You do not need us telling you just how brutal the heat of summer has been so far this year. What you may need reminding of, though, is the fact that you absolutely cannot afford to ignore any signs of trouble with your home cooling system. No, there is no problem with your AC that is “minor” enough to ignore. By ignoring any such problems, you are only making it much more likely that you will encounter more serious, potentially more costly and damaging problems down the road.

Now, the best way to prevent damage to your system due to problems with its operation is to prevent those problems altogether, which is why you schedule routine AC maintenance in Corona, CA (we hope). Not all problems can really be avoided, though, so the next step in protecting your air conditioner is to learn how to recognize the warning signs that you have problems early on. We are here to help you learn to do so.

Keep an Eye on Your Bills

When you live in as hot a place as Corona, you can expect your air conditioner to add some heft to your energy costs. Yes, there are many great and efficient air conditioning systems on the market today, but you are not going to be cooling your home for free. If you start to notice that your energy bills are getting higher than usual, though, you may want to take your AC’s operating condition under consideration.

An air conditioner that is not functioning properly simply will not function as efficiently as possible. Even those problems that may seem “minor” like worn belts or loose fittings can reduce overall energy efficiency. More serious issues, like refrigerant leaks, can negatively affect energy efficiency even further. Speaking of which —

Keep an Eye Out for Ice

Whoa, you may think upon discovering ice on your air conditioning system, the old horse is really cranking today! Unfortunately, an air conditioner that is developing ice is not one that is functioning too well — in fact, it is not functioning properly at all. Refrigerant leaks are among the most damaging of all AC problems that you could encounter, and could account for the development of ice on the system. Immediate repairs are necessary.

You could also just have a very dirty air filter that needs to be changed, though, or perhaps the evaporator coil itself is dirty. The tricky thing about AC problems is that there are so many different potential causes. Hiring a professional means not only quality repairs, but a correct diagnosis to begin with.

Keep Your Ears Open, Too

Feeling warm air blowing from the system is an obvious sign of trouble, and seeing ice on it is definitely an anomaly. Make sure that you keep your ears open too, though. Get all of your senses involved if you really want to protect your air conditioning system.

Strange noises may not give you too much cause for concern, as long as your system is still up and running — they should, though. Screeching, clanging, grinding — any noises that are out of the ordinary should definitely be taken seriously and reported to your AC repair technician as soon as possible.

Goettl Air Conditioning is here for your AC service needs.