A little over a year ago, my husband Frank and I retired and moved south. We were anxious to escape the snow and cold, and avoid the cost of running the furnace. We bought a little house near the water and were eager to fix it up. Since we moved during milder weather, we weren’t concerned with the heat or humidity. Frank and I concentrated on renovating our new home. We spent a great deal of time, effort and money on exterior landscaping and indoor aesthetics. Within a couple of months, the weather started to heat up. We had never experienced such severe heat and humidity. Although we started up the air conditioner, the house remained overheated and sticky. We turned the thermostat way down, but it didn’t make much difference. The air conditioner simply couldn’t keep up with demand. It ran non stop, but provided very little cold air. When Frank and I hired a local HVAC contractor to inspect the system, we were worried. We expected the HVAC technician to recommend replacing the air conditioner. There was definitely not enough money left in our budget for a new cooling system, and we’d be forced to take out a loan. The HVAC contractor carefully inspected the equipment and told us that while it was quite old, it was still in decent shape. He said that it simply hadn’t been serviced in a long time and was clogged with dust, mold, and other debris. The HVAC technician proceeded to carefully clean all components. He tightened electrical connections, replaced some of the belts, changed the filter, charged the refrigerant, and lubricated the motor. Once the service was complete, the air conditioner operated like new again. It now costs us far less to run, and yet the house remains perfectly cool.