It’s funny, before I bought my own house, I didn’t have access to a central HVAC system.
Not even my parents had a central HVAC. They only used a boiler system along with a couple of window AC units. I lived in a few different apartments before buying a house too and they only provided heating with no cooling. That’s why I used a window AC unit for such a long time and it worked well enough considering the space in my apartments was limited. Well, it was a huge change for me when I bought a home and I felt pretty good about myself. I was talking with the neighbor one day and he mentioned that I would have to get a cover for my outdoor AC condenser unit. He said the previous neighbor before me never used a cover and he warned how it could get damaged with falling icicles and even critters could work their way into the equipment if you’re not careful. So I went to the hardware store and purchased a nice cover for the AC condenser unit. I was happy that I did that too because we had a few icicles fall onto the equipment, but it hit the hardcover and didn’t cause any damage to the HVAC equipment. The neighbor also advised that I get on an HVAC service plan if I was looking to stay around because that was the best way to save cash on regular maintenance and care. He said it was smart to do this because you never have to worry about system breakdowns and your system runs best with regular care, so you have lower energy bills. I got a lot of great advice from my neighbor.