Myth 1: Hire your air conditioner technician through Craigslist.
The interweb has provided us with a variety of choices to go to find an AC service technician, but be careful because not all are comparable. While the Better Business Bureau shows you information on whether a contractor is accredited based on their company history and practices, other web pages are accessible to anyone who requests to post an ad. For example, Craigslist allows anyone to post an ad providing their services, regardless of whether or not they’re really qualified, licensed and bonded, or have the actual training and experience.
If you decide on a business or individual without getting to identify their qualifications and skill set, it may end up costing you more in the long run. If the technician doesn’t know how to properly repair your specific air conditioner, you may end up needing another, more experienced company to fix their mistakes and it could end up costing you multiple Trip Charges.
Myth 2: Choosing a small business is better.
Contracting with small businesses can be great for some small fixes – it’s good for the local business, great for the economy, and likely even great for your pocket book. But be careful: small businesses or one-person companies could leave you in a lurch. If something bad happens, they may simply disappear and not be there to fix it, or they may not have the manpower to get to you quickly, which is a problem if your air conditioning system goes out in the extreme temperatures of summer.
Paying a little bit more for a sizable, more established and reliable company can come with advantages that help offer you more confidence, including a one-year satisfaction guarantee, quality workmanship, a large certified work force that gives you service 24/7/365, and the peace of mind that they’ll be a call away in the future if you ever need them again.
Myth 3: It’s fine to use any type of refrigerant in your air conditioner.
With the government discontinuing the making of R-22, many homeowners are seeing the cost of refilling their AC system’s refrigerant rising. It may sound like a simple fix to just substitute a different and less expensive refrigerant, but if an air conditioner service technician recommends this, you likely want to find a second opinion.
Manufacturers detail the exact refrigerant the system is developed for, and previous to 2010, it was typically R-22. Regardless of the extreme decrease of the production of R-22, those air conditioners are still designed for it, and using a different refrigerant may not only cause damage to your air conditioning equipment, it could invalidate your warranty. An invalidated warranty may cost you way more in future parts due to likely damage.
Myth 4: You don’t need routine air conditioning maintenance.
Most people who aren’t having trouble with their air conditioner may believe they don’t really need yearly maintenance. It’s operating fine, so why spend the money on a tune-up, right? Except for the fact that an annual AC tune- up is priced around $79 while repairs will set you back around $500. Additionally, most manufacturers instruct you to receive annual maintenance to keep your warranty valid, so disregarding your routine tune-up could cost you your warranty, resulting in a huge payout if your air conditioner decides to go out on the hottest day of the season.
Myth 5: Learning about the business isn’t valuable.
It’s critical to check that you do your research before deciding on an air conditioning service business, especially if you feel a particular company is pushing you. As we said in Myth #1, some sites don’t demand a person to be qualified to place an ad for their services. It’s important to know what you’re getting into so you don’t have to worry about paying for the same service multiple times.
Social media reviews, references from family, and an a high accreditation grade with the Better Business Bureau will all confirm the type of company you will be offering your business to and help you choose if they are best for you. Google+, Angie’s List, and the BBB are all great websites to start your research process. Remember, don’t be scared to ask for previous customer testimonials. You may have to pay a pretty penny to your AC technician, so invest the time and research to ensure they are the best company for you.
Myth 6: It will cost more to turn your thermostat up while you’re away from home.
Ultimately, it will actually cost you more to leave the thermostat at a cooler temperature throughout the day than to bump it up 10 degrees while you are gone. It usually will not require an outrageous amount of additional energy to cool your home once you arrive, depending on variables of the home.
A programmable thermostat lets the temperature to be adjusted from a tablet or phone so you can actually adjust the temperature lower before returning home, so your home is nice and comfy when you enter. This saves you energy throughout the day, as well as saving you money on your cooling bills.
Myth 7: Constantly running ceiling fans will help keep your home cool.
Fans help keep you cool, they don’t actually decrease the temperature of the home by themselves. In fact, fans (similar to refrigerators) actually increase the temperature in your home. The motor that is forcing your fan to operate creates heat, which can put heat in the air in the home. A good ceiling fan does help level the temperature of your room and may help to cool air by circulating, but if nobody is beneath the fan to feel cool, all it’s doing is wasting energy and money, especially if the AC is already working. So keep ceiling fans off when no one is in the room and additional air circulation is not needed.
Myth 8: Where the thermostat is installed doesn’t matter.
Thermostats use the temperature near it to decide whether it needs to activate the air conditioner to cool your home. Putting a thermostat in your bedroom will only help ensure that bedroom lowers to the temperature that the thermostat is adjusted to. Once that bedroom is cooled, the AC will shut off and the remaining floor or home could be a lot warmer. If the thermostat is placed near a warm window or an appliance, it could continuously determine the temperature is much higher than the home truly is and constantly run your air conditioner, raising your energy bills.
Myth 9: Lowering your thermostat way low will help it cool more quickly.
Decreasing your air by too much may only make your AC work longer, it won’t get cooler any faster. If your thermostat is set to 77, but you really feel better at 75, then put it at 75 and it will kick on until it cools to that temperature. Decreasing the thermostat to 73 won’t make it cool to 75 any faster, and it will make your system run longer, costing you money and energy.
Myth 10: It’s ok to change your air filter once every twelve months.
Depending on the health conditions of the residents of the home, and the style of air filter you utilize for your air conditioning system, your air filter might need to be changed as often as every four weeks. Failure to change the air filter often enough not only causes your air conditioner to work harder and lower efficiency, it could also aggravate respiratory conditions like common allergy symptoms.
Call A1 Chesney Service Experts today for more information about your AC or to set-up your complimentary in-home consultation.