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How to avoid breaking your A.C unit during heat advisory in Hampton Roads

Posted at 4:48 PM, Jul 13, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-13 17:44:35-04

CHESAPEAKE, Va. - "It's hard to sleep in a hot house," said homeowner Bill Price.

It's a busy season for air conditioning technicians in Hampton Roads, but not the most convenient time for homeowners. Price told News 3 his son's A.C unit stopped working on Wednesday.

"It's very discouraging because you know there's a price to pay to get it working again and if you have children that makes it bad also," he said.

Technician John Nottingham from One Hour Heating and Air Conditioning said they've been fixing a lot of broken A.C units. One reason they break is because of the heat.

"You got the sun on the system all day, you've got working parts in there running all day, it just can't keep up," he added.

However, that's not always the case. Nottingham says that really hot weather can set limitations on an A.C unit. For instance, if it's 90 degrees outside, chances are your house won't cool below 70 degrees. For some people it might feel like their air conditioning unit is broken.

There are ways you can avoid making a call to your local air conditioning repair company.

It's recommended to change the air filters and get an annual maintenance check on the unit.

"Especially an older unit," mentioned Nottingham. "You just want to at least try to keep this thing going to prevent break down."

Not to mention keeping your attic insulated to stop the humidity from entering your home.

Nottingham continued, "It's always good to have a little attic fan up there to help exhaust some of that heat out."

Experts say make sure to keep your doors and windows closed to keep the cool air in.