Our field supervisor, Josh, recently spoke to Wilson’s World about the preparations you should be making to minimize the risk of a costly AC repair this winter. Find out more in the video, below!

Wilson: I’ve got Josh, field supervisor here with One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning® of Charlotte, and we’re watching the weather. And you were seeing 20s on there. You guys are watching this and you’re thinking, “Oh, man. What if I lose the heat? It’s going to get cold these Carolina winters,” and all this kind of stuff.

Josh, you’re the guy, you’re the field supervisor. What can people do to make sure their heat, their HVAC system is ready to go for this winter?

Josh: First thing is absolutely check your filters. You need to check your filters and now is the time to have maintenance done to your unit. You’d need to have a tuneup done. You can call in and join our Comfort Club member. It takes all the hassles away. We come out to your house twice a year to check on your unit.

But the number one priority is to have that unit looked at, have it serviced before you fire it up. Because the best time to do it…if you’ve already fired it up, it’s not too late. Let’s get that done. Let’s make sure that unit is safe to run.

Wilson: Because it’s been sitting there throughout the hot summer. We haven’t been using that. And that first time you put it on, does it put extra strain on there?

Josh: It absolutely puts some extra strain. There’s some dust and stuff in there that needs to burn off. That’s why you always get that funny smell when you first turn your furnace on. We need to inspect that, make sure there’s not too much dust that’s going to start a fire or anything like that. Make sure that it’s going to be safe, it’s not going to leak any dangerous gases. Make sure your gas pressures are adjusted or your refrigerant levels if you have a heat pump.

But the most important thing is to have it maintenanced. And for one, it’s not only a safety issue. It’s also going to save you a lot of money on your utility bills because if the unit is running clean, it’s going to be running efficiently. And that’s what we really want to do. We want it safe, we want it efficient. We want to keep it comfortable as well. And in order to do that, you have to have it maintained. It’s no different than changing the oil in your car.

Wilson: And these guys are good partners with us on “Wilson’s World” and everything. They’ve helped us out a couple times with the “Moment of Good…” so I like these guys. I’ll go ahead and say this, the Comfort Club thing they got is a great idea. Because if you’re like me, you’re probably not thinking about, “Oh, wow, I’m seeing Kaitlin Cody saying it’s going to get into the 20s. I probably should have had my stuff looked at and the system looked at.” With that, you guys already schedule it twice a year and it’s taken care of when you need it.

Josh: Right, we do it twice a year. There’s no hassles, no worries for the customer. All you have to do is just remember to turn your thermostat on. We’ll take care of the rest. Other than your filter. You know you need to check your filter, follow your filter’s recommendations, and other than that, we take care of everything else for you if you’re one of our Comfort Club members. If not, you can call in and do a one-time tuneup, we’re happy to do that, too. You’ll get just as good of a job, just as good of a maintenance, and then you’ll still have the peace of mind. You’ll just have to remember to call in the following year.

Wilson: We’ve got more tips coming up for you. We’re going to be talking plumbing as well with our partners over here at Ben Franklin, all that kind of good stuff. How often do you change the filter, real quick?

Josh: It depends on what filter you’re using. You need to use the recommendation of the filter. Typically, every month or every three months, most filters out there, some filters, six months a year. Read the instructions.

Wilson: Kaitlin Cody right there and I know she’s got, like, 15 fur babies in her little house and everything. I meant her filter…

Josh: Do a little more.

Wilson:…her filter is probably pretty bad.

Josh: She may have to do a little more.

Wilson: I’ve seen some pictures of her kitchen as well. That’s pretty…

Josh: She may even want to upgrade hers a little bit. She might need to give us a call.

Wilson: I’m just saying. Awkward. Back to you guys.

Kristine: It’s lovely.