It can be hard to appreciate just how important your AC unit is to your family’s comfort and health during these hot summers days. That is, until your old burnt out air conditioner breaks down. A typical air conditioner lifespan is anywhere from 10 to 20 years – and once it reaches the end of its lifespan, it will no longer be able to keep up with the strain of of keeping your home cool on scorching hot days… or it’ll stop running altogether. There’s a big difference between 10 years and 20 years as far as AC unit lifespan goes, and unless you’re just dying to replace your AC unit sooner rather than later, you’re hoping for 20 years. You can do more than just hope though – you can make it happen! Here are 5 tips for extending your AC unit lifespan.
5 Great Tips for Extending Your AC Unit Lifespan
Change The Filter Regularly
Your AC’s air filter helps to prevent dust, dirt, hair, and other particulates and allergens from getting inside your unit… and your home. Without a clean and easily-breathable filter, this dust and dirt will proceed to coat the inside of your air conditioner and cause malfunctions. Keeping your filter fresh and clean helps keep your unit from having to work extra hard. While the filters you purchase may have recommendations on how often to change them based on the quality, a good rule to follow is ensuring you replace your filter at least once every three months. If you live in a home with lots of pets, their hair and dander will clog up your filter faster – so you’ll want to change them every month and a half or two months.
Clean Your Ducts
All of that dirt, dander, hair, and dust that your filters catch will try to make their way into your air conditioner through the air ducts in your home. As these ducts collect more and more allergens, your air filters will become clogged – and then they’ll clog faster and faster as the buildup continues. Dirty ducts can also inhibit airflow and intake, which also makes your air conditioner work harder to distribute cool air.
Keeping ducts clean helps keep your air filters and home cleaner, taking stress off your air conditioner and extending its life. Not only that, it helps prevent all that nasty stuff from blowing around your house and into your lungs. While your air filter needs to be changed every couple of months, your air ducts are an even more occasional piece of maintenance. We recommend getting your ducts cleaned every three to five years, depending on how prone your home is to dust, dander, or hair.
Maintain Your AC Unit
The single most effective way homeowners can extend their air conditioner lifespan is by investing in regular preventative maintenance from professionals. Spring and fall cleaning and diagnostics from trusted heating and cooling service providers will make sure your air conditioner is free from the dirt and grime that contributes to malfunctions, and will help catch and head off any issues before they evolve into larger problems.
Hoosier Indoor Air helps our customers extend their air conditioning and heating systems’ life by offering Comfort Guard. Our excellent and comprehensive protection plan provides year-round protection and peace of mind that your unit is working under optimal conditions and in the most ideal position to last as long as possible.
Take a Load Off
While running your AC 24/7 may be necessary to keep your home cool during the peak heat of summer, it will cause accelerated wear to its motor other internal components. While we strongly advise against constantly turning your air conditioner on and off *(the constant starting and stopping puts unnecessary strain on your AC), we do recommend that on milder days, you give that AC unit a rest.
Also – be sure your system is set to AUTO instead of ON. When set to AUTO, your fan will only run when cool air is being pumped into your home. ON means the fan will always run, even when it isn’t cooling
Heat Inventory
Obviously, the hotter your home gets, the harder your air conditioner has to work to keep it cool…. which means the faster it will burn out. However, not all heat comes from the outside! High energy or high heat appliances (particularly older ones), like dryers, computers, refrigerators, and ovens can add significant heating to your home. So when you’re not using them, turn them off – or run them in the evenings or mornings, when it’s cooler outside.
Additionally, the sunlight that enters your home through your windows and doors can also generate significant heat – so do your best during the hottest days to keep your blinds or curtains drawn to help prevent heat transfer.
The Best Method for Extending your AC Unit Lifespan? Hoosier Indoor Air!
As mentioned above, preventative maintenance, like what we offer in our Comfort Guard program, is the best way to go about extending your AC unit lifespan and keeping it running strong. Hoosier Indoor Air offers duct cleaning and air conditioning maintenance services, as well as our Comfort Guard service agreement, to help keep our Indianapolis area customers’ air conditioners clean and maintained.
Call 317-466-7437 for to learn more about how Hoosier Indoor Air’s Comfort Guard program can drastically extend the life of your AC unit!
