Providing HVAC Maintenance in Contra Costa County

When it comes to HVAC Maintenance, Contra Costa-based Complete Care offers a comprehensive system check and diagnostics to see how your furnace or air conditioning system is doing.

In addition to the testing, we will perform system cleaning, lubrication, duct inspection, filter change and various other tasks to assess and ensure the health of your system. Then we will review the results of the maintenance service with you and call your attention to any items that need your attention.

Furnace Maintenance: Concord CA-Based Complete Care’s Recommendation

Most homeowners never think about their furnace unless something goes wrong with it.

That said, heating system failures can be avoided entirely through regular furnace maintenance. So, we strongly recommend this affordable service once or twice yearly.

Your furnace has a large number of moving parts that wear down over time. Regular furnace maintenance provides significant benefits:

• Saves money on your energy bills
• Reduces the cost of furnace repairs
• Extends the life of your heating system
• Helps improve indoor air quality
• Improves system efficiency and performance

What’s Involved in Furnace Maintenance

During routine furnace routine maintenance, you can expect our technician to:

• Replace the air filters (customer provided)
• Confirm or set thermostat calibration
• Check the heat exchanger
• Inspect, adjust and clean the blower component
• Inspect and tighten all electrical parts
• Check and test all accessible moving parts
• Evaluate the efficiency of your heater

Air Conditioning Maintenance

The Department of Energy recommends at least annual air conditioning maintenance. Concord CA-based Complete Care will inspect, clean and service your AC system components, so the unit performs efficiently and lasts longer.

Neglecting this important maintenance will lead to a steady decline in air conditioning performance—while energy use and utility bills continue to increase.

Complete Care will inspect your unit and provide you with an accurate estimate of the types of maintenance it needs, as well as the frequency.

How to Know When It’s Time for an AC Tune-Up

The best time to schedule AC maintenance is mid to late spring. This gives Complete Care technicians ample time to repair any minor issues before the major heat of the summer arrives.

However, there are also obvious signs that your AC desperately needs a tune-up:

• Reduced cooling performance
• Unusual sounds and noises
• Strange or unpleasant odors
• Frequent short cycling
• Rising energy costs

Without these obvious signs, it can be difficult to know when your AC needs a tune-up. Most of the parts are hidden behind a panel, and disassembling the unit is not something most homeowners are qualified to do. So, it’s always better to call the professionals at Complete Care!

What’s Involved in Air Conditioning Maintenance

Here are some of the things we inspect when we perform AC maintenance:

• Check refrigerant levels.
• Capture any refrigerant that must be evacuated from the system (it is illegal to intentionally release refrigerant into the atmosphere).
• Check for duct leakage in central systems and repair if needed.
• Measure airflow through the evaporator coil.
• Verify the correct electric control sequence. Make sure that both the heating system and cooling system are operating properly.
• Inspect the electric terminals. Clean and tighten the connections, and apply a non-conductive coating if needed.
• Oil motors.
• Check belts for tightness and wear.
• Check the thermostat accuracy.

Air Conditioner Filters

When it comes to maintenance, the most important task to ensure the efficiency of your air conditioner is to routinely replace or clean its filters.

Clogged, dirty filters reduce airflow and significantly reduce the system’s efficiency and life span.

Replacing a dirty, clogged filter with a clean one can improve your AC energy consumption by 5% to 15%.

Air Conditioner Coils

The AC unit’s evaporator and condenser coils collect dirt. A clean filter helps prevent this, but over time, however, the evaporator coil will still collect dirt. This dirt reduces airflow and insulates the coil, which curtails its ability to absorb heat. We check the evaporator coil and clean it as necessary.

Coil Fins

The thin aluminum fins on evaporator and condenser coils are easily bent and can block airflow. We use a special tool to “comb” and straighten these fins to help restore them to proper condition.

Condensate Drains

A key part of AC maintenance is checking and cleaning condensate drains. Clogged channels prevent a unit from reducing humidity, which can result in water damage to floors, walls, ceilings, ductwork and can promote the growth of mold and bacteria.