It’s Time to Prepare Your AC for the Off-Season

With summer winding down, it won’t be long before Southwest Ohio homeowners begin making the switch from cooling to heating. This is a good time to remember (or learn) how to prepare your home’s central air conditioner for its off-season.

Consider taking these steps

Find an effective cover for your split-system AC’s outside condenser/compressor.

When there’s no longer any doubt about the cooling season being over, find an effective cover for your outside condenser/compressor. Your equipment will last longer if its interior is not exposed to the elements between October and April.

However, you’ll want to avoid using a cover that’s not designed with certain considerations in mind. Ideally, ask your favorite Cincinnati air conditioner repair contractor or home improvement/hardware store if they have a custom-made AC cover that’s vented with small openings to allow airflow into the equipment.

Without ventilation, trapped moisture can corrode or otherwise damage sensitive AC components. A very easy alternative is to place a piece of plywood or other flat, non-permeable object across the top of your AC’s outside unit. This takes care of the main objective, keeping the elements from entering the top of the condenser/compressor, while allowing for plenty of airflow.

Remove the air filter from the air conditioner’s air-handling unit and replace it with a new one.

Or if you’re like a lot of homeowners, whose AC uses the furnace blower to circulate air, take care of that filter. Either way, your HVAC system will be ready with a fresh filter the next time it comes on.

Unless your household has special air-quality concerns, a mid-efficiency filter (in the $8 to $14 price range) should be sufficient. Avoid choosing an air filter with a very high efficiency without consulting your trusted Cincinnati heating service repair partner.

An ultra-efficient filter may impede airflow in your forced-air system, which is something to be avoided. If occupants of your home suffer from health issues and require extremely clean air, you can discuss the possibility of installing a whole home purifier system in your Cincinnati home with your local furnace repair company.

Police the area around the outside AC unit, removing any yard debris such as grass clippings, weeds, dead leaves, sticks or branches.

If left in the area around the outside unit during the long winter, these materials can get blown into the condenser/compressor, increasing the likelihood of corrosion and other damage. This can be a particular issue in the fall, when fallen leaves can accumulate quickly.

For handy persons only

Clean the coils in your split-system AC, both in the inside evaporator unit and the outside condensing unit. You can find detailed instructions online for this task. This is one job that it might make better sense to do in the spring, right before you intend to start running the cooling system again.

That way, you’ll eliminate any dirt or debris that’s managed to get inside the AC over the winter.

Heat pumps need seasonal maintenance twice a year

Most homeowners schedule a maintenance tune-up for their central air conditioner in the spring, right before the cooling season. However, if your home employs a heat pump for both cooling and heating, it’s best to schedule a maintenance tune-up twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring.

That means, you should add a step – scheduling professional maintenance – to your checklist for preparing your cooling system for the off-season. You can simplify this instruction by joining Jansen’s Maintenance Club. We’ll remind you when it’s time for maintenance.