"We recommend cleaning or replacing your filter once a month and also cleaning your drain line. The drain line is a little pipe that allows water to run outside from your air handler. It is usually located behind or near your air filter. You can just drop a little line cleaner in there. I don't recommend bleach because you have to make sure that you flush it out. If undiluted bleach sits in the line it may eat away at the lining. They sell a special cleaner for the condensation line and it will keep the drain open and flowing well."
The Department of Energy recommends having your air conditioning system serviced twice a year no matter how old it is. These inspections include a technician cleaning the coils and checking the safety equipment. A proper maintenance visit should take at least an hour or more for a technician to clean the system properly. Floridia shared this story as an example of how important proper maintenance of your heating and cooling system is: "I had a couple last year whose system caught on fire because they never had it cleaned. Their heating elements had lots of dust built up on them and they caught on fire when the husband was checking the emergency heat strips."
Proper maintenance is also important to fulfilling your warranty guidelines. Sometimes certain things in the warranty will not be covered unless you can prove the maintenance visits have been done in accordance with the policy. Floridia recaps, "Keep the filter clean, clean the condensation line, and have the proper maintenance inspections done. There are 17 checkpoints on a plain electric system and you should make sure your technician does all 17. On a gas burning system, there are 19 different things that we do. A proper maintenance should be done to your system every six months."
Inside maintenance of your heating and cooling system includes vacuuming the surface of your vents, registers, and return air ducts. A very dirty duct system may require a professional duct cleaning, which will also improve the air quality in your home. Do-it-yourselfers can use a vacuum cleaner with a soft brush attachment to clean the inside of their outdoor heating or cooling cabinet but should take care to do plenty of research, avoid changing the alignment of the coils, and make sure that all warranty requirements are met.
