LOUISIANA, USA — During this excessive heat warning, you'll want to stay inside as much as possible, but even our air conditioners aren't immune to the dangerous temperatures.
The owner of Southern Services AC & Heating, David Cefalu, said he's been 'extremely busy' with calls for service around the Greater New Orleans area.
Cefalu said you need to adjust your expectations when it's this hot.
“Heat gets over 100 degrees, heat index 110, everybody suffering, they want it the same temp as when it’s 90 or 85 and it’s not going to happen you know," Cefalu said.
Cefalu said there are a few things technicians can do if your house is heating up.
Checking the pressures and making sure condensers are clean are typical solutions, Cefalu said.
“You want to make sure the motors lubricated," Cefalu said, "And like I said the electronics you want to make sure no wires are starting to melt or burn. We have a lot of issues down here with electrical surges, power outages, brown outs. Which can wreck a unit.”
Before calling a technician out, Cefalu said you can do a few basic things yourself.
Keep all the doors in your house open to help the air flow through, keep the ceiling fans on to circulate air and replace air filters.
“Filters everybody thinks the pack says every three months. Check them every 30 days. At least every 30 days," Cefalu said.
Cefalu also said you should not turn your air off when you're gone because it will make your unit work even harder once you're home.
“Worst thing you can do," Cefalu said.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.