Ways to Prevent HVAC Storm Damage
Hail, strong winds, powerful storms, tornadoes and intense rainfall can cause damage to your home. These wild weather experiences can harm your air conditioning and heating system as well. Therefore, you should know how to protect your HVAC unit from storm damage.
In case your unit is affected by storms leading to faulty equipment necessitating repairs, here are some methods you can employ to ensure the safety of your HVAC unit during all kinds of storms.
1. Make Sure Your HVAC Unit Is Grounded Correctly
Grounding your system protects it from lightning, which causes immense damage to your home as a whole and also your unit. Therefore, as you prepare for storms, ensure your air conditioner is properly grounded. Having one of our experts ensure that your system is correctly grounded before the storm might save your HVAC from damage.
2. Consider Covering Your Air Conditioner
Installing an air conditioning cover before a storm can shield your unit from damage by heavy winds, hail and heavy rains. During storms, flying debris can affect your conditioner if it was not covered before the storm. Dirt and shrapnel can damage your unit’s integral parts, leading to catastrophic failure. Winds can deposit dirt and other materials into your HVAC system, which causes damage later. Feel free to contact us at C & C Heating & Air Conditioning to install your unit’s cover if you require help with this.
3. Relocate Your HVAC Unit
If floods are an issue for you during storms, then having our experts relocate your unit to higher ground is an excellent preventive measure. Water from floods and dirt may get into your HVAC system and destroy the inner components by either short-circuiting, deteriorating parts of your outdoor unit or causing corrosion, or all of those, thus necessitating replacement. During floods, harmful bacteria and mold can grow in your heating and cooling system, which can be detrimental once they enter your home’s air supply. After the damage is done, buying a new HVAC unit will cost you an unnecessary amount of money, when you could have prevented the damage by getting your unit installed on higher ground. If your system is at ground level, consider having one of our professionals relocate your conditioner to higher ground.
4. Invest in a Good Surge Protector
Surge protectors are essential during storms as they absorb and redirect the excess electricity, thus avoiding the danger of electrocution or even fires from power surges. Ensure you get a surge protector that has a power rating that matches your system. Our experts can guide you on the best surge protectors, especially ones that automatically shut off to prevent damage from a power surge during storms.
5. Make Sure Your HVAC Unit Is Inspected
As you retrofit your home to withstand a storm, have your air conditioning unit inspected by a professional. The expert will give you the best way to ensure that your HVAC system will beat the harsh weather and if it needs any repairs or additional components before the storm hits. After the storm, you should have your unit inspected by an expert to determine if your air conditioner took any damage and to get the necessary repairs done to make sure your air conditioner can withstand future storms.
6. Ensure Your Unit Is Free From Surrounding Trees
See to it that the area surrounding your conditioning unit is clear of loose tree branches and even dead tree branches, which become debris during a storm. For the safety of your system during a storm, surrounding trees should be trimmed. During heavy winds and downpours, loose branches break off from the trees, damaging your unit. Ensure all your outdoor furniture and other items are properly stored or secured to avoid them becoming debris and causing destruction to your home’s windows and air conditioning unit.
7. Install Pad Anchors
Pad anchors are fasteners that secure your conditioning unit to an underlying surface. Instead of sitting on the pad, the air conditioner is connected using the anchors. During severe weather, there is debris all over, which may damage your unit. Therefore, it’s essential to set up your system with pad anchors to prevent damage during heavy winds. The air conditioner should not budge when anchored, since it would have been securely fastened.
8. Safely Use Your Air Conditioning Unit During Storms
To ensure your unit is safe from storm damage, you should know how to safely use your equipment during the storm. You should know how to turn off power to the unit to prevent any damage that may occur from surges during the storm.
9. Have Regular Maintenance Done for Your Unit
Ensuring that your HVAC unit is regularly maintained by a professional plays a big role in preventing damage to it during a storm. When your unit is not regularly cleaned, debris and dirt may accumulate, restricting airflow. If your unit has a loose part, high winds can yank that out, thus straining your finances more for the repairs.
Having your unit maintained regularly has both short- and long-term benefits, which include:
- Energy efficiency and saving money
- Avoid constant repairs
- A longer life span
It is, therefore, essential that your unit is maintained at regular intervals and that as-necessary measures have been installed before the storm. Contact us for the best maintenance services in the Detroit Metro area.
Precautions After the Storm
The following are some preventive measures you can employ after a storm to ensure there is no damage:
Remove the Cover
Get the best experts to remove your unit’s cover after the storm dies down, ensuring the water and dirt on the cover don’t penetrate the unit.
Clear Debris
These professionals should also clear the debris that has accumulated around the air conditioning unit to avoid breathing contaminated air in the future.
Clean or Replace Parts
You can have your unit’s ducts, humidifier, blower, drain hose, evaporator and pads cleaned or replaced to control any mold growth.
Inspect for Damage
After the storm, have your unit inspected for damage, like bent or damaged coil fins, which increases your electrical consumption, as the airflow is affected.
Check Underwater
Have an expert check for submerged systems if a flood occurs. They should thoroughly check any appliances in your basement if any.
With our great range of services, top-rated customer service and highly trained professionals, we at C & C Heating & Air Conditioning offer the best in air conditioning and heating services in the Detroit Metro area. Our experienced team provides various services, including heating and cooling equipment. We offer 24/7 customer care and repairs to help see that your home’s comfort is not altered by a faulty system. We offer financing options on approved credit for our customers who want to upgrade to modern energy equipment. Our highly skilled experts can install, maintain and repair modern heating and cooling equipment that is energy efficient. For any assistance with your HVAC unit, whether you are preparing for a storm or want to maintain it correctly, feel free to contact us. We proudly serve homeowners in Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.
