The Bad Habits That Will Ruin Your Air Conditioner

Jun 21, 2023 | Air Conditioning Repair Service

Many people make incorrect assumptions regarding the way the air conditioner operates.

Understandably, we don’t expect every person to be an HVAC contractor. Some myths persist and lead to bad habits. These bad air conditioning habits are not only harmful but also expensive.

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Keep these air conditioner tips in mind as we enter the scorching months of summer!

Bad Habit #1: Close vents in unoccupied rooms

You may have a room or two in your house that you rarely use, like a spare bedroom. You may be tempted to close the HVAC registers of these rooms to avoid heating or cooling them with the rest of your home. This seems logical to many people.

Keep your HVAC vents open even if you are not using the room!

This practice can actually harm your HVAC equipment. This is due to air pressure. Imagine trying to breathe through a normal drink straw. No matter how much you blow, the straw can only handle so much at once. Your duct system was designed to handle only a certain amount of air. Closing one of your registers will increase the air pressure within your duct system, which is hard on your AC blower fan and evaporator coils. This can cause uneven temperature control in your home, causing hot and cold areas. You’ll spend more on energy, and your AC will wear out faster if all your air vents are open.

The second bad habit is blocking floor vents with furniture

Are your registers on the floor or on the walls of your house? Air ducts commonly run beneath the floor of traditional homes, mobile homes, and manufactured homes. These vents can be located directly where you plan to place furniture, such as a bookcase or sofa.

A bad idea is to block air return vents!

Blocking a vent may not seem a big issue, significantly if the legs of a piece of furniture are elevated so that the airflow is not completely blocked. Just because a vent hasn’t been completely blocked doesn’t mean that your HVAC system is safe. By blocking vents, you prevent treated air from reaching the home efficiently. This means that your HVAC system will have to work harder and longer. A blockage can still increase air pressure in your air ducts. This will cause the same damage as closing vents to unused rooms.

Bad Habit #3: Setting your thermostat to a low temperature to speed up cooling

You may have a pretty standard summer routine when getting into your car. You open the doors, switch on the air conditioner and turn the temperature down all the way. Then you open all the vents. The air conditioner will start working faster and the heat in your car will be more manageable. This same routine is often thought to work in the home but does not.

The fan speed is the main difference between your home air conditioner and your vehicle’s climate control system. The cooling system of a car has fans that have multiple speeds. Usually, there are four, five, or six. You can choose the speed at which the cooled air enters the car. However, the fan of a typical HVAC system in a home only has one speed. This means that the air is pushed at merely one rate. The air conditioner in your home does not cool the air to a certain temperature. It cools it as much as possible. The lower the AC setting, the slower your home will cool down.

The system shuts down when the cooled air reaches the desired temperature. Determining the ideal temperature for your home is more effective than lowering the temperature several degrees. Setting your AC to a low temperature that causes it to run continuously without being able reach the desired temperature will increase wear on your system and waste money.

Are you ready for summer heat?

The other half of the battle is maintenance. Having your air conditioner serviced by a professional air conditioning contractor in Knoxville TN at least once a year is important to get the best performance from it and ensure its longevity.