Check Out the Garage Door

What is probably the largest piece of mechanical engineering in your home, can also have some of the largest problems associated with it. A shoddy garage door can be a bit of a headache as it can let out your home’s heat and be a structural weak point for a would-be burglar to exploit.
Take a look at the inside of the garage door first – keeping a close eye on springs and tracks. If you need to replace any springs be extra careful – these pieces have plenty of tension wrapped up inside of them and improperly handling them can result in injury or worse.
If any other parts look dirty or rusted, clean them off and give them a healthy application of lubricant. Greasing them like this reduces friction while at the same time giving it extra protection against the elements. Speaking of the elements, spend some time checking out the perimeter of your garage door – any gaps should be fixed with new weather-stripping.

Time to Declutter

While most people wait until spring to do any major cleaning project, for garages autumn is the better time. The reason for this is that you’ll probably want to do some parking in your garage come the winter months.
Before you begin to take a good assessment of what you do and don’t need – those roller blades from twenty years ago aren’t going to be useful to you anymore, but all those haphazardly thrown cleaning supplies probably will be.
Don’t be afraid to part with things that you’ve had for a long time – getting rid of all your old things will only make room for the new.

In-Depth Cleaning and Maintenance of the Floor

If your garage floor has become battered and bruised over the years and you want to fix it, now is no better of a time. A clean floor can make a world of difference in a garage and can often be done with a day worth of work.
Go ahead and sweep out all the corners of the garage, brushing up dust mites and spider webs as needed. To make sure you get everything, go ahead and put a dust mask on and fire up that blower to blast it out of the front.
From here you can get some real in-depth cleaning with a high powered hose nozzle or a pressure washer with associated soap. If you want, you can go a step further and repaint the floor to give it a look that will really pop.

Inspect the Walls and Foundation

Now that you’re here this might be the best time to look at how sturdy your garage is. Ideally, you want to inspect the interior and exterior of your garage walls to see if there are any cracks or mold build.
The rule of thumb here is that any cracks that are smaller than a ¼” width shouldn’t be concerned with – anything bigger than this though you might want to either institute some sort of repair or if it’s serious enough have a contractor come and look at it. Check to see if the roof is straight to make sure that nothing has settled up top.

Organize

It’s time to get everything in the proper order. Organizing your garage can save you plenty of time and headache in the future. Try to get all the cleaning supplies in one spot, tools in another. Try to invest in other things like shelves, cabinets, and hooks to hold extra items.
Make sure to take advantage of all parts of your garage too – this includes the ceiling. There is plenty of unique racking and hooks out on the market today that allow your garage to hold a lot more than you would normally think possible.

Institute Safety Protocol

This is also a great time to see how safe everything is. If you’ve already decluttered and cleaned you’ve actually already completed part of this tip, as a well-organized garage is much less likely to be a fire or tripping hazard in the future.
Aside from this, you should spend some time seeing if your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are in working order – if they beep sporadically or not at all, you should switch out the batteries.
If your detectors are more than ten years old, then you should invest in new ones. Chemicals should also be in good working order – it’s best to have especially volatile chemicals like chlorine, bleach, and ammonia a safe distance away from each other. Make sure to also have all other poisons and chemicals properly labeled and out of reach of little hands.
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Especially for a commercial establishment, you are responsible for the not just the comfort of your employees and customers, but also their safety. So it’s essential to make sure your equipment is properly taken care of. This HVAC maintenance checklist is a resource that can make sure you’ve covered the essential tasks to prevent a breakdown of your heating system.
It’s important to note that fall heating maintenance is not one-size-fits-all. Depending on the type of equipment you have, how it is fueled, and the specific needs of your building and your business, there may be different HVAC maintenance checklist tasks that need to be completed.
Change filters

Especially if the same filters serve both your AC and heating systems, be sure to change those now, to avoid introducing contaminants that can cause system damage. Also, ask your service provider to show you how to change them and how frequently it needs to be done. Depending on your system and usage, you may need to change filters monthly or even more often.
Check belts and pulleys

