Wagga Wagga is known for its scorching summers and frosty winters. These extreme weather changes multiple times a year, can really take a toll on our homes air conditioning systems, whether it be reverse cycle air conditioning or evaporative cooling. As reverse cycle air conditioning has many benefits, especially that it can both heat and cool your home – evaporative coolers tend to sit dormant throughout the colder months, and require more care and attention. 

Why is it important to clean your filters?

As our summers can be so hot, our air conditioning systems need to work harder in order to keep ourselves cool and comfortable, which means an increase in usage – therefore an increase in build up of dust, debris and in some cases, mould. Running the air conditioner for months at a time (during the warmer period) it inevitably becomes a necessity to get your unit serviced every twelve months. Removing this build up of debris can not only stop dust and other unwanted particles getting cycled throughout your home, but it can actually improve the efficiency of the cooling and reduce running costs. Once cleaned, the lack of built up debris means your system will not have to work as hard as it did before to keep you cool.

Ways to maintain your AC

These are a few things you can do to either prepare your air conditioner for summer, or to make it easier for next year. Here are some maintenance tips you can use: 

• Cleaning or changing the air filters in your system every couple of months can make a world of difference. Accessing the filter should be fairly straightforward and outlined in your manufacturer’s manual. Once you have gained access to the air filter, you can use a brush, dry cloth or vacuum (or even a good shake!) to get any build up of lint and dirt. If your filter is very dirty and grimy, rinsing it in warm soapy water can do the trick, just make sure the filter is nice and dry before reinstalling them. If there is wear and tear that may impact the efficiency of your cooler, then it may need replacing – which you can use the manufacturers manual to determine what you may need.
• Running the air conditioner on fan-only mode once a month can help get rid of any mould or dust building up. Humidity and evaporation can cause build up, so a dry fan every now and then can help clear this up, or keep things under control.
• In order to tell if your air conditioner may need attention sooner rather than later, you can test that the thermostat is accurately displaying the room’s temperature. Running your air conditioner for about 30 minutes to an hour, you can determine the accuracy of the display. If your air conditioner is not reaching the desired temperature, it may be due to a leak or tear in the ducts, poor insulation or that the filter might need changing. Getting your system serviced can help diagnose this issue.
• Ensuring that your home is properly insulated and not allowing cool air to escape. Weather strips around doors and windows wearing out can increase the amount of air you lose, as well as cracked windows, open doors and tears in the ducts. Allowing so much air to escape forces the air conditioner to work harder to cool the home, which means more dust build up, bigger bills and a warmer home.

Ensuring that your AC is safe to operate

Running an air conditioner with a dirty or damaged filter, not only affects the efficiency of the cooling, but can increase allergy symptoms, and the possibility of getting sick. Dust particles getting spread throughout the house can impact those with Asthma, and mould spores can impact the health of you and your family causing you to potentially be sick more often and make you extremely uncomfortable. 

Servicing your air conditioner is an unquestionable necessity right before summer. As well as taking on board the above maintenance tips, organising a professional to service your cooling system is within your best interest. Contact a local business today to book a service, or if an existing tenant or landlord, contact PRD’s property management team to organise maintenance for your home.