Your home’s heating system is your family’s primary source of comfort and safety during those frigid winter months. If you’re not giving it the care and attention that it deserves (and needs!), then you’re not getting the most out of it.
Regular furnace maintenance can help your heating system do its job more effectively and more efficiently, too. That means that you won’t have to crank up the heat to get your home adequately warm, and your utility bills will be lower for it.
So how exactly do you keep a well-maintained furnace? Well, you can schedule annual furnace maintenance with Buric Heating and Air Conditioning and have a licensed professional HVAC technician take care of it for you.
There are still a few things you can do between tune-ups to keep your furnace running smoothly and your utility bills as low as possible. We’ve listed a few of them below. Please note, even some of these maintenance tasks would be best done with professional assistance!
Before You Start…
Whenever you’re working with a heating system in your home or anyone else’s, you must take all the necessary safety precautions to ensure that your attempts at furnace maintenance don’t turn into something disastrous一or, worse, tragic. Before you do anything, be sure to shut your furnace down, ensuring that both the power system and any connected circuits are not on. Once the system is totally shut down, you’ll be able to go about safely cleaning your furnace and inspecting it for anything that might look “off.”
You also need to be cautious about gas leaks, as they can become deadly fairly easily. If you identify a gas leak in your furnace, call in a professional HVAC technician to handle it. That is beyond your pay grade, and any mistakes could put you in a precarious position.
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Check Your Thermostat
Sometimes issues with your home’s heating system are not due to the furnace itself but rather because of a faulty thermostat. It’s always a good idea to test your thermostat out before seeking other solutions, as there’s no reason to call in the professionals when all you need are some new batteries. Flip your thermostat on and see if it’s providing your home with a comfortable amount of heat. Not turning on? Try replacing the batteries.
If the number on display isn’t quite matching the feel of your home and the device’s batteries are new, you may have found the source of your issue.
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Check Your Filter System
Your furnace’s filter is a simple but essential part of your home’s heating system. It collects all kinds of dirt, dust, debris, and bacteria and prevents it from spreading throughout your home. Over time, however, the filter will eventually become too full of all the debris it collects and become clogged up. That will not only cause your furnace to work harder, raising your utility bills, but it will also affect your home’s air quality. Every few months or so, you should look at your furnace’s filter and clean it off. If you think you need a new one, give the pros a call.
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Clean Your Furnace’s Blower
Your furnace’s blower motor assembly is directly connected to the filter, so the next item on your furnace maintenance agenda should be to clean your blower. You’ll notice that some of the dirt, dust, and debris that has managed to pass through your filter has begun to accumulate around this piece of your furnace.
Call a professional if your furnace needs a new blower or if that piece could use a thorough cleaning.
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Assess Your Furnace’s Ducts and Vents
It’s always important to keep an eye on your furnace’s ducts, as they are one of the most frequently damaged elements of your home’s heating system. Check on your ducts every once in a while, and clean them out with a vacuum cleaner, and you should be able to avoid most issues with them.
Your vent system will also gather a ton of dust and debris, which can cause your furnace to run poorly and lower the air quality in your home. Make sure to keep them as clean as possible using a vent brush. If you can’t do a sufficient job, or you don’t feel confident working with your ductwork, call the professionals.
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Call in the Professionals
Sometimes, your best option is to put your home’s heating system in the trusted hands of a licensed HVAC professional. So if you haven’t already, you should call the pros!
There are certain aspects of furnace maintenance that are simple and easily handled by the average homeowner. Others require years of schooling and experience to understand fully. An HVAC professional can identify issues with your home’s heating system before they develop so that they can provide simple, affordable repairs rather than costly, extensive ones. If you want to ensure that your home’s heating system stays in perfect working order, call in an expert.
Where Can I Find the Best Furnace Maintenance Near Me?
If you need furnace maintenance, contact the licensed HVAC professionals at Buric Heating and Air Conditioning or call today to schedule your appointment.
