AC Maintenance In Utah County

2. Rinse outside coil with water

When the large fan on the top of the outside unit is running, it creates a vacuum effect, pulling in air from all around it. Throughout the spring and summer, the air has dirt, pollen, grass clippings, cottonwood fuzz, leaves, and all kinds of debris in it. All of that collects over time and decrease the airflow causing your system to have to work harder and possibly fail.

Turn the power off to the unit but pulling the AC disconnect or shutting off the breaker. Use a garden hose and rinse the coils. Spray the water from the inside out undiluted the water runs clear. This can be done throughout the summer, as you notice the coils getting dirty. Be sure to reconnect the power when you’re done.

4. Check your air filter

Airflow is just as important inside as it is outside. Making sure you have a clean air filter is the easiest thing you can do to help prevent breakdowns. Just like most things that are simple to do, it is easy not to do. We get busy and forget about it, sometimes until there is a breakdown. You only need to replace the filter when it gets dirty but most people don’t know how long it takes to get dirty so I recommend that you check it each month until you become familiar with how often it needs to be changed.

Go to wherever your filter is located, usually by the furnace or in a return air vent, take the filter out and hold it up to the light. If you can't see light through it, you’re not getting enough air through it.

When installing the new air filter, pay attention to the airflow direction arrow on the side. Make sure the air is flowing across the filter in that direction.

NOTE: Pleated filters do a better job filtering the air and last longer because there is more surface area for the air to flow over. You can write the date you install the filter on the site to see how long you go between replacing them. You can set a reminder on your phone to remind you to check it each month.

6. Check Drain for Clogs

As the moisture is removed from the air, it collects in the drain pan under the evaporator coil. It is connected to a PVC pipe that either runs to a floor drain or into a small box called a condensate pump. If that drain line gets plugged up with gunk water can start to flow over the sides of the drain pan and drip down on the other components of the furnace causing damage, not to mention the damage to the floors as the system floods.

I like to take a cup of water and pour down the drain line and make sure you see it come out the other end. I have had my line clog and all I had to do was blow on the end and a glob of gunk came out the other end and it was fine for the rest of the year.

NOTE: If you notice a smell coming from that drain line, you can add bleach to the water you pour down and that should help clean it.

8. Regular dealer maintenance

There are some things the manufacturer recommends you have inspected on your air conditioner once a year, by a technician that has all the right tools and gauges. You want to make sure that all of the components are still running within the parameters set by the manufactures.

Make sure that whoever performs your annual maintenance, checks all the vital components, documents what they find, answer all your questions and leave you with a full written report. You should know more about the condition of your system after they are done than before they started.

Any Hour Services calls these recommended maintenance and inspection items an air conditioner tune-up. If you are in the Utah market and you don’t know anyone, we would be happy to help with this service. Find out more about our air conditioner tune-up or to schedule an appointment.