Here in Arizona with our triple-digit summers, our home air conditioners and air filters are regularly working overtime. Which means we need to pay close attention to how often we’re changing our air filters. Truth is, our systems continue to work into the winter when those cold days finally arrive and we put our furnaces and heat pumps to work. We also live in a desert, so our homes are constantly filling with dust from outside no matter what the season, keeping our units working overtime. Because our systems are busy year-round, it’s important to change your home air filter every month, especially when you live in a place like Arizona.
5 Benefits of Regularly Changing Your Home Air Filters Include:
Extending the life of your system. The leading cause of your heating and air conditioning system breaking down is because of a dirty filter. When the dirt builds up, air can’t flow or has a hard time flowing. Or, the system could overheat. The motor has to work harder and can ultimately die.- When your fan motor is working harder due to air clogged in the filter, more energy is being used. The U.S. Department of Energy says the average household energy bill is $2,200 a year. Many of us in Arizona end up paying more than that to stay cool in the summer. When air conditioning and heating account for so much, many of us like to do anything we can to bring our energy costs down. Changing your air filter every month or so will help and can provide savings from 5 to 15 percent.
- Keeping the air quality in your home safe. If anyone in your family suffers from allergies or asthma, dirty air filters can degenerate the air quality and exacerbate allergy and asthma symptoms. Swapping out your filter removes much of the dust and pollen particles and ensures your air quality doesn’t plummet.
- When dirty air is clogging up your filter, that means it’s going to potentially pollute your entire heating and cooling system. That could require additional service and repairs that wouldn’t have been needed had the filter been changed on schedule.
- A clean peace of mind. Replacing your air filter is an easy, inexpensive step to take to save money, extend the life of your system, and not reduce your indoor air quality. It also decreases the amount of energy your family uses.
The U.S. Department of Energy recommends that you check filters once per month, especially during periods of heavy use, such as winter and summer.
Replacing your air filter is an easy process and doesn’t require the service of an HVAC company. We recommend changing it out every month, filters are fairly inexpensive so this should be a top priority to keeping your home and family healthy and safe.
Put a reminder on your calendar or smart phone to check your filter and keep a supply on hand so you have no excuse to say “I’ll get to it later.” Also, buy more than one pack of filters the next time you go shopping. Have 2 or 3 packs in the house so you don’t have to worry about not having a replacement. You know you’re going to need to replace your home’s air filter monthly so stock up! Make it easy for yourself and your energy bill, your family, and your heating and cooling system will thank you.
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If you have any questions about replacing your air filter or about repair or service for your heating unit or air conditioner, call your friends at Scottsdale Air Heating and Cooling, a professional Arizona HVAC company, at (480) 359-7141.
