The later summer can be the worst when it comes to heat and humidity, especially in Florida. It can also be the worst when it comes to air conditioning system performance—a lot of pressure and stress have built up on the AC components in the last few months, and when it gets even hotter, the system may start to lose capacity or even break down.
It doesn’t have to be this way, not when you have a great Gainesville, FL, HVAC contractor who can help you out. We have more than two decades of helping North Central Florida homeowners enjoy the best cooling. Here are ways we can help you with cooling during the risky late days of summer.
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Your thermostat is the part of your air conditioning system that is going to control everything that your system does. This means if something is wrong with your thermostat, it is going to impact your air conditioner’s operation. Likewise, having an updated and effective thermostat will have a positive effect on your comfort.
Florida is notorious for its high humidity, and we can expect to see relative humidity levels over 60% on most days, which is the point where the moisture in the air will have a negative impact on comfort. When you combine relative humidity above 60% with days above 90°F, it can make it difficult to scrape through the day, even with the best and most reliable air conditioning system.
You may not have heard of short-cycling, but you may have noticed it in your house. It’s when your air conditioning system turns on and off more often than normal. Your air conditioner’s cooling cycle is the process of it turning on at a request from the thermostat, running until it registers the house has reached the thermostat setting, then shutting down until the thermostat makes a request again. Most AC cycles last for 15 minutes or more, and if you keep the thermostat at the same setting during the day, the cycles should have a steady pattern.
Your air conditioning system has two fans that are essential for it to work. The fan you’re most used to hearing and feeling is the indoor blower fan. This fan is located at the bottom of the HVAC cabinet, where it pulls air from the return air ducts and then pushes it past the evaporator coil, where it’s cooled, and then into the ventilation system.
You’re staying indoors much more these days. Probably much more than you ever expected or ever wanted. So it’s a good time to talk about indoor air quality—starting with the bad news.
You might see the words drain clogs in the title and think, “Wait, Touchstone isn’t a plumbing company.” True, but we’re air conditioning professionals with a long history of helping people stay cool in Florida weather, and so we know all about a specific type of drain clog: the air conditioning system drain clog.
Air conditioners get a head start on the summer in Florida, so you’ll already have your air conditioner running on a routine schedule during the spring. But what if your air conditioner doesn’t seem to be up to the task? Why does it seem like it isn’t able to do the job it once did? Why is it starting to give you trouble?