Believe it or not, the calendar says that summer has finally arrived; June 20th is the official day. Whether Mother Nature received the memo or not, it’s time to start checking off your list of to-do’s and get ready for the next few hot months. Your lawnmower is gassed, your grill cleaned and ready for some good ol’ Wisconsin brats, and your patio table is set and ready for your next summer party. But are you forgetting something? Some sunny Monday you may arrive at work to an 80-degree sweltering facility, and the blasting heat becomes a harsh reminder that preventative maintenance fell off your summer checklist.
AVOID THE INEVITABLE EMERGENCY
You already know that preventative maintenance is good for your car, but have you considered ensuring your HVAC runs at the same efficiencies? Conducting preventative maintenance provides an opportunity to:
- Clean systems and coils
- Ensure belts are at the right tension
- Confirm fans and filters are in clean working order
- Check to be sure refrigerant charge is optimal
Doing this type of regular maintenance ultimately:
- Extends the life of your equipment
- Provides energy efficiencies
- Prevents you from making the “emergency” service call due to a system that has failed.
In other words, if you aren’t doing maintenance… you are dodging a bullet.
AVOID THE MELTDOWN
Summer brings with it some unique challenges that can wreak havoc on any mechanical cooling system. The heat of summer is great for a tan, but not so great for your HVAC unit. The heat causes your system to work even harder than usual to cool the air to ensure your facility inside stays comfortable and your products and processing can proceed at optimal capacity. The heat itself can be taxing on a system.
AVOID EQUIPMENT STRESS
Cottonwood and pollens throw another curveball at the efficiency of your system. Not only do they make you sneeze, but those and other airborne elements are pulled through the coils of your system preventing effective cooling and causing harm to your system’s components and their function. Cottonwood wraps around your coils and actually acts like a sweater causing your coils to be dirty and prevent the proper heat rejection. This taxes your whole system and everything works harder to fight the hot temperatures. When everything is running harder, the pressures run higher and units run longer to try to cool, putting the system at risk of damage or even failure.
GET WHAT YOU PAID FOR
Imagine you have a 5-ton air conditioner, if it’s half plugged, you may be getting only 3 tons of cooling… and you can imagine what operating at half capacity does to your system (and your energy bill). Finding a Preventative Maintenance provider is a huge step toward ensuring optimal performance of your system and facility. A provider can be the eyes and ears of your system to ensure potential problems are identified and corrected well before they cause discomfort, inefficiencies, delays, downtime, or full system failure.
Having a good preventative maintenance plan in place will give your system the best chance to keep you cool even when the temperatures are not. So, are you REALLY ready for summer?
