Is Your AC Causing Your Allergies?

If you’re lucky enough to live in Jacksonville, you get to enjoy beautiful, sunny weather almost year- round. But with all that lovely Florida sunshine comes an abundance of pollen and seasonal allergies.

If your AC isn’t properly maintained, it can make your seasonal allergies even worse. Not to mention, your AC can exacerbate any indoor allergens that may be in your home. Below we’ve listed ways to make sure your AC isn’t working against you and creating allergy problems.

USE AIR FILTERS TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

Air filters are there for a reason. But it’s easy to forget something you can’t see, which leads to dirty air filters and dirty air. If your air filters are not regularly cleaned or replaced every 1-3 months, they lose their intended benefit of trapping allergens and instead become a problem for your AC and the quality of air in your home. Dirty filters spread allergens around your home and restrict airflow, which means it will take longer for your AC to reach a desired temperature, leading to more energy consumption and higher power bills. Fortunately, it’s much cheaper to replace to an air filter than buy a new air conditioner.

We recommend a HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) certified air filter to help keep your air free of pollen, pollutants and indoor allergens, such as mold spores, pet dander and dust mites. Exposure to any of these can lead to allergies and sinus problems. A highly graded HEPA filter can trap smaller particles than standard air filters, which will improve the quality of air and reduce the chance of allergic reactions. The better the filter, the longer it will last, but even the best filters should be replaced every three months.

KEEP YOUR AC UNIT CLEAN

Your air conditioner’s evaporator coil will collect dust and dirt over time, which can reduce the quality of air in your home and cause allergies. Clean air filters will help prevent the evaporator coil from getting dirty, but eventually they will begin to soil.

Not only can a dirty evaporator coil decrease the air quality, it will reduce airflow and make your AC work harder to cool your home, leading to higher power bills. Dust and dirt also serves as an insulator for the coil, reducing it’s ability to absorb the heat from warm air before it’s released into your home. An AC professional will be able to provide HVAC service to make sure your unit is clean and working properly, and help you breathe a little easier.

MAKE SURE YOUR AC UNIT IS APPROPRIATELY SIZED

Bigger isn’t always better. If your AC unit is too large for your space, it can do more harm than good and be bad for your allergies. A large unit in a small space will run on shorter cycles, causing it to constantly turn off and on.

This is not only an inefficient way to cool your home, short cycling will prevent the AC from running long enough to remove humidity in the air. And there’s nothing that mold loves more than humidity. Mold will release mold spores into the air, which can be spread around your home every time you turn on your AC unit. This can lead to more mold growth and more spores in the air, which can cause congestion and severe allergies when breathed in. Have an AC professional inspect your AC unit and make sure it’s appropriately sized for your needs.

If you’re tired of dealing with allergies, call the experts at Elite AC today. We’ll make sure your AC is helping to improve the quality of air in your home.