Frequently Asked Questions

You should inspect your HVAC filter monthly and change it if necessary. A good time (and easy way to remember) to inspect your filter is when you receive your electric bill.
Failing to change your filter regularly will result in higher utility bills, poor system cooling/heating, damage to your system, and many other problems. Essentially, CHECK YOUR FILTER MONTHLY!

You should service your HVAC system twice a year. You should have a cooling tune-up done in the spring and a heating tune-up done in the fall. Air conditioning and heating units are like any other piece of machinery; you must have them properly maintained to maximize their performance, efficiency, and lifespan.

There is no exact answer for how long your air conditioning system should run during each cycle. The average air conditioner is sized to remove the heat from your home as fast as it comes in on a 110° day—keeping up but not gaining on it. The cooler it is below 110°, the more the AC system will cycle on and off.

The time of year becomes a significant factor in determining desired temperature settings. In the summer months, the average temperature setting for Tucson residences is 78°–80°, while in the winter, 70°–72° seems to be the most common setting.

Remember, when leaving your house, try to avoid drastic temperature changes. Do not set your temperature back more than 5°; this will cause your HVAC unit to work harder to achieve the desired temperature setting.

The most common cause of high energy bills is inadequate insulation. Your home may have very poor insulation around windows, walls, doors, floors, and the roof. Duct leaks can also contribute to a loss of conditioned air.

All these potential leaking spots prevent your home from blocking the heat and cold from outside. A house that is not well insulated will always be more difficult to heat in the winter and cool in the summer.

Another leading reason for high energy bills is improper maintenance of your heating and cooling system. Poorly maintained HVAC units do not run efficiently and will cost you more to operate. This includes whether your filter is dirty and has not been changed often enough. A dirty filter restricts airflow and causes your HVAC unit to run harder and therefore use more energy.

If Temperature Control installed the air conditioning system in your home, you should never close more than one register. If Temperature Control did not install your system, you should not close any registers. 

CLOSING OFF REGISTERS DOES NOT SAVE ENERGY! 

If you close off air to rooms, they will still have heat gain from the outside. This heat gain is transferred to the rest of the house through doors, walls, ceilings, etc. This heat gain will cause your unit to work just as hard as if all the registers were open. There is no energy savings to be gained from closing off registers.

SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio. It is an energy efficiency rating for air conditioning units. The higher the SEER rating, the more efficient an air conditioning unit is.

For example, older units used to have a SEER rating of 6–10. New units today must have a minimum SEER rating of 14. The most efficient systems available today are about 25 SEER.

SEER2 is just an updated version of the rating system; it still rates how efficient an AC system is.

Ah, monsoon season in Tucson. We all love the feeling of that cool air after a monsoon storm, but this is the absolute worst time to open up your doors and windows. Doing so will introduce extremely high levels of humidity into your home. This humidity gets absorbed into carpets, draperies, bedding, clothes, etc., and affects your cooling system’s performance.

When you fire up your air conditioning later, it is going to work extra hard for the next 24–48 hours to remove all the added humidity in the house. Yes, it takes that long to return your home’s humidity back to normal!

This extra work will significantly increase your energy bill. So, if you want to enjoy that cool monsoon air, go outside and have dinner on the patio. Do not completely open up your house.

Your HVAC condensate drain should be flushed at least yearly with proper filter maintenance. If you do not change your filter at regular intervals, your indoor coil could become clogged, which could then cause your condensate drain to clog and flood your mechanical room. 

Temperature Control performs this cleaning during our spring AC tune-up, so be sure to book your appointment to have one less maintenance task to manage.