When summer is here and the days are hot, you rely on your air conditioner pretty heavily to maintain your home’s comfort. With so much riding on your air conditioner, it is important to know what kinds of HVAC factors affect home comfort and what you can do to keep your HVAC system working well all summer long.
In many ways, keeping up home comfort in the summer is about the proper HVAC use and maintenance that is a good idea all year round – it is just a lot more noticeable when your AC breaks down on an especially hot St. Louis day! So, it is important to work with your heating & air conditioning team to make sure your HVAC system is up to date on maintenance and well cleaned. From there, here are a few things to keep in mind.
How Humidity Impacts Home Comfort
One of the biggest problems with maintaining your home’s comfort in the summer is the presence of increased humidity. Humidity makes you feel hotter than you are, so even with the AC blasting, it might still be difficult for you to cool off. It is tougher for your AC to cool off too, and this can affect home comfort quite severely. Some causes of high humidity include ceiling or plumbing leaks, poor exhaust ventilation, and even things like cooking or showering. The more humidity you put into the air, the harder your AC has to work to maintain home comfort. One way to get around this is by installing a dehumidifier in your HVAC system. You can find all sorts of dehumidifiers for different needs.
Humidity can also create issues with temperature control, causing inaccurate readings on your thermostat or issues with cooling. This is not the only potential culprit though when it comes to insufficient or uneven cooling. A temperature control issue could also be caused by leaking refrigerant, leaking or blocked ducts, or a dirty air filter. It is also important to make sure you have the right size AC unit for your home as improper sizing can also affect your air conditioner’s ability to maintain the right temperature.
Air Quality & Your Home Comfort
One aspect of home comfort we do not consider as often as we should is the role that indoor air pollution can play in health and comfort. Indoor air pollution, from dust, mold, cleaning chemicals, and more, can aggravate issues like asthma or allergies. No one wants to be coughing and sneezing all through the summer, so making sure your HVAC system is not causing air quality issues is an important part of ensuring comfort in your home.
As you use your AC more heavily during the summer, any air quality issues will be exacerbated. Keeping air filters clean by changing them often, and even opting for a higher-rated filter, can keep you healthy and comfortable in the summer months.
Find Out More About Maintaining a Comfortable Home
To learn more about air filters, purification systems, and how to maintain home comfort this summer, get in touch with Galmiche & Sons, your St. Louis heating & air conditioning professionals, today.
