Maintenance on your heating and cooling system is important for many reasons. Firstly, it helps ensure your system is working properly to keep your home and family comfortable. In addition, maintenance helps your system run efficiently, reducing energy waste while saving you money. While surprising, proper maintenance is also important for preventing pests from affecting your home and health. Here are a few tips for preventing rodents and insects from harming your heating and cooling system.

Clean Outdoor Unit

To get started, spend some time cleaning your outdoor unit. Dirt, mulch, grass clippings, and other debris can become trapped inside the unit, reducing the system's efficiency. However, this debris is also attractive to pests.

Mice, rats, ants, roaches, and other pests will believe the unit is an appealing space to hide and nest. Therefore, removing the debris will help reduce your risk of pest infestations that can harm your HVAC equipment.

Disconnect the power to your unit before starting the cleanup. Use your hands to pull out any long, visible debris from the exterior cover of your unit. Then, unscrew and remove the actual cover and clean out any more debris. Spray down the interior lightly with your garden hose or sweep away debris using your broom.

Screen Vents and Flues

Preventing pests from entering exterior vents, air intakes, and flues is also important. Since these openings are on the exterior of your home, pests can enter through the openings easily, increasing the risk of damage to not only your heating and cooling system but also your home.

Installing a mesh screen to these openings is one of the easiest ways to reduce your risk of pests. Mesh screens can be purchased in rolls or sheets and cut to the specific size you need with ease.

Repair or Seal Ductwork

Ductwork is one of the most important parts of your heating and cooling system. It moves conditioned air from your outdoor units into your home through vents. During the process, other elements may also be moved into your home if the ductwork is not in good condition.

Small holes, tears, and openings in the seams of your ductwork become perfect openings for pests. Once inside your ducts, these pests can quickly enter your home, increasing the risk of infestations, allergies, foul doors, and other issues that can affect your home and health.

Repairing and replacing damaged areas of ductwork is imperative. However, many homeowners are also having their ducts sealed.

Duct sealing improves the efficiency of your system, saving you money on your heating and cooling costs. This innovative update also reduces the risk of pests entering the ducts, which protects your home's indoor air quality.

Maintenance is key to protect the operation of your heating and cooling system, but it can also protect the system and your home and health from pests. For more information, visit sites like http://www.coeheatcool.com.