Staying cool this season

Tonight's consumer alert... news 10's richard solomon walks you through the steps you need to take to stay cool this season.

Richar} we'll be in the heat of the summer before you know it.

And you'll probably be relying on your ac unit to keep your entire house cool.

I spoke with an expert with bays heating and cooling who says there are prior steps you want to take before cutting your unit on.

The countdown to summer is on.

That means keeping your home at a comfortable temperature is a priority.

Even though we're talking about air conditioning... john bays says the first step starts with the furnace.

"before you ever turn your air conditioning unit on you should always check your filter inside."

Bays says make sure it's not discolored.

He says these panels pick up the dust in the air.

"if it's not clean spray it off with the hose before you turn it on so you don't have overheating issues."

Overheating issues."

The ac unit is usually shut down for 6 months.

Bays says there may be some smells after turning on the system for the first time.

Some of those are common.

Bays says the earlier in the day you turn your system on the better.

"a big problem a lot of people run into is they'll leave their ac off until it's already hot in the house and then your ac has to struggle to try and catch back up."

He keeps his thermastat on 70 to level out the house.

Bays says taking these steps will keep your home comfortable all summer long.

"of course keep your furnace filter changed keep it checked and keep the outdoor unit cleaned and that'll all help with your bills."

Bays says you'd want to get your unit checked earlier in the year towards the spring.

Reporting in rosedale richard solomon news 10.

Turing on your a-c