Your heat and air system is the most critical component of indoor comfort in your home. Keeping that system in optimum working performance will go a long way to assure your family’s comfort year around. There are several things to consider and several actions you can take to make sure it runs smoothly.

One of the first things to take into consideration is determining what the HSPF (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor) and SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) are. The HSPF is how the heating efficiency factor of heat pumps is gauged while the SEER measures your air conditioning unit’s efficiency. There is also the EER or Energy Efficiency Factor, which tells you exactly how your A/C unit is performing when the outside temperature is exactly 95° F.

Beyond the considerations above, there are 5 simple steps that you can take to optimize the efficiency of your heating and air conditioning units:

• Step 1: Change your air filters regularly – Although this is the simplest step of the 5, it is oftentimes the most neglected and overlooked. Your heating and air conditioning systems will have to work considerably harder when the filters get clogged and dirty.
• Step 2: Exchange your old thermostat for a digital one – Digital thermostats are much more precise than the older standard models. Thermostats are available from very basic models to the sophisticated, programmable units.
• Step 3: Inspect the pipes that drain off any condensed moisture – If the indoor unit is in the attic of your home, you want to check the drain pan and pipes regularly. If the pipes get blocked, water could flow from the attic into your home and do considerable damage.
• Step 4: Make sure that your outdoor unit is clean – Keep the grass around it mowed and debris cleared whenever necessary. Dirt, grass, and leaves are the major obstructions and can choke the cooling fins of your outdoor unit.
• Step 5: Set up a maintenance and service contract – Although you can easily perform some maintenance on your own, the more highly technical operations should be left up to the professional HVAC repair technician. The service tech is trained in performing routine maintenance and all types of repairs.

On a closing note, preventative maintenance not only helps to avoid extremely costly repairs, it also ensures the safety of your home’s occupants.