It’s going to be a hot summer.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 2022 outlook predicts that temperatures will be higher than average this summer in most of the country.
When it comes to keeping your home cool, it’s about keeping humidity at bay. Heating and cooling experts offer these tips for when a hot spell rolls through town:
Clean seasonal debris
Cottonwood fluff and grass clippings can create blockages on central air conditioning units. “It suffocates your unit and it can’t function properly,” said Jon Ryan, CEO of Genz-Ryan, a heating and cooling company.
To clean, run a garden hose from inside the system. But be careful that the water pressure isn’t pushing more debris into the system.
“You want to make sure you’re not spraying directly on the unit because there are electronics in it, so make sure you’re directly spraying that heat exchanger,” Ryan said. “Only spray that or hire a professional as part of your tune-up.”
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Tim Adams, service manager at Standard Heating and Air Conditioning in the Minneapolis area, said another option is to spray the exterior of the unit one coil section at a time with low water pressure.
“You don’t want to spray directly down on it. Spray on the sides in a sweeping motion from left to right and work your way down,” he said.
Keep the air on
Sure, instinct might be to turn off the air conditioner and crank open windows while away, but not during a heat wave.
“People think ‘If I’ve got a nice cross breeze it will keep the house cool.’ It’s not about temperature, it’s about humidity. Opening a window is one of the worst things that you can do because you’re bringing in humidity,” Ryan said. “If you want to change the temperature when you’re gone, then fine. But don’t (change it) more than 3 to 5 degrees.”
Clean air filter regularly
A dirty air filter will reduce airflow, making your system run harder and your house cool less efficiently.
“The good rule of thumb is every time you pay your mortgage or credit card bill, change your air filter,” Ryan said, adding that some types of air filters can last longer. “But 99% of the time the ones people have in their homes require them to be changed once a month, 12 months out of the year.”
Schedule a yearly tune-up
Being proactive by giving your cooling system a tune-up at the beginning of the season is key. Like a car, neglecting it can cause more damage in the future.
“The problem is if you don’t fix something, it will fail at an inopportune time,” Ryan said. “If it’s failing and not working optimally, it will stress out other components of your systems. If it runs optimally it will use less energy, which will cost you less and it will last longer.”
Staying cool without air conditioning
Not everyone has an air conditioner. During a heat wave, try to head to a place that has air conditioning. If that’s not possible, hang out in the basement, which will provide the coldest air in your house.
Use fans and, if there’s a breeze, open the windows.
“Cook outside as much as you can and look to grill or make salads,” said Ryan. “Any excess heat that you add to your house is going to make you feel more uncomfortable.”
Get your grill ready for summer barbecues: A guide to cleaning it
For the grill of it
Nothing tastes quite as good as vegetables and meat cooked over an open-propane flame or the red-hot briquettes of a barbecue grill.
But achieving the perfect sear on your food requires more than just paying attention to the heat source and temperature. Having a clean grill reduces annoying flare-ups, allowing you to have more success when grilling.
Grills with bits of leftover food stuck to the grates or with grease and food bits in the lower section of the grill can reduce the longevity of the grill and can affect the taste of the food you are grilling. Here’s a guide to cleaning your grill to get it ready for summer:
Cleaning your grill’s grates
Any cleaning process with a barbecue grill should start by cleaning the grates (the surface where the food sits while cooking).
Just be sure to allow the grill and grates to cool down for an hour or more before starting the cleaning process, because you may need to touch the parts of the grill.
Grates collect food particles and grease over time. As you cook, leaving the particles in place, they will burn to a black residue, some of which will remain stuck to the grates and some of which will stick to the food that you cook in the future.
Fortunately, cleaning the grates is not as difficult as it sounds.
Scraping and brushing the grates
Use a tool to scrape food particles off the grates on the grill to start the cleaning process.
If you haven’t cleaned the grates for a while, a scraper tool is the best option. The scraper should have notches in it to match the size and shape of your grates. Metal scraper tools usually work best, although some people prefer wood scraper tools.
After scraping the majority of the grime off the grates, then use a brush for a finer cleaning process. There are three primary designs in grill-cleaning brushes:
- Metal bristles: A metal bristle grill brush will give you the most thorough cleaning, as the metal bristles are stiff and durable. However, metal bristles may pop loose from the brush and stick to the grates, meaning they could end up on food, creating a serious health hazard if someone ingests a bristle.
- Nylon bristles: A nylon bristle grill brush will be safer to use on the grill, especially one with light-colored bristles that are easy to see if they stick to the grates. However, nylon bristles don’t quite remove food as effectively as metal bristles.
- Bristle-free: Some people prefer a bristle-free grill brush to eliminate the possibility of loose bristles ending up in food. These work more like scraper tools, but they are a little easier to use for general cleaning over a larger space than the scraper covers.
Add gentle dish soap and warm water to the grates before using the brushes. After removing the particles of food with the brushes, you may want to use a paper towel soaked in warm water and dish soap to finish wiping down the grates.
Cleaning grill’s grates after each use
To simplify the process of thoroughly cleaning the grates a few times per year, you will want to quickly clean the grates after each use. You can perform this cleaning step while the grates on the grill are still warm.
Apply a degreaser spray to the grates first. Then use a grill-cleaning brick, scrubbing back and forth across the grates to remove the loose food particles stuck to the grates.
After cleaning, apply warm water to the grates, and scrub again with the clean side of the brick.
Cleaning the interior
You’ll want to clean out the interior section of the grill, as well, removing bits of food and grease that fall into the bowl of the grill to prevent flare-ups.
Cleaning a gas-grill interior
The burners inside the gas grill eventually may become covered in grime, so you should run a brush over them to pop grime out of the holes where the flame appears.
If the burners have a flame shield over them to distribute heat, you should be able to pull the shields out and wash them separately with dish soap.
Scrape the interior of the grill to loosen and remove any buildup of grime and food particles.
Cleaning a charcoal-grill interior
Clean the ash and remaining briquettes out of the bowl of the charcoal grill after every one to three uses. If you can tip the grill to pour out the ash, this is the best method.
Scrape the interior of the grill bowl to loosen and clean out any remaining residue. You can use mild dish soap with warm water or a degreasing spray to finish cleaning the interior of the grill.
Cleaning the exterior
The exterior of the grill will not become as grimy and soiled as the interior of the grill, but you will want to give it a quick cleaning a few times a year. Just use a bit of degreaser spray or dish soap and a sponge to wipe down the exterior of the grill.
Heat up the grill after cleaning
After giving the grill a thorough cleaning, you will want to run the heat on a gas grill for at least 10 minutes to burn off any residue that remains from the cleaning process.
For a charcoal grill, you will want to allow the lit briquettes to thoroughly heat the interior of the grill before adding the food the next time you use it. In other words, wait a few minutes longer than normal after the briquettes heat up before placing food on the grates.
Preventive cleaning tips
To keep your grill clean year-round, which will lengthen its lifespan, try these suggestions:
- Store the grill inside a garage or shed to keep it out of the elements, especially in the winter.
- Use a water-resistant grill cover that protects the entire unit, draping nearly all the way to the ground.
- Use a grill mat over the top of the grates on the grill, especially when cooking messy food, which keeps the grates from accumulating grease and bits of food.
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