Why you need regular maintenance

You wouldn’t drive your car 100,000 miles without changing the oil. The same logic holds true for your home comfort system. Regular preventative maintenance is the best way to ensure trouble-free operation and peak performance. Pre-season maintenance is also important. It can help to avoid a system failure in severe hot or cold weather when you need it most.

Many dealers provide priority service for their customers who have an annual maintenance or service agreement. Your existing relationship with a servicing dealer could be worth its weight in gold when it's a 95-degree July day and your air conditioning system has stopped working.

The inside scoop on maintenance

Preventative maintenance will ensure that your system runs as efficiently as possible. Bi-annually, your Trane Comfort Specialist should:

• Do a complete system operation check in both cooling and heating modes
• Check the defrost operation on the heat pump (if you have one)
• Check all other major components and safety devices
• Clean both indoor and outdoor air conditioner coils
• Clean the indoor blower housing and blower wheel

Most modern residential air conditioning and heating fan motors have permanently lubricated bearings so no additional lubrication is needed.

Your duct system should also be checked. Inefficient operation can be caused by return air leaks located in non-air conditioned spaces like attics or crawl areas. Hot or cold air is drawn in through the leak, which is then heated or cooled by your system. This decreases your system's ability to heat or cool your home and also increases your energy bill.

When to do it

If your air conditioning system both heats and cools your home, you should have maintenance performed in the spring and fall.

If you have an air conditioning-only or heating-only system, maintenance should be performed at least once a year prior to the heating or air conditioning season.

For a list of what you should expect during a preventative maintenance service checkup, check out our suggested pre-season Preventative Maintenance Checklist.

Replacing your system

If you're thinking about replacing an aging system, your Trane Comfort Specialist can advise you on proper preventative maintenance, annual maintenance and service agreements. You'll also want to inquire about Trane's Optional Extended Warranties.