Furnace Repair - Tips To Consider

1. FURNACE REPAIR - TIPS TO CONSIDER Keep Your Heating System in Top Shape!

2. SYNOPSIS

3. SIMPLE FURNACE REPAIR TASKS YOU CAN DO YOURSELF  Replace the Thermostat Battery  Simply changing the batteries could be all it takes to get your heating system running properly once again and it’s something that you can do in minutes.  If your home thermostat isn’t functioning right it could be time to replace it. There are advanced thermostats available today designed to reduce heating costs and that offer additional benefits like wireless warnings. Look into one of these units if you are in need of one and talk with professionals about having them installed in your home.  Look at the Breakers  Your home’s circuit breaker could be key to getting your furnace operational once again. There’s always a chance that the furnace could trip a breaker, and if it does it won’t operate any longer at that point. Simply flipping the breaker switch could be all it takes to get your furnace up and running once again. Take a look at your breaker box for a switch that’s in a different position than all the rest. Chances are good that it was tripped by something and needs to be flipped back for power to be restored once again.

4. SIMPLE FURNACE REPAIR TASKS YOU CAN DO YOURSELF  If your furnace shuts off, take a minute to look at the breakers before you call in the professionals. Doing so could save you a lot of time and money in the process.  Swap Filters  While it’s rare, clogged filters can lead to furnace issues and they certainly reduce efficiency levels. Take some time to swap out air filters to keep that furnace running smoothly and to eliminate the possibility of these problems as well.  Take a look at different filters when buying them as well. Some filters must be replaced much more regularly than others. If you have trouble remembering to change filters, or don’t want to deal with the task regularly, it may be worth spending more to get a longer lasting filter to minimize the chore.

5. HOW TO MAINTAIN YOUR AIR QUALITY DURING WINTER MONTHS  Clean Registers and Ducts  Your heating and cooling system relies on a series of registers, vents and ducts to move air around. It’s important to make sure all of those things are kept nice and clean. While you can wash up the registers and vents around your home effectively, you’ll have to hire professionals to clean up the ducts themselves, but a complete cleaning only needs to be performed once every few years to keep ducts clear of dust and dirt.  Swap out Furnace Filters Regularly  Your furnace likely has a high quality filter in place designed to catch dust and debris as it passes through. Swap out old filters as they become dirty to trap as much dust and dirt as possible and to keep air moving through your heating system reliably.

6. HOW TO MAINTAIN YOUR AIR QUALITY DURING WINTER MONTHS  Dust Frequently  Diligently dust off as many surfaces of your home as you can on a regular basis to minimize dust particles in your air. Take care to wipe off ceiling fans, shelves, and any other flat surfaces around your home, particularly those up high. Doing this on a regular basis will help remove dust from your house and improve your home’s air quality.  Install a Filtration System  There are small and large filtration systems that you can get for single rooms or multiple rooms of your home. You can even have a large filtration system installed on your heating ducts themselves to really supercharge your ability to clean up the air in your home.  Consider UV Systems  The last thing that you can do to improve the air quality throughout your home is to add UV disinfecting systems at key points in your duct system. They rely on brilliant UV lights to kill of bacteria, viruses and germs that could build up over time and degrade the quality of your air. These systems aren’t cheap, but can help keep your home healthier over time.

7. THE IMPORTANCE OF A FURNACE TUNE UP  Extend Furnace Life  The furnace is one of the most expensive appliances in your home and one of the most important, especially if you live in the north. To save you money over time you want to extend the life of your furnace as much as possible. After all, the longer your furnace is running properly, the more money you are saving by avoiding paying for a new furnace. When you do finally replace your furnace, you will have had additional years to save up for that replacement cost.  Reduce Future Expenses  Replacing your furnace is a serious expense for sure, but chances are good you’ll need to replace just a major component or two long before the entire furnace. By applying regular maintenance procedures you can reduce the need to replace significant components on your furnace, which cuts ownership costs significantly.  Improve Energy Efficiency Levels  A home furnace system operates best when it’s professionally maintained. During regular maintenance dust and scale buildup are removed, the flame sensor and pilot timing are recalibrated, the heat exchanger and combustion chamber are cleaned up and the whole system is optimized to keep your furnace running in tip-top shape.

