SUGAR LAND, Texas – Air conditioning technicians are busier than ever trying to repair as many units as possible to keep people cool and out of the heat.
However, there are some things you can do right now.
Outside A/C units are put through the ringer because of the elements. If it breaks down, it often costs between $400 to $800 to repair, depending on the issue. Maintaining is a lot cheaper and all you need is water.
Rick Young is an air conditioning technician with Hunter’s Air & Heat and has years of experience. He has one piece of advice he’d share with anyone.
“Maintenance. Maintenance. Maintenance. That’s the biggest thing you need to do on your equipment,” he said.
Young said it doesn’t cost much. First up, outside units that take on plenty of wear and tear.
“You’re mowing the grass, this sucks in and it pulls in the grass, dirt, tree pollen, everything. It might not look dirty but once you start spraying it out. You’ll see the dirt coming off of it,” he said.
Grab a hose and just spray it down, no soap and soon you’ll see some of the dirt wash away.
“It prolongs the life of the unit. It prolongs any parts that are on it: pane, motor, capacitors anything like that,” Young said.
To the inside, when it comes to your air vents, replace the filter every 30 days or more if you have pets.
“When you have a pet in the house, you need to change out the filters out a lot more often. If not, then the filters will get clogged up,” Young said.
Brian Nawara and his family just moved in. They called Young to make sure the system works.
“I just want to make sure that we don’t have any issue,” Nawara said.
The technician recommends cleaning these units twice a year again with just water.