The Effects of Not Changing Your AC Filters Regularly

Changing your AC filters is an important part of keeping your HVAC equipment in good shape, but it’s easy to forget to do it. What happens if you don’t replace your AC filters regularly? Learn more about how filters that are dirty or worn can affect your Broken Arrow home.

Poor Indoor Air Quality

Air filters remove pollen, dust, and other harmful particles from your home’s indoor air. However, they need to be clean in order to do this effectively. When you have dirty filters, they won’t be able to trap these particles and stop them from getting into various parts of your home through your vents. This results in lower indoor air quality (IAQ) in your home.

Higher Energy Bills

Clean filters help ensure that your HVAC system has good airflow and runs as efficiently as possible. When these filters become dirty, this forces your AC to run more often and work harder to cool your home. Since it’s using more energy, this can cause your electric bills to increase significantly.

HVAC Damage

Airflow problems can lead to serious damage to your HVAC system. Keep in mind that clogged or dirty filters can result in damage to many parts of your HVAC equipment, resulting in costly repairs. Clean filters help prevent damage and excessive wear and tear.

Shorter HVAC Life Span

Damage from dirty air filters can shorten the life span of your equipment. This means you’ll need to replace the whole system sooner than expected. Changing filters regularly helps ensure that your HVAC system reaches its normal life span.

When to Change Your AC Filters

How often should you change filters to prevent problems in your home? You should check them once a month to see if they’re clogged or dirty. Replace them with new filters if needed. At a minimum, you should plan to replace your filters every few months. However, you might need to do this more often if you have pets or if anyone in your home smokes.

If you need HVAC maintenance or recommendations for AC filters, please contact Air Assurance. Our HVAC team in Broken Arrow can help ensure that your equipment runs efficiently.

How You Should Handle a Dripping AC Inside Your Home

A dripping AC can be a source of damage in your home. A central air conditioner naturally produces condensation as it cools the air. In fact, a typical central unit may generate as much as 20 gallons of condensate per day in hot, humid weather. A dripping air conditioner may result from problems in the air conditioner’s condensation drainage. Another potential leakage issue can result from ice formation on the AC evaporator coil. Here are two scenarios that might result in a dripping AC.  

Overflowing Drain Pan

• How it works. Below the evaporator coil inside the AC's indoor air handler, a drain pan collects condensation generated when the system airflow passes through the evaporator. The pan connects to a condensate drain tube that carries water into the household drain system.  

• What goes wrong. Algae or mold growth inside the drain pan may block the drain tube. As the air conditioner continues to generate condensation, the pan repeatedly overflows, and water damage occurs to flooring or walls inside the home.  

• Now what? Service by a certified HVAC technician includes an inspection of condensate drainage components. If the drain line is clogged by mold or algae, the line is opened. The pan is cleaned and fungicide pills are placed in the pan to prevent recurrence. If the leakage from a dripping AC is due to a crack in the pan, a new pan will be installed.

Coil Icing

• How it works. The cold evaporator coil condenses humidity from system airflow passing through the coil. Dry airflow cools more effectively and efficiently.

• What goes wrong. If the AC refrigerant charge is low, the evaporator-coil temperature drops into the freezing range. Condensation turns into layers of ice that extends beyond the drip pan below. Each time the system cycles off, ice melts, and water dripping from the coil may damage the surrounding structure.

• Now what? An HVAC technician can track down the source of low refrigerant (usually a leak), make the repair, and then restore the refrigerant charge to the proper level.  

For more information about how to handle a dripping AC, contact the cooling pros at Air Assurance.

What Is an Important Refrigerant Level for Your AC Unit?

The refrigerant in your air conditioner is the fluid that absorbs heat from your home's air and moves it outside, leaving your Broken Arrow home feeling cool and comfortable. Your air conditioner can't keep your house cool without refrigerant. Incorrect refrigerant levels can affect your AC's cooling ability and lead to costly repairs. Read on to learn more about the correct refrigerant levels.

What's the Right Refrigerant Level for Your AC System?

Refrigerant charge is also used to describe your system's refrigerant levels. An undercharged AC unit has too little refrigerant, whereas an overcharged unit has excessive refrigerant. A properly charged AC system will run effectively and efficiently. An overcharge or undercharge can lower your system's cooling capacity, efficiency, and life.

HVAC technicians have tools that they use to assess your unit and determine its level of refrigerant. If the numbers that a technician gets aren't within the appropriate range, your AC refrigerant levels are likely to be low.

AC systems don't use up refrigerant. If your air conditioner has low levels and needs recharging, then improper charging during installation or a leak in the system is to blame. The evaporator coil can become too cold when the refrigerant isn't enough. Ice can form on it and impede heat absorption from your home's air. Consequently, your system is forced to work harder, increasing energy costs. Your compressor could also overheat or suffer damage.

Besides seeing ice on the evaporator coils, other signs that point to your AC unit running low on refrigerant include:

• Hissing sounds

• Air conditioner isn't cooling properly

• Compressor running more often than usual

• Higher energy bills

What to Do When You Suspect Refrigerant Levels Are Incorrect

If you suspect your AC unit has low levels of refrigerant, you shouldn't try to recharge the unit yourself. Refrigerants are dangerous and should only be handled by certified technicians. HVAC professionals use a special machine to charge AC units with refrigerant. What's more, recharging the unit on your own will most likely result in the loss of your warranty.

It's best to contact an HVAC professional if you notice any signs of low refrigerant.

Keeping up with routine HVAC maintenance will help you avoid problems with refrigerant levels. If you need AC repair or maintenance, contact us at Air Assurance, the leading provider of HVAC services in the Broken Arrow area.

What to Do If You Have a Dripping AC Inside Your Home

An air conditioner leaking water could be a sign of a serious problem that you should address promptly. Delaying fixing a dripping AC could result in costly damage to your ceiling, furnishings, floor, and walls, and it may even leave you needing to buy a new AC unit. The fixes required depend on the specific cause of the dripping AC unit. Keep reading to find out what you can do to stop an AC water leak.

Replace Your Air Filters

Clogged air filters can prevent proper airflow from reaching your evaporator coils. The coils freeze up when they get too cold. Water may leak inside your home when the ice covering the coils starts thawing. Changing your air filters should solve the problem.

If changing your filters doesn't fix the problem, your dripping AC unit may have low refrigerant levels. Low refrigerant can also cause the evaporator coils to get too cold, leading to ice formation. Handling refrigerant is dangerous and not a DIY project, so you'll need an HVAC professional to fix the problem.

Clean Your Drain Line

The condensation that your air conditioner collects contains dirt and debris. When your condensate drain line isn't clean, the dirt and debris can accumulate and clog the line, causing it to overflow. To clean the drain line, turn off your unit, locate the drain line, and scrub it with a long wire brush. Special pumps or vacuums may be needed for severe clogs.

Replace the Drain Pan

A cracked or rusted drain pan can make your air conditioner leak water. You can seal a cracked pan by first cleaning it and then patching the cracks with a waterproof sealant. However, replacement is the best solution for cracked or rusted drain pans. The new drain pan should fit your AC unit perfectly.

Have the Drain Line Attached Properly

The drain line could become disconnected due to poor AC installation. You'll need to schedule a professional repair to prevent this problem from recurring.

You can avoid a dripping AC unit with high-quality installation and regular maintenance. If you need skilled installation, repair, or maintenance services for all types of heating and AC equipment in the Broken Arrow area, contact us at Air Assurance.