With winter on the horizon, now is the time to take steps to ensure that your HVAC system is ready for the extreme cold we’re likely to experience here in Roseville, MI. For the most part, winterizing your HVAC system isn’t complicated. However, it can be time-consuming, which means that you need to give yourself enough time to complete all of the steps before winter rears its ugly head.
The following are some things that we at C & C Heating and Air Conditioning do to get our HVAC systems ready for winter that we’d recommend you do, as well.
5 Steps to Prep Your Air Conditioning for the Winter Season
1. Clean Your Outdoor Air Conditioning Unit
With the fall season comes a lot of falling debris. Some of this debris can end up in your outdoor unit. Although your outdoor unit is designed to operate safely with some debris in it, it’s best if you can remove this debris before winter settles in so that the debris doesn’t sit inside the unit all winter.
How To Clean Out Debris
- Make sure the power is turned off to the unit at the circuit breaker
- Take off the top cover of the unit and use a shop vac to remove all the debris like grass clippings and leaves.
- Use a garden hose to wash off the condenser fins that make up the outside of the unit, allowing it to fully dry.
- Re-attach the top cover to prevent further debris from entering your unit.
A clean central air conditioning unit means improved air quality and unit efficiency!
2. Turn Off the Power
Given that any device that’s connected to electricity can suffer from a power surge, it’s important to protect against power surges as much as possible. If you don’t plan to use your air conditioning system during the winter, it is best to turn it off completely at the circuit breaker box. Simply turn off the AC unit at the thermostat and then flip the switch to “off” at the circuit breaker.
3. Repair Refrigerant Line Insulation
Your air conditioner’s refrigerant line is responsible for circulating refrigerant from the inside to the outside of your home and back again. The portion that is outside needs to be properly insulated to maintain the temperature of the refrigerant and to protect the pipe itself from corrosion.
Since winter weather can be especially hard on metal pipes, it’s important to have a heating and cooling services technician from C & C Heating & Air Conditioning inspect it to ensure it’s in good shape.
4. To Cover or Not to Cover?
For some people, the winterization of their HVAC system isn’t complete until they put a cover over their outdoor air conditioner unit. Below are some pros and cons of covering the outdoor air conditioning unit.
Pros
- Protects the air conditioner unit from debris like leaves, twigs, grass clippings
- Sheils the unit against snow and ice dams
- Keeps out pests like rodents
Cons
- A lack of air means moisture is trapped in the unit, leading to rust or mold growth in the unit
- If the cover isn’t adequately secured on the outdoor unit, it can create a warm shelter for pests.
- Covers are unnecessary for most outdoor units because they are built to withstand weather conditions.
- A loosely fitted cover can cause more damage than good for an HVAC unit.
Generally, we at C & C Heating & Air Conditioning do not typically recommend using a cover for your air conditioner’s outdoor unit.
5. Have Your Furnace Inspected
To ensure that your furnace is ready for action the moment that cold weather strikes, it’s important to have it inspected by someone from C & C Heating & Air Conditioning while there’s still warm weather left. A thorough inspection will reveal any potential vulnerabilities in your furnace that could lead to a breakdown sometime during the heating season.
What a Furnace Inspection Includes:
- Safety Checks: An inspection of the heat exchanger for cracks and corrosion, check the carbon monoxide for leaks, and make sure all the safety controls are working properly.
- System Functionality: A test of the start-up cycle for smooth ignition, the thermostat is calibrated correctly, and the gas connections are secured properly without the potential for leaks or improper pressure.
- Electrical Components: A check of the wiring, connections, blower motor, circuit breakers, and fuses to ensure that everything is connected properly.
- Cleaning: The burners and air filters are cleaned and the inside of the furnace is vacuumed.
- Ventilation & Airflow: A thorough inspection of flue pipes, ductwork, and air pressure to ensure that the airflow is as smooth as possible.
- Efficiency Assessment: Furnace inspections also test the overall energy efficiency of the furnace to ensure that the home is being heated adequately without consuming more energy than necessary.
You must have this inspection completed every year because issues can develop during a heating season that may not have been there at the beginning. Therefore, if you have an inspection completed every year, you can enjoy reliable operation from your furnace for years to come.
6. Make Sure Your Insulation Is Adequate
Once you have finished taking care of the mechanical components of your HVAC system, it’s important to look at the passive components: namely, the ducts. After all, it does you no good to have a properly winterized HVAC system if your ducts aren’t properly protected from the impending cold temperatures.
Proper protection for ducts means proper insulation. If your ducts aren’t properly insulated, the air in them will change temperatures as it flow to the various rooms in your home. This could lead to a reduction in your furnace’s efficiency.
To fix this problem, you need to isolate the ducts from the rest of the unconditioned space. To do this, you can either insulate the entire space or use foam insulation boards to create an insulated space for the ducts. Either way, taking these steps will help you stay much more comfortable throughout the winter.
Keeping You Comfortable When You Need It Most
At C & C Heating & Air Conditioning, we don’t want you to have to suffer during winter’s worst weather. That’s why we offer HVAC winterization services, as well as complete furnace and air conditioner maintenance and AC installation services year-round.
We can also take care of, indoor air quality testing and improvement, and much more. If you want to get your furnace ready for the upcoming Roseville winter, give us a call at C & C Heating & Air Conditioning today. We look forward to serving all of your home indoor comfort needs. Read our 5 Star Reviews!
Contact C & C Heating & Air Conditioning today to schedule a furnace tune-up with one of our HVAC technicians.
