etc. from the outside of the unit. You can also use a hose to rinse off your unit, but the unit should be completely dry before turning the power to the unit back on.
Make sure to remove any leaves or twigs from around your HVAC unit. Small animals may find a home in this debris while trying to keep warm during the cold winter months. By removing the debris, you decrease the chances of these animals damaging your unit.
You also want to remove any foliage that has grown up around your unit during the spring and summer months. Removing this foliage will decrease the amount of debris that can accumulate around your unit throughout winter.
Insulate and Cover
Next, you will want to insulate the pipes going from your unit into your home. You can find foam to insulate your pipes at a local home improvement store. Once the insulation is cut to the length of the exposed pipe, you can secure the foam with tape.
Insulating the pipes keeps these pipes from freezing in the winter cold. It also helps the efficiency of the unit so you can stay warm without your power bill going through the roof.
After you have finished with insulating the pipes to your unit, you may consider covering your unit. If you choose to cover your HVAC unit, make sure the cover is loose enough for the unit to breathe and excess moisture does not accumulate.
Replace Filter
While winterizing your HVAC, it is also a good time to change your return filter. If you’ve ever opened your electric bill to the unfortunate surprise of a high bill, changing your air filter is the first step to increasing your HVAC’s efficiency. There is no standard for how often to replace your air filters, but replacing the filters should be a part of winterizing your HVAC.
Check Your HVAC Unit
Now that you have prepared your HVAC for winter, you want to continue checking your HVAC throughout the winter months.
You should check your unit for:
- Debris build up on top of or around your unit.
- Snow accumulating on top of or around your unit.
- Signs of rust on or in your unit.
- Moisture accumulation under if you put a cover over your unit.
Looking for a HVAC tune-up before Winter starts? Schedule your HVAC tune-up appointment with Mundy’s Heating and Air today.
