It may be time to open the windows and start enjoying fresh air and warm weather. Is your house ready?
Here are seven items to add to your springtime to-do list that might help your home feel more comfortable and cared for before it gets hot:
- Call a qualified service technician to inspect and maintain your air conditioning system. Maintenance goes a long way toward preventing emergencies and can prolong the life of your equipment. Plus, maintaining your AC improves your energy efficiency.
- While you're outdoors planting and pruning, trim all the bushes and pull all the weeds near your air conditioner's outside condenser unit. Remove any fallen tree limbs, brush off leaves that have collected on or around it, and pick up trash that found its way there as it sat unused all winter. Anything that touches the unit could prevent air from circulating around make it perform less efficiently.
- While you've got your shovel and spade out, consider planting shade trees on the sunny side of your house. As they grow, they'll filter the sun rays that can beat so fiercely on your windows in the summer and make your AC work harder. Just be sure to plant away from any overhead power lines, and call 811 to have underground lines located before digging.
- Use shades, blinds and curtains to help limit heat gain in your home, or use plastic window film to mimic the function of double-pane windows. The films are easy to install, affordable and effective.
- Speaking of windows, clean your windows, inside and out. Newer models are simple to clean because you can tilt them toward the inside of the house so you can reach both sides. Clean windows let more sunlight in, which means you won't have to turn on as many lights.
- Caulk and seal air ducts and leaks to prevent your energy from going out the door. Openings and cracks cause your AC to work that much harder to cool your home. Leaks in air ducts also drive up energy costs. Insulating and sealing ducts will make your home more energy efficient.
- Re-program your thermostat so you aren't heating or cooling an empty home, and you don't have to remember to change the settings when you're away or asleep. If you haven't already invested in a programmable or smart thermostat, now is a great time to install one. It'll typically pay for itself in less than two years with energy savings and, when used correctly, they make your whole home a little more comfortable.