Spring weather can be highly unpredictable, ranging from hot sunny days to blustery periods. Sometimes severe weather occurs and when it’s forecast, having storm preparation for your HVAC system will keep it safer.

Before the Storm

Open the circuit breaker box and locate the circuit breaker for your HVAC system. Label it so that family members can read the label and turn the breaker off in the event of a severe storm. Air conditioners and furnaces use a lot of electronic components that could be damaged in the event of a storm related power surge.

After the Storm

Wait until the storm passes or your power has been restored to turn the HVAC system back on. As power companies work on the lines after an outage, power surges aren’t uncommon that can damage the electrical components.

The damage that the surges cause may not be obvious immediately. A small electronic component inside your A/C could be damaged, but not enough to cause it fail immediately. It may take a week, a month or even a year for the part to fail for seemingly no reason.

Consider Permanent Surge Protection

Turning off the circuit breaker for storm protection will work if you happen to be home during the storm. Another option would be to add a surge protector which will add a layer of protection to the HVAC system and the good news is that it works 24/7 without any assistance from the homeowner. A licensed HVAC pro can install a surge protector for you and it will absorb the power surge instead of your HVAC system.

Not only will a surge protector provide storm protection, it will also safeguard your heating and air system from other causes of power surges. Car accidents that knock out a transformer, repairs to the power lines, or grid switching are additional common triggers for power spikes. Since there’s no way to predict when a power surge will happen, giving your HVAC system 24 hour protection makes sense.

For professional assistance, contact Jackson & Sons, providing heating and air services to homes and businesses in Eastern North Carolina since 1974.

Jackson & Sons, Inc.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Eastern North Carolina (including Wayne, Johnston, Greene, Lenoir, Pitt and Duplin Counties) about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).