Don’t Let your HVAC Systems Keep You Up At Night

If you’re anything like the average person, proper sleep is a must – it’s not an option. When you don’t rest well at night, you suffer from brain fog, have little-to-no productivity, and aren’t exactly in the best mood. If you’re waking up less than rested lately, your HVAC systems could be to blame. Learn how your heating and cooling systems affect your ability to rest.

Air Quality

Allergy sufferers typically view the outside as their trigger area, but the inside of their house can be just as troublesome. If you’re spending much of your night blowing your nose and sneezing, you’re not having an enjoyable night. HVAC filters are designed to keep allergens like pet dander, dust, pollen, and other debris from circulating through the air inside a home.

However, the filter is only able to accomplish this when it’s clear. A filter that is old will have an excessive buildup, and instead of trapping these particles, they will flow right through and throughout your home. Homes with allergy sufferers should change or clean their filters no less than every 45 days and consider upgrading to a HEPA-rated filter.

Humidity

The humidity levels in the Ruston area might not be as intense as in southern Louisiana, but in the summer months, they’re no laughing matter. High humidity levels make you feel warmer and wet, which are not two qualities you would associate with comfort. If it feels just as humid inside your home as it does on the outside, you have a problem with your hands.

Excess humidity in your home could mean that your air conditioning unit is too large for your home or is starting to fail. At the same time, too little humidity in the colder months can lead to throat discomfort and dry, itchy skin, which will also affect your quality of sleep. Humidity control issues always signal the need for some level of maintenance.  

Hold and Cold Spots

It’s impossible for the temperature to remain consistent throughout a house. The type of flooring in a room, its exposure to the sun, and even the type of furniture in the space all impact the way the room feels. However, these changes should be minor and barely detectable. If the sleeping areas of your home are hotter or colder than the rest of the house, this is a problem.

A drastic temperature difference will affect the quality of sleep you’re able to achieve. If you have hot and cold spots throughout your home, this could be an indication that your furnace or air conditioning is failing.

The unit may no longer be able to output controlled air at the appropriate rate. The uneven temperatures could also mean that a problem exists in your ducts that is preventing the air from being properly dispersed throughout the home.

Excess Noise

Heating and cooling systems do generate some level of noise when they operate. But in the average home, this noise is minimal and typically goes unheard. When the operation of your furnace or air conditioning unit wakes you up at night, don’t overlook this as a normal occurrence, as the unit has an underlying problem.

For example, a high-pitched noise when the furnace operates could mean that the draft motor is failing. A loud hissing sound from the air conditioning could be a signal that it’s leaking Freon. Anytime your unit starts making a noise that it has not made in the past, a system inspection is a good idea.

Don’t let your HVAC systems keep you from experiencing a restful slumber each night. From preventive maintenance to repairs, at Holstead’s Air Conditioning and Heating, we’re here to help you keep your systems running with complete comfort in mind.