Daylight Savings Time ends Sunday. Northerners usually greet the news with a groan, thinking early darkness, cooler temperatures, letting go of summer’s casual lifestyle.
In the South we have a few other issues. Such as?
It’s time to turn off the air conditioner — or at least, put it on stand-by. Before you turn it off and forget about it, remember that your AC has served you well through those dog days between June and September, and show it a little TLC— or TAC, if you will.
For starters, call your service guy to schedule maintenance. After all, it’s one of the most expensive appliances in your home, right? You wouldn’t drive your car for years without an oil change, right? So why do some people neglect the AC (as our contractor friends can tell you so many do). You don’t have a service guy? Check our database for someone in your neighborhood: http://www.acdoctor.com/find-contractor/.
At a minimum, your service guy should change the filter and clean the ductwork, all the way from the place where air enters the system, through the blower, coil & heat exchange, to the vents. Aside from the economic savings of a clean-running system, you will also avoid health issues and poor indoor air quality that can result from a dirty AC.
After you’ve scheduled that maintenance, here are a few other issues that you might want to attend in your puttering around (in case you don’t know what to do with yourself on a beautiful October weekend).
* Check your gutters for debris and dead leaves.
* Check windows & doors for weather stripping. Older homes usually need to have this replaced every few years.
* If you have a fireplace, have the chimney cleaned by a certified sweep.
* Clean your ceiling fan, and set it on counter-clockwise to push warm air down from the ceiling.
* Test & change the batteries in your smoke and carbon dioxide detectors. (You might save yourself from a midnight wake-up BEEP!
* If you have a humidifier, clean out the holding tank. This is prime breeding ground for mold.
* Clear the weeds & dead leaves away from the outside unit of your air conditioning system.
* Store your outdoor furniture and barbecue.
* Now sit back with a cold drink and savor the coming of winter.