HVAC Tips / June 19, 2018
Protect Your Heating and Air Conditioning System From Pests
You may not associate your heating and air conditioning system with household pests, but the two often go together. The system can attract pests, and when they invade, the pests cause damage or affect the air quality in your home.
While having regular pest control services from a reputable company like Dallas Pest Control helps keep bugs and rodents under control, there are other methods to protect it from pests.
Keep Pests Out of the Condenser
Since the air conditioning unit is outside all the time, it has to coexist with all manner of wildlife. Raccoons may be curious about the lines coming from the condenser, or they may try to bend the fins to get inside. Mice might think the inside of the condenser is a fine place to build a nest for the winter.
Snakes can wiggle inside too as they slither through your yard. Bugs of all kinds will crawl over the unit inside and out; bugs might become a problem if large numbers of them nest inside.
The best way to keep your condenser in good shape is to have an annual service call so the cage and internal parts can be cleaned. If the HVAC contractor finds pest damage, they can repair it before serious harm is done.
Another way to protect the condenser is to create a border around it with rocks or gravel. Bugs and snakes might stay in the grass and not cross the rocks to reach the condenser.
Be sure to trim branches away from the area, and keep grass and weeds trimmed so few hiding places are near the unit. Also, be careful with leaf or bark mulch that holds dampness because it provides living places for bugs, like roaches, that love moisture.
Maintain the Drainage System to Prevent Dampness
Water drains from your HVAC system into a drain pan which then flows outside through a small drain. If the drain becomes clogged, water won’t drain fast enough, and it may stop draining completely. This causes water to overflow and leads to many problems.
When the floor around your system stays damp, it won’t be long before water-loving bugs take notice and crawl in the air handler. Dampness in the home is one of the major causes of pest infestations. However, when it comes to a leaky drainage system, pests might be the least of your worries.
If the leak does enough damage to your home, you might be looking at expensive repairs to your walls and flooring. The leak might even damage your heating and air system. When you see signs of dampness around your system or if the area smells like mildew, then call for an inspection so the drain can be repaired and your home dried out.
Seal Ducts to Keep Out Pests
The ducts in your home are vulnerable to pests and you may not check them often enough to spot trouble. If rodents, birds, or raccoons invade your attic, they could do a lot of damage to the ducts. Roaches might even invade the ducts in large numbers if they start living in your attic due to dampness from a roof leak.
A large animal like a raccoon can tear a large opening in the ducts or just rip them apart to be destructive. Mice and birds don’t need large openings, but even a tiny opening is enough to affect the efficiency of the system since treated air escapes into the attic.
Regular inspections for damage and sealing gaps and holes is important for improved climate control and for keeping pests out of the ducts. If pests have invaded, you’ll probably want the ducts cleaned once the pest problem is resolved.
Droppings, hairs, and odors from the pests will continue to waft through your home every time your heating or air runs until you have the ducts cleaned.
If you have a pest infestation and your HVAC system is involved, call Mauzy Heating, Air & Solar for help. We will clean your system to get it back in good shape, provide regular maintenance for your HVAC, and even install a dehumidifier if needed to help keep bugs away.
