Watching the various weather folks on the news stations in Phoenix gets to be rather amusing at times. We’re in for record heat again this week with temps of 115 tomorrow and 116 on Wednesday. But the TV weather forecasters manage to put a positive spin on everything to make it not sound so bad: “It’ll be 115 tomorrow, 116 on Tuesday but we’ll cool way down by the weekend to only 107…” Now granted 107 is in fact cooler than 116 but I don’t subscribe to the theory that there is much of a difference between the two. If you add in the wind-chill, now we’re talking!
And we have had our share of Haboobs here in the Phoenix area this summer. I’m sure you have seen the videos on the news showing great clouds of dust that stretch for miles and are hundreds of feet high engulfing everything in its path. It does create havoc which actually brings me to a serious point (finally?) in this blog.
I did a home inspection in Mesa on Friday and found a rather common occurrence – a loose ridge cap tile:
When I showed the photo to the buyer he wondered what the “big deal” was. I explained that the violent winds associated with our monsoon storms here in Mesa could easily lift these 6 to 9 pound cement tiles right off of the roofs and send them crashing down, potentially injuring (or worse) someone or something. The buyer then understood why I was recommending that he have a qualified roofer check his roof and make the needed repairs.
Speaking of our famous haboobs, they tend to move tons of dust to all the wrong places. Swimming pools are especially susceptible and easily become filled with mud after these storms. Which means pool owners need to keep their sand or DE filters backwashed or their cartridge filters clean as the filters work to remove the mud from the pools. It does not take much dirt to cause the pressure to get to dangerous levels in the filters which again could lead to potential injury and/or equipment damage. If you have a listing with a pool make sure you are keeping tabs on the pool equipment or you have a pool service in place that is taking care of it for you.
Another spot for the dirt to end up is in the fins of the air conditioner unit.
The fan inside the unit sucks air in through the thin fins that surround the unit. When these fins get clogged with dirt and debris it greatly reduces the efficiency of the unit and costs you more money to operate let alone the added wear and tear on the unit. I suggest having your friendly HVAC professional check your A/C unit annually. But after several dust storms it would not hurt to have the unit cleaned more frequently. If you are handy you can easily find instructions on the internet on how to do this yourself. If you are uncomfortable doing the work yourself then leave it to a pro.
Another often overlooked location for dust collection is the furnace filters inside your home.
The above filter was originally a nice green color. More time than not when doing a home inspection I’ll find filters that have not been changed for months, years or never. “Out of sight, out of mind” will contribute to higher energy costs to run your heating and A/C if the filters are not changed on a regular basis – every 3 to 4 months. The EPA estimates that the air quality inside a home is 5 times more polluted than outside a home. Changing the filters in your home contributes to a healthier environment for you and your family. There are many types and styles of filters to choose from electrostatic to HEPA to the more common pleated air filter. Do a little research with your HVAC pro or online to determine which filter works best for you. The main thing is to get in the habit of changing the filters on a regular basis!
We put up with about 3 months of heat, haboobs and monsoon storms here in the Mesa and east valley of Phoenix, Arizona area. But that leaves us with about 9 months of near perfect weather! As a Mesa, Arizona home inspector part of my job is reminding folks to pay attention to various systems in their houses to keep everything running smooth and efficient year-round.
Now, I’ve got to go and find the sheets so I can cover my plants this weekend. I wouldn’t want those chilly 107 degree temps hurting my tender plants!
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