Is Your AC Ready for Back-to-School Season?

The kids are headed back to school.

The backpacks are by the front door.

No alarm clock is safe as “snooze” buttons are slammed, or the whole clock is launched at the closest wall, a sign that it is about to become everyone’s most despised household appliance. Again.

Meanwhile, your air conditioner can’t sleep at night, as it’s quietly wondering if it can survive even one more Houston afternoon.

With August always in the top two for any “hottest months list in Houston” surveys, at least the end of summer is finally in sight. Your HVAC system has already spent months battling relentless heat, high humidity, and countless hours of nonstop operation, mostly without complaint. That alone is an achievement.

Regardless of whether your air conditioner is five or twenty-five years old, and if it has made it that far without a major issue, reliably keeping your house cool and comfortable, now is the perfect time to treat your HVAC system to a much-needed “spa day”.

Any maintenance service performed at the end of the summer season can help improve efficiency, reduce wear, and, most importantly, reduce the risk of an inconvenient breakdown during Houston’s unpredictable fall and winter weather.

Your Air Conditioner Has Been Working Since Spring

Most Houston area residents see August as the last brutally hot month of the year.

Your air conditioner sees the last mile of a marathon.

Since March, it’s likely been running nearly every day to keep your home comfortable.

Thousands of operating hours have accumulated on motors, capacitors, electrical contacts, fans, and compressors. Every cooling cycle adds a little more wear.

If you’ve kept up with routine maintenance, your system has a much better chance of finishing the season strong. If maintenance has slipped down the priority list, now is an excellent time to right that wrong and ensure your entire HVAC system is operating efficiently and effectively.

Houston Reality Check

As summer starts winding down in the rest of the country, and temperatures and humidity levels start to come down, it seems every year South Texas never manages to get the memo. September still regularly brings afternoon temperatures well into the 90s, and humidity tends to remain high well into October.

In other words…

That vacation your air conditioner had already booked months ago was just canceled due to Houston. It’s not all bad news, though. Because prepping your air conditioning system now helps ensure it’s ready for lingering hot days and sets it up for a smoother transition into heating season.

Give Your Thermostat a New Schedule – A True Money-Saving Feature Almost Nobody Uses

Back-to-school season changes more than your family’s calendar. It changes how and when your house is occupied. Every year, families waste hundreds of dollars on electricity bills to keep their homes cool while everyone is at work or school for most of the day.

If only there was a way to tell your AC system when to turn itself on and off during the day. Not according to the temperature, but according to time.

Just about every residential thermostat sold in the last thirty years has had some form of programmability feature. And it’s stunning to realize that roughly half of homes with a programmable thermostat do not use any of those features, choosing to let the system run as it did all summer.

So, for most of you, the situation is this. Once summer is over, and everyone in your home is at work or returning to school, your house sits empty for 8 hours a day, with the air conditioner running. There is no logical reason to cool an empty home to your preferred temperature while you’re relaxing in the evening.

No one is there to enjoy it. If he could, your dog would turn off the AC because he’s freezing, but without thumbs or the knowledge needed to turn off an air conditioner, Rex needs to find a heavy blanket to get warm.

If you have a programmable or smart thermostat, consider updating the schedule to reflect your family’s new routine.

A good rule of thumb is to let the temperature rise a few degrees while the house is empty, then have the system begin cooling about 30 minutes before everyone gets home. This simple adjustment will reduce unnecessary run cycles that cause wear and tear, and can reduce your cooling expenses by 8% – 15% without sacrificing comfort.

Replace The Air Filter

If you only do one thing before school starts…

Replace the air filter.

Over the course of a Houston summer, your HVAC filter collects dust, pollen, pet dander, and other airborne debris. As it becomes clogged, airflow decreases, forcing your system to work harder while delivering less conditioned air throughout the house.

Perform a “Walk Through” of the Entire House

This will be one of the easiest HVAC-related chores you’ll ever perform.

Walk from room to room and inspect every supply and return vent.

Make sure they aren’t blocked by:

• Backpacks
• Furniture
• Storage bins
• Rugs
• Anything else that mysteriously migrated over the summer

The reason for this check-up of your vents is that blocked vents reduce airflow and can make rooms farther from the AC unit harder to cool efficiently.

Show Your Outdoor Unit Some Love

Your outdoor condenser has spent months sitting in Houston heat while removing enormous amounts of heat and humidity from inside your home.

Take a few minutes to inspect the area around it.

Make sure that any grass clippings, leaves, twigs, and other debris are cleaned up. Trim back shrubs or vegetation so there’s plenty of room for air to circulate around the unit.

Your condenser doesn’t need to look pretty.

It just needs room to breathe.

The One Thing Homeowners Usually Get Wrong

Many homeowners think the best time to schedule HVAC maintenance is when something stops working.

In reality, the best time is when everything still works perfectly.

This is when your HVAC technician has time to thoroughly inspect the entire system, identifying worn electrical components, refrigerant issues, airflow restrictions, or developing problems before they leave you sweating through an unexpected breakdown.

Maintenance isn’t just about fixing problems.

It’s about preventing them.

Finish Summer Strong

It may not seem like much, but a clean filter, an updated thermostat schedule, a quick outdoor inspection, and a professional tune-up can help your system finish the hottest part of the year efficiently while preparing it for the months ahead.

Get Your HVAC System Running Like it Did When it Was New

If it’s been a while since your HVAC system was professionally inspected and maintained, the licensed technicians at Nick’s Air Conditioning are available to ensure everything is operating safely and efficiently before the seasons change.

Free estimates are available for system replacements; every repair is backed by our 90-day warranty. Call Nick’s today at (713) 913-3577 for more information or to schedule your service.

Frequently Asked Questions