While your air conditioner is created to withstand the elements, including precipitation and wind damage, occasionally you need to call your air conditioning repair technician to inspect likely damage. If your air conditioning unit sits in standing water, due to storms or other unexpected issues, it can cause severe damage to the moving parts and electrical components. The water usually has to reach about 15 inches in depth to affect your air conditioner, but if there has been any flooding period, call Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning for an AC inspection as soon as possible.
If heavy showers or flooding caused your air conditioning unit to sit in standing water, there are a couple of things we recommend doing to avoid more damage or dangerous conditions:
- Turn off all the electrical switches for your AC system. If you are not comfortable doing this, you can call your AC maintenance technician to help help you complete the process.
- Allow your air conditioner to dry out. Get rid of any standing water if possible and safely clear any debris from the surrounding area.
- Leave your AC system off until a professional air conditioner inspection has been completed. Call Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning and ensure your equipment will work safely and effectively with a full air conditioning system safety inspection.
REMEMBER: Do not cover your outdoor HVAC systems with a tarp. This may actually cause more problems, including not allowing the system to air out properly and remove moisture, potentially causing rust or other damage.
In addition to April showers, spring escorts in hail storms, also. Each year thousands of commercial and residential air conditioning systems are harmed by hail. While you can probably see obvious damage from the outside, you may not realize that the damage inside the air conditioner may be causing restricted air flow, obstructing the performance of the system. Sometimes you can fix the air conditioning system more easily, by combing the fins or replacing the coil, but an insurance company’s claim breakdown showed that around 10% of air conditioners damaged by hail had to be fully replaced.
Strong winds tend to accompany storms and while your air conditioning unit probably won’t get wind damage, other objects picked up by the wind, like bushes, trash cans, or children’s outdoor toys, can be thrown, damaging your air conditioning unit.
For a full AC inspection and safety check, call Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning today and we’ll make sure your air conditioning unit is working safely and efficiently. Help keep your home safe during storm season and make sure to follow these guidelines if your area is under a serious storm warning.