As the weather gets hotter, you want to maintain a certain level of cool inside your home. But extreme heat can challenge your air conditioner to keep up. This puts stress on all of the components as they work harder to cool your home. Too much stress can lead to AC component malfunctions.
Even though we’re in the second half of summer, you still want your AC to work at its best. If you need air conditioning repair in West Bloomfield, MI, give us a call.
After all, your AC unit does have capacity limits. We can help to repair any damage that your unit sustained by working extra hard this summer. But you can also be aware of your unit’s limitations and help the AC work smarter and not harder, ultimately extending the life of your unit and preventing damage.
Your AC’s Lowest Temperature Capacity
While every unit is different, the standard home AC unit can safely cool your home about 20°F cooler than the outdoor temperature. If it’s 88°F outside, your indoor temperature can reach 68°F. But if it’s 99°F outside, your unit can only safely reach about 78°F indoors.
Of course, many factors go into this like insulation, air leaks, and the size of the AC unit. But if you’re aware of the outdoor temperature, you can be mindful of setting your thermostat to no more than 20° lower. This ensures that your unit isn’t trying to work past its capacity. To save energy, experts recommend that you don’t set the thermostat lower than 78°F on any given day.
Forcing your AC to cool your home to a lower temperature means that your unit runs longer and harder. It continually tries to reach a temperature that is nearly impossible to maintain given the outside heat. The compressor can wear down, the motor can overheat, and other components can sustain more than the average wear and tear. When you pay attention to the indoor and outdoor air temperatures you can protect your unit while still enjoying a cool indoor temperature.
Understanding AC Limitations
Some units can cool areas more than 20°F. However, these units are forced to use extremely cold air that we really only see used in deep freezers. That type of AC unit wouldn’t work in a home because it would keep your house cooler than you actually want it to be. Those units can cool a deep freezer because the space is much smaller and completely sealed. To cool a home, there would be a lot of energy wasted because of differences in insulation and air leaks around doors and windows.
Contact Charter Home Comfort today to schedule an appointment with our professionals. Old-fashioned values with tech-savvy results.