Just like your air conditioning system, you heating equipment has belts and pulleys that control the blower and motor housing. These can get worn over time. Now is the time to replace any worn parts to prevent breakdowns and further damage to your heating system. A small thing like that can cause you to be without heat during freezing weather. This HVAC maintenance checklist task prevents bigger problems later.
Calibrate thermostats

You won’t get reliable heating if thermostat readings are off. Make sure they are working properly before the start of the heating season.
Check operation of blower fans and motors

The blower assembly is a critical part of your heating system. If fans are covered in grime or a motor is operating sluggishly, your system’s performance can suffer. Parts must be cleaned, lubricated, and faulty parts replaced.
Inspect electrical parts

A simple failure of a wire or electrode can take down your heating system. Make sure your electrical parts and connections are in good shape.
Check operation of the limit switch

The limit switch is a safety control that turns off the burner when parts of your heating system get too hot, and then shuts off the blower after the temperature drops. If blower is running continuously, this part could need to be adjusted or replaced.
Check duct insulation

The insulation in your ducts can become damaged over time. When that happens, your expensive heated air can escape before it ever has a chance to reach the areas where it’s needed. As a result, your system has to work harder to warm your space. That translates into higher energy bills for you and extra wear and tear on the system that can cause breakdowns. Don’t skip this essential task on the HVAC maintenance checklist.
Additional steps for gas heating systems:

• Check the pilot light or ignitor, valves and thermocouple.
• Check the gas burner flames, which should be steady with no trace of yellow coloring. Your technician may need to adjust the flame height.
• Inspect the condition of the gas line.

Additional steps for oil heating systems:

• Oil furnaces may need cleaning and maintenance more frequently than gas furnaces.
• Check fuel volume, as well as oil filters, gaskets and pump strainer.
• Check condition and operation of oil nozzle, air tubes, and pump.
• Clean & adjust draft regulator.
• Clean & check operation of the stack control or electric eye safety switch. This safety device shuts off the motor if the burner fails to ignite.
• Check the chimney smoke: if it’s black, the oil is not burning completely. This wastes fuel and causes pollution. Your technician needs to adjust controls.

Clearly, there’s a lot more to fall HVAC maintenance than you might expect, and we hope this HVAC maintenance checklist serves as an informative guide. Get it done now during this fleeting in-between season to get improved performance, better comfort, and peace of mind during the heating season and beyond.

Fall HVAC maintenance checklist: AIR CONDITIONING
You’re probably wondering why you need to do AC maintenance now, when you (hopefully) won’t be using your AC again for a while.
The fact is, now is the best time to clean and protect your AC system after this record-breaking hot summer.
If you skip these important AC-related tasks on the HVAC maintenance checklist, you’re risking a major HVAC repair headache (not to mention a major expense) when you start up your air conditioner in the spring and find it’s not working.

Call in your HVAC maintenance technician to tackle these steps so your system is in top condition come spring:

Clear drain lines and pans
It’s never a good idea to leave standing water around. Not only can it lead to mold and mildew growth, but standing water also attracts insects and vermin. Also, drain lines should be checked for blockages so you don’t end up with water leaks and a big mess when you turn on the system in the spring.

Clean the coils
Built-up grime on your AC coils not only causes the system to lose efficiency, it can cause corrosion of the metal coils. Don’t let that dirt and debris sit there over the winter, possibly causing coil damage and refrigerant leaks.

Learn more about coil cleaning: AC Coil Cleaning: How to Tell When You Need It

Check refrigerant charge
Speaking of leaks, now is the time to make sure you don’t have any. If refrigerant charge is low, that means there’s a leak somewhere, and it’s better to find and fix it now. If you don’t, you’ll be turning on the unit on that first hot day to find it won’t cool your space.

Check belts and pulleys
Worn belts sitting idle all winter can break when your system starts up again. Prevent bigger problems with this HVAC maintenance checklist item: have your system inspected and replace worn parts now.
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Get ducts inspected
Especially after such a hot and humid summer, moisture can accumulate in your ductwork. When that happens, it can lead to the growth of mold and other biological contaminants. In the worst case, people can experience health problems and even Sick Building Syndrome. Does your service provider include duct inspection on their HVAC maintenance checklist? If not, ask for your ducts to be inspected to see if you need duct cleaning services.