5 Things To Know Before Cooling Off

May 21, 2009 — -- As summer draws closer and the temperature starts to rise, more and more Americans are reaching for the cool respite of their air conditioners.

But before you turn on your unit and dial that temperature down, take the time to get your air conditioner up and running right so it keeps you cool without wasting energy or cash.

"Good Morning America" housing contributor Wendy Bounds stopped by the show to share the five things you need to know before cranking up your air conditioner.

Air filters make your unit more efficient and keep the air in your house a lot cleaner.

There are two kinds of air filters. There are filters that are disposable and ones you can take out and clean. It's important to know the difference between the two because you don't want to throw out the reusable one, thinking it's disposable.

Also remember to use gloves before dealing with any air filter.

You should get a professional to come in and check the unit once a year to ensure things are working correctly and to check for air leaks.

You want your unit to be efficient. You can lose 30 percent of your air flow if you have leaks.

You can also check for leaks yourself on a window or through -the -wall unit unit by taking an incense stick and light it. Go around the unit and see if the smoke is blowing.

If you have open duct work on your AC you actually could go around the connections to see if air is seeping out. You can use foil tape to seal up any leaks.

If you have a lot of leaks, bring a professional to fix them because that's really one of the most important things you can do to keep your bills from being too high.

Before it gets super hot, test out your air conditioner by running it. If yours isn't working well, orspewing black stuff, you want to get your call in now, otherwise, you're going to be really hot while everybody else is getting theirs fixed.

Air conditioners need some breathing room. Now is a good time to get your pruning shears and clear away any plant life around the unit outside of your house. Trim around the edges of a condensing unit, which needs to have air flow.

Give the unit at least two feet of space.