HVAC emergencies happen. Sometimes, systems and appliances break down. However, you can take steps to avoid HVAC emergencies. Using the following commercial HVAC best practices will help reduce your energy costs. They can also improve your HVAC system’s energy efficiency and life expectancy.

Develop a Preventive Maintenance Program

There are two types of maintenance: reactive and preventive. Reactive maintenance is waiting for a system or appliance to break down before having it looked at. Preventive maintenance is scheduling regular inspection and check-up visits for the system or appliance at least once a year to fix small problems before they become big ones. While reactive maintenance seems simple and easy, since you forget about the system until noticeable problems arise, it can be the more expensive option in the long run. By waiting until the system’s problems grow large enough to cause a breakdown, you’re paying to fix expensive repairs that may be avoidable.

Instead of waiting for major breakdowns to call an HVAC repair company, you should partner with a commercial HVAC services company that will perform preventive maintenance on your system. They can work with you to develop a maintenance contract and program that determine how often they perform inspections and what kind of repairs the contract will cover. An HVAC maintenance contact should include emergency repairs, and outline what the company’s response time will be when they occur. Working with an HVAC company to develop a maintenance program will help you in the long run because you will have access to preventive maintenance and emergency services.

Learn About and Recognize HVAC Emergency Warning Signs

You can also avoid making HVAC emergency calls by learning to recognize their warning signs. These warning signs include:

  • Strange smells: If unusual smells are coming from your heating and cooling system, that means it probably has a leak. When your HVAC equipment is leaking, it has serious problems that could derive from a variety of sources. 
  • Rising energy bills: Your system may be experiencing major problems if your energy bills keep rising, but your energy consumption has not. If this keeps happening in your building, request an appointment with a local HVAC company.
  • Furnace runs cool air, AC runs hot air: When your heating and air conditioning emit the opposite kinds of air, your system has serious problems. You should schedule commercial HVAC emergency repairs immediately if this is happening in your building.
  • HVAC equipment shuts off abruptly: Your HVAC system definitely should not shut off by itself. If it does, this means your system is experiencing serious problems and you should have it inspected immediately.

Learning to recognize these warning signs will help you determine if your system needs heating or AC repairs. The more informed you are about these problems, the better you can handle them when they arise.

Emergency HVAC Services for Your Commercial Building

Service Unlimited offers emergency services for your HVAC system so your business won’t experience downtime because of poor air quality and uncomfortable working conditions. We also offer preventive maintenance to help your system avoid breakdowns. If you’re interested in our emergency services, or if you have any questions about them, contact us today.