Winter often brings changes in how your HVAC system sounds, runs, or feels. You might notice longer run times, new noises, or rooms that don’t seem to warm evenly. For many homeowners, these changes immediately raise concern that something is wrong. The reality is that HVAC systems behave differently in winter, and many changes are completely normal. Cold weather affects airflow, materials, and runtime patterns in ways that don’t occur during warmer months.

When most homeowners think about HVAC problems, they think about summer. The air conditioner can’t keep up. The house won’t cool down. Energy bills spike. That’s usually when the panic sets in. But here’s the truth most people don’t hear often enough: HVAC systems rarely fail suddenly. Most breakdowns don’t start during summer heat waves — they start quietly months earlier. Winter is one of the most strategic times to pay attention to your HVAC system.

Drafts might feel like a small nuisance — that little chill you notice when you walk past a window or sit by the back door. But those tiny leaks? They’re actually one of the biggest reasons Houston homeowners waste money on energy bills. The U.S. Dept of Energy estimates that 25–40% of heating and cooling energy loss comes from air leaks. In Houston, where AC is practically a year-round utility bill and heaters make surprise appearances during cold snaps, sealing drafts pays

Here’s a not-so-fun fact: the average home loses 20–30% of conditioned air through leaky ductwork. Translation? You’re paying to cool your attic, your crawlspace, and possibly your neighbor’s attic too. Your ducts are the hidden highways of your HVAC system, quietly moving air from point A (your unit) to point B (your living room). But when they spring a leak, those highways turn into toll roads you’re footing the bill for. So how do you know if your ductwork is betraying y

If we had a dollar for every time we heard, “It just needs more Freon”, we could retire and spend our days on a beach somewhere cooler than Houston in August. But here’s the deal — most of what you’ve heard about Freon (and other refrigerants) is about as accurate as a weather forecast from 1987. Let’s clear the air.

Houston summers are no joke. We’ve got heat that could fry an egg on your driveway and humidity that makes you question every life choice involving a blow dryer. But what happens when your AC decides it’s going to pull an all-nighter… every night? While it might seem like your system is just trying to help, an AC that runs nonstop can be a sign something’s not right — and it can run your energy bill higher than a Buc-ee’s billboard.