Summer is almost here!

It is FINALLY getting warmer outside — which means those air conditioners will soon be running full blast. Make sure yours is ready for the long hot summer ahead.

Spring is the right window for this, and not just because we say so. Here is the reasoning.

Why now and not July

Your air conditioner sat unused for months. Refrigerant can seep out slowly through a small leak, capacitors weaken, contactors corrode, and the outdoor coil collects a winter's worth of leaves, seed pods, and cottonwood.

None of that stops the unit on the first mild 78-degree day. It stops the unit in July, when the system is running most of the day and every weak component is under maximum stress at once. That is why the phone rings hardest during the first serious heat wave — and why waiting means competing with everyone else for the same appointment slots.

A spring check finds those problems while the weather is still forgiving and a repair can be scheduled instead of rushed.

What a cooling tune-up covers

• Condenser coil cleaning. A dirty outdoor coil cannot reject heat, so the system runs longer and the compressor works harder for the same result.
• Refrigerant charge verification. Systems do not consume refrigerant. If it is low, there is a leak, and topping it off without finding the leak is not a repair.
• Electrical testing. Capacitors and contactors are among the most common failure points, and both are measurable before they quit.
• Condensate drain clearing. A drain that clogs mid-summer overflows onto whatever is beneath the air handler.
• Blower and evaporator inspection plus a temperature-split measurement to confirm the system is actually delivering the cooling it should.

What you can do yourself this month

Replace the filter before the season starts, then check it monthly once the system is running daily.

Clear the outdoor unit. Give it about two feet of open space on all sides. Cut back shrubs, pull weeds growing into the fins, and remove anything stacked against it over the winter. Rinse the coil gently with a garden hose — never a pressure washer, which bends the fins closed.

Check the condensate line for standing water or a slow drip that suggests a partial clog.

Test it early. Run the system on a warm day for a while before you actually depend on it. Better to find a problem on a 75-degree afternoon than a 98-degree one.

If it struggled last summer, it will struggle harder this one

Rooms that never cooled properly, a system that ran constantly on hot afternoons, or a house that felt cold and clammy rather than comfortable — those are not going to improve on their own. They usually point at airflow, duct problems, low charge, or an incorrectly sized system, and all of them are easier to diagnose before the equipment is running flat out.

Schedule with us

Call Buffington Brothers at (573) 785-6768 to get on the spring schedule. Our technicians are NATE and EPA certified, and we have been keeping Poplar Bluff and the surrounding Southeast Missouri and Northeast Arkansas area comfortable since 1951.

Ask about our maintenance plan while you are at it — a 16-point checklist twice a year, spring and fall, plus priority scheduling when you do need us in a hurry.