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HVAC maintenance checklist and schedule

Change the filter every three months, book a heating tune-up before the cold and an air conditioner check before the heat. With mild winters that means a tune-up in October and an AC check in April.

Add these to my calendar
My climate

13 jobs a year, timed for mild winters. Tick them off as you go.

  1. January

  2. April

  3. May

  4. July

  5. October

  6. November

"Add these to my calendar" opens the free planner with this already ticked. Tick the rest of your house there, and it saves one calendar file that repeats every year.

The numbers, worked

A house with a furnace and central AC in a mild climate gets 7 jobs a year: 4 filter changes (January, April, July, October), the heating tune-up in October, the AC check in April and rinsing the outdoor unit in May.

Swap the furnace and AC for a heat pump and it is 6: 4 filter changes, a service visit in April and clearing leaves from the outdoor unit in November. Where winters are cold the heating tune-up comes in September and the AC check in May; in the hot bands the AC check moves to March.

Questions

What is on an HVAC maintenance checklist?

Here: the filter, a yearly heating tune-up, a yearly air conditioner check and rinsing debris off the outdoor unit, or for a heat pump, its filter, a service visit and keeping the outdoor unit clear. Lines marked "If you have" apply only to houses with that system.

When should I book the heating tune-up?

Before the cold: September where winters are cold, October where they are mild or hot and dry, and November where it is hot and humid.

When should I book the air conditioner check?

Before the heat: March in the hot bands, April where winters are mild and May where they are cold.

Does this list say how to service the system?

No. It says when each job comes due. The service visits are booked with a technician.

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