Twice a year
Book a professional tune-up twice a year: the cooling system in spring and the heating system in fall, each before its peak season. A heat pump, which does both jobs, wants both visits. One visit a year is the bare minimum if budget is tight.
Heating and cooling is the most expensive system in most homes to run and to replace, and a tune-up protects both ends of that. A well-maintained system uses less energy for the same comfort, and the visit catches the small problems, a low charge, a clogged drain, a worn part, before they become the failure that strands you in July or January.
The timing is the trick most people miss. Book in spring and fall, before everyone else is calling with an emergency, and you get a cheaper, faster appointment and a system that is ready when the season turns.
How to do it
- Schedule the cooling tune-up in early spring and the heating tune-up in early fall, before contractors get slammed.
- Replace the air filter yourself before the visit, and keep checking it monthly the rest of the year.
- Clear at least two feet around the outdoor unit, removing leaves, debris, and any plants crowding it.
- Expect the technician to clean the evaporator and condenser coils, since dirty coils cut cooling and raise run time.
- Expect them to check the refrigerant charge, because too much or too little wastes energy and wears the system.
- Expect them to tighten electrical connections, check motor voltage and current, and lubricate moving parts.
- Expect them to test the thermostat, the start and shutoff cycle, and the condensate drain, which floods if it clogs.
- For heating, expect them to inspect gas connections, the burner, and the heat exchanger for cracks, then ask for a written summary of what they found.
Common mistakes
- Calling only after something breaks. Contractors are booked solid during heat waves and cold snaps, so you wait longer and pay more.
- Skipping filter changes between visits. A clogged filter erases much of the efficiency a tune-up buys back.
- Assuming a mild climate lets you skip the heating check. The combustion and heat-exchanger inspection is a carbon-monoxide safety check regardless of how much you run the heat.
This is exactly the kind of thing that is easy to know and easy to forget. Adulting can put it on a cadence so it surfaces when it is next due, instead of when something goes wrong. Free to start.
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Questions people ask
- Is twice a year really necessary?
- For a heat pump, yes, because it heats and cools year-round. For a separate furnace and AC, service each one before its season. The spring and fall timing also gets you an appointment before the rush.
- What is the biggest risk of skipping the heating visit?
- A cracked heat exchanger on a gas furnace, which can leak carbon monoxide. That inspection is the main reason not to skip the fall visit even in a warm climate.