Air Conditioning|Cooling

Your air conditioner serves a very important role. In order to ensure it keeps doing its job properly, you must give it proper care. Complete these air conditioner maintenance tasks to keep summer’s favorite appliance in tip-top shape.

Change the filter. 

Your HVAC filter is designed to trap dirt, pollen, pet dander and other particles so they don’t end up in your indoor air or built up on your air conditioner’s coils. For standard filters, change the filter about once a month in the summer. Set a reminder on your phone or if you are in the Cleveland area, you can use our automatic email reminder service, so you don’t forget! Just pull the old one out and slide in a new one.

Keep the condenser protected in the winter.

When the weather starts to turn cold and you’re no longer using your air conditioner, make sure the outdoor condenser unit is protected from icicles and snow plows (if near the driveway). If you decide to use a cover, only use a cover that is made specifically for your unit. Others may not fit properly and can trap moisture near the unit, accelerating rusting. If you don’t have a cover, speak with your HVAC contractor about ordering one for you.

Clean the condenser.

This task is a lot easier than it sounds. When your condenser unit starts looking dirty, giving it a quick rinse will help restore its efficiency. Turn the electricity off to the unit for safety. Then, use a shop vac to remove the dust and debris from the fins. You may need to use a soft brush to loosen some of the debris. For a more thorough cleaning, it’s best to call an HVAC specialist. They can do this cleaning while they’re out for your annual inspection.

Schedule an annual inspection.

Each spring before you start using your AC for the year, have your HVAC technician do an annual inspection and make sure everything is working properly. They’ll make sure thermostat settings are appropriate, tighten any components that are becoming loose, lubricate the moving parts, and let you know if any additional air conditioning maintenance is needed.

To schedule your air conditioning maintenance appointment, get in touch with the experts at P.K. Wadsworth.

The need for air conditioning in Cleveland keeps HVAC companies busy servicing units. This brings us into our customers’ homes and backyards, where we often notice cats and dogs are too hot to trot, literally.

Keep Pets Cool and Safe This Summer

Whenever P.K. Wadsworth technicians find a pet in danger, we notify the owners right away. However, it’s worth taking a moment to have a conversation about the effect of heat on beloved pets. According to the Humane Society, pets die every year from heatstroke. While pet owners have good intentions, they don’t always understand the dangers of living with a permanent fur coat.

Signs of pet heatstroke include:

• Heavy, continuous panting
• Difficulty breathing
• Glazed eyes
• Elevated heartbeat
• Dizziness and poor coordination
• Lethargy
• Fever

Here are tips to keep furry friends safe when the thermometer rises:

Walk Pets During the Cooler Parts of the Day

Exercise is important, but the combination of heat, sun and hot concrete on the paws can lead to heatstroke. Only walk your pets during the cooler portions of the day. If concrete or asphalt is too hot for bare, human feet, it’s too hot for paws.

Provide Ample Shade, Airflow and Water

The dog house does not count as a cool spot since it lacks airflow, resulting in an interior temperature that’s hotter than outside. Instead, provide shade and airflow with tree canopies, canvas tarps or covered porches, and for water-savvy dogs, fill up a kiddie pool so they can cool off. Another smart option is Keep Cool Mats; soak them once and they’ll remain cool for up to three days.

And always remember to fill water bowls daily (use two or three in case one is dumped or emptied), and add ice when temperatures are excessive.

Consider a Programmed, Zoned System

Energy-conscious homeowners with indoor pets should consider installing a zoned system with a programmable thermostat. This allows designated areas to have their own temperature, so pets can remain indoors without excessive energy waste.

Contact P.K. Wadsworth Heating & Cooling to ensure household occupants — furry and otherwise — enjoy a cool, comfortable summer.

Are you on the hunt for household energy savings? One simple yet effective strategy that’s often overlooked is changing ceiling fan direction twice a year. All that’s involved is moving the little button on the fan housing that controls which way the blades rotate. Be sure to shut the fan off first, though, to prevent any risk of hand injuries.

Cooling Season Blade Direction

When the blades of a ceiling fan spin in a counter clockwise direction, the wind chill created helps perspiration evaporate from the skin. While this air movement doesn’t lower room temperature, it does make you feel cooler so you can set the thermostat three or four degrees higher and save energy.

Heating Season Fan Direction

The law of physics dictates that heated air produced by the furnace immediately migrates up toward the ceiling of a home. Putting ceiling fans in reverse can push it back down into the living space so you can get the full benefit of every energy dollar spent. That boost in comfort can also let you lower the thermostat setting and use less energy for home heating. To make sure the blades are rotating backward, stand under the fan. You should feel minimal air movement and the blades should generally be spinning clockwise.

Running Ceiling Fans in the Right Direction Brings a Bonus

Keeping ceiling fans spinning in the correct direction for the season offers another big benefit beyond enhanced comfort and savings on heating and cooling bills. Running ceiling fans year-round (but only when rooms are occupied) reduces the workload on HVAC system components, and less wear and tear can help extend the equipment’s useful lifespan.

Switching ceiling fan direction is only one way to control energy costs in your greater Cleveland area home. To learn other effective ways to save energy, contact us at P.K. Wadsworth Heating & Cooling today.

Once escrow closes and you get the keys to your new home, it’s time to evaluate the status of existing energy systems. This is especially true for the HVAC system, which is responsible for about 50 percent of American households’ utility bills due to heating and cooling requirements.

The condition of your home’s HVAC system is integral to overall household energy efficiency, interior comfort and indoor air quality which has a large large bearing on the health of your family.

HVAC Checklist For Your New Home

Work through the following checklist to ensure you’re getting the most from your home’s HVAC and other energy systems.  This also helps to familiarize you with the system and the things that are essential for you know and do to maintain the system adequately.

1. Schedule a professional home energy audit. This one simple step packs a powerful punch. In addition to inspecting your HVAC system, the home energy specialist provides a comprehensive list of the high- and low-performing energy systems in your home, as well as step-by-step instructions on how you can improve them. Homeowners save an average of 5 percent to 30 percent on their utility bills after implementing these recommendations.  It is also common for the specialist to find ways to improve safety, comfort and improve the integrity of your home.
2. Change the filters. Depending on the previous homeowner’s attention to routine maintenance and the length of time the home was on the market, your home’s air filters might be filthy. This results in higher energy bills, compromised indoor air quality and excess wear-and-tear on the HVAC system. Filter replacement is a simple DIY task, and should be done every few months, or as per manufacturer’s instructions.
3. Inspect the ducts. If you live in an older home, broken, leaky or poorly designed ducts can seriously compromise HVAC efficiency. In some cases, you may find that redesigning the ducts will pay for itself in terms of future energy savings.
4. Install programmable thermostats. If your new home has old thermostats, replace them with programmable versions—and consider upgrading to a zoning system. This helps to ensure occupied areas of your home are heated/cooled on schedule.
5. Air Sealing- find the places where the house envelope is leaking and seal them.  The locations are not always obvious and require specialized equipment to identify all of them.
6. Upgrade insulation. Insulation quality is integral to interior comfort and the longevity of your HVAC system. Upgrading insulation in the attic and exterior wall spaces yields instant efficiency—significantly reducing the HVAC’s running time.
7. HVAC System Tune-up.  After all the issues on the audit are addressed, then schedule a comprehensive tune-up on the complete comfort system – both heating and cooling.   It is a good idea to do this when you can tag along with the technician so he can coach on your new system and familiarize you with its ins and outs.

Schedule a routine inspection with P.K.Wadsworth, the Cleveland area’s go-to resource for HVAC maintenance and repairs.