Updated January 19, 2024
You may have heard of HVAC maintenance and seen billboards or internet ads. You might also have seen information about electrical and plumbing maintenance. What you might not have seen is a whole-house maintenance plan like the Gold Club Membership offered by Golden Rule. Discover what’s included with each aspect of maintenance and what benefits you can expect when you sign-up for this affordable whole-house plan.
What Is HVAC Maintenance?
HVAC maintenance is critical to your system’s function and efficiency. HVAC maintenance plans can make it easier for you to get the routine maintenance you need without the pricy extras you might not. These twice-annual visits, which are recommended by most major manufacturers and HVAC experts, evaluate your system’s preparedness for the upcoming heating or cooling seasons.
Typically, you will need to schedule HVAC maintenance during the spring for your AC and the fall for your heating system. A technician will perform a deep dive into the system, cleaning components like the circulating fan, evaporator and condensing coils, heat exchanger, thermocouple, and burner.
They’ll thoroughly test the system by running a complete heating or cooling cycle in addition to testing individual components like motors, capacitors, contactors, and even the refrigerant level. They inspect the unit inside and out and tighten electrical connections and mounting hardware. The idea is to confirm the system is working optimally, making minor tweaks to keep it that way as the system ages and wears.
Benefits of Routine Heating and Air Conditioning Maintenance
One of the main reasons HVAC companies offer maintenance and why property owners get it is to maintain the system’s efficiency. Neglecting any mechanical system allows it to work outside optimal parameters, adding strain and increasing the need for additional repairs. By maintaining the system’s efficiency, you reduce your heating and cooling costs, reduce the number and frequency of repairs, and extend the system’s service life.
These annual maintenance visits also uncover comparatively minor problems that could quickly snowball into something more serious. By finding them early and often before there are noticeable symptoms, you can resolve them before they drive up your utility expense or cause damage to the system.
Additionally, you improve your home’s comfort by maintaining even heating and cooling throughout your home. You protect your system’s factory warranty, which normally requires routine maintenance. Finally, you also improve the safety of running your system, reducing the risk of electrical shock, an HVAC-related fire, or even carbon monoxide exposure.
What Is Plumbing Maintenance?
Similar to your HVAC maintenance, plumbing maintenance evaluates how well your home’s plumbing is working, including both drain and supply lines, not to mention water-control components like your sump pump.
It’s best to have plumbing maintenance once a year. During the visit, a licensed plumber will check all toilets and faucets throughout and outside your home. They’ll check each drain under your sinks to ensure they are flowing properly and without leaks. Your exposed supply lines are next, where they’ll check for signs of corrosion or building issues like deposit buildup and bulging in the line. The emergency shutoff is inspected and tested to make sure that it’s still functioning correctly.
They then go to check individual plumbing appliances, like your garbage disposal and sump pump. They’ll make sure the safety controls on your water heater are working properly, and that the supply lines for your washing machine don’t have visible signs of wear.
Benefits of Annual Plumbing Maintenance
Water damage from a plumbing emergency is a costly issue for both homeowners and insurance companies and is often preventable with the proper maintenance. The primary goal of plumbing maintenance is to identify budding problems before they become catastrophic. By doing this, you reduce the risk of having uncontrolled water leaking into your home, causing an untold amount of water damage.
Plumbing maintenance also helps you reduce your water consumption. For instance, did you know that a toilet with a flapper that doesn’t seal properly can consume up to 200 gallons per day, which equals 6,000 gallons per month? Whether you have municipal water or a well, that significantly drives up your costs.
Wearing pipes can also reduce the quality of your water and the air inside your home. Wearing supply pipes can introduce contaminants like rust into the water, and create water patches that are the breeding ground for harmful bacteria and mold. Damaged drain pipes allow noxious sewage fumes to escape into your home. Preventing these leaks keeps your water supply safe and factors into your indoor air quality.
What Is Electrical Maintenance?
Most of us take having electricity and its potential risks in our homes for granted. In most cases, electricity is safe to use as long as you understand the basic safety principles, such as keeping children’s fingers and toys out of the outlets.
However, like your plumbing and your HVAC, your electrical system will wear. This wear can increase resistance, which then creates heat in the wires and appliances. When you hear about electrical house fires, it’s often this resistance-generated heat that’s the culprit.
To keep your home safe and ensure that you have power when and where you need it, you should have electrical maintenance every year. This starts with an electrician checking the circuit breaker or fuse panel, one of the most important safety measures in your home. They’ll move on to inspect and test every outlet and switch inside and outside your home. Any GFCI outlets will get tested to ensure the safety mechanism still trips properly. Then, they’ll double-check your smoke detectors and your bathroom exhaust fans.
Your lighting is an extremely important component of your electrical system. Your electrician will inspect all lighting fixtures inside and outside your home and will inspect the wiring for your outdoor lighting.
Finally, the electrician will ask about any plans you have for your home. Whether you’re looking at expanding outside with power on a patio or putting an addition, you’ll need to consider the impact on your electrical system. Your maintenance electrician will help you determine if your plans should include upgrading your electrical panel or possibly the service to your home.
Why Annual Electrical Maintenance Is Important
The biggest reason to have electrical maintenance is to improve your home’s safety. By keeping an eye on the health of your system, you can reduce the risk of personal injury from shorts and electrical fires. The expensive electrical equipment you own is better protected by reducing the risk of surges. Finally, annual maintenance helps reduce energy costs by identifying potential issues that are drawing excessive power.
Other Benefits
Beyond the benefits of each component of the maintenance plan, Gold Club members have other benefits, including priority service and repair appointments when they do have a problem. You could also save money with our waived trip charges and a discount on all repair services. The plan is transferrable if you sell your home during a current maintenance year, giving you a little extra leverage in helping protect the new owners.
For the last 20 years, people around DesMoines metro area have relied on Golden Rule to deliver reliable home services. Our expert team provides heating and air conditioning maintenance, repair, and installation, along with plumbing, electrical, and indoor air quality services. Call to sign up for the unique and affordable whole-house Gold Club maintenance plan today.
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