8. THE MAJOR STEPS IN A PROPER FURNACE CLEANING AND TUNE UP  Clean up the Burners  Many major furnace failures and problems are related to dirty or misaligned burners. Make sure the maintenance professionals that come to your home take the time to clean up the burners and to align them if they are out of position. Most experts will clean off burners using compressed air and a stiff bristle brush. Buildup can become quite thick, so it takes time to clear off burners properly.  Clear Condensate Lines  Another key area that professionals need to focus on is the condensate line for your furnace. This line can become clogged and cause malfunctions in furnaces, especially during very cold periods when the furnace runs constantly. Getting this line cleared out is an important step for technicians to take to keep the furnace operating properly. Often compressed air is used to clear out these lines, but there are other techniques available as well. Often furnaces that suffer from unexplained problems that persist after a tune up by technicians are suffering from clogged condensate lines.

9. THE MAJOR STEPS IN A PROPER FURNACE CLEANING AND TUNE UP  Clear Blowers  Furnace blowers are constantly moving air around, which is why they are often equipped with filters. It’s important for blowers themselves to be cleaned out and prepared for smooth operation. They can become clogged or stop working properly over time, especially the fans themselves. Compressed air or a simple wipe down will remove dust buildup on blowers and get them running properly once again. If your blower begins to sound strange, it’s possible it just needs a thorough cleaning.  Replace Filters  Your system should have a minimum of one in-line filter and many have additional filters to care for as well. It’s important that each one of these filters is replaced at the time of cleaning to keep them in good operating condition and to prevent things like air blockages from developing.

10. WHY PAY PROFESSIONALS TO CLEAN YOUR FURNACE DUCTS Keep in mind that removing debris from your furnace might not affect air quality, because most of the dust and grime sticks to the walls of your ducts and doesn’t come out in the air. With that said, talk with professional cleaners about the benefits that you can expect and what will happen if you do have your ducts cleaned. By talking with professionals you can get an idea of the benefits of this type of services and it should help you decide if you want to pay for cleaning or not.

11. WHICH IS BEST FOR CLOGGED DRAINS A HYDROJET OR SNAKE?  When to use a Snake  A snake or plumbing auger is best used for milder clogs, or in weaker pipes that simply won’t withstand a hydro jet cleaning. That’s because an auger is a gentler cleaning method that works quite well on most household blockages. A drain snake swivels and pushes its way through most clogs without an issue, and will create a pathway for water to flow through easily, but it won’t remove the entire blockage in most instances. Instead it leaves behind debris around the edges, and new clogs will often form in the same location in weeks or months after.  When to Make Use of Them  Hydro jets are the heavy lifters of the unclogging world and will blast away dirt, grime, grease and nearly all debris in a pipe system. They leave behind no traces of a clog and are viewed as a more permanent de-clogging solution. Unfortunately, hydro jets are very powerful and can actually break fragile plumbing systems. Professional plumbers usually check a pipe system using a camera before making use of a hydro jet tool, to ensure that the pipes are in good shape and durable enough to withstand its forces.

12. SHOULD YOU BUY AN ON DEMAND WATER HEATER FOR YOUR HOME? oYour best option is to sit down with a local plumber and to talk about your options and what the best approach is to convert your existing plumbing system to work with an on- demand water heater. Talk about whether you need multiple heaters around your property, talk about the cost involved to make the transition, and also discuss if there will be any extensive floor plan adjustments to fit the heaters around your home.

13. FURNACE REPAIR TASKS BEST LEFT UP TO PROFESSIONALS  Pilot Light Failure  If your furnace is suffering from a pilot light failure, it isn’t going to light up and produce heat like it’s supposed to. Instead it could be leaking harmful gases into your home, and it certainly isn’t helping your utility bill in the process. If you have a furnace that has this problem, don’t try and relight the light yourself. Chances are good there’s a reason that the light isn’t working and it’s important to get professionals in to take a look at the furnace to find out what the problem is.  Gas Leak or Carbon Monoxide Leak  Whether you have gases leaking into your home, or your furnace is leaking out carbon monoxide, this is a very serious problem that you should never ever try to deal with on your own. These gases are dangerous and potentially explosive as well. Only trained professionals should be dealing with this type of risk. Working on your furnace in this condition could put your life in danger, and it could void your warranty or even your homeowner’s insurance. Keep this in mind before you try and fix a potentially dangerous issue, because it’s just not worth it.

14. FURNACE REPAIR TASKS BEST LEFT UP TO PROFESSIONALS  Failed Blower  Often when your blower stops functioning properly it’s because the belt that connects the motor and the blower is bad and has failed. This isn’t a hugely complicated issue, but it’s still something that’s best left up to professionals. They will open up the blower compartment and swap out the belt for you so that the blower can be made operational once again. This procedure won’t take very long, but trying the project on your own could expose delicate parts to you and leaves the furnace open for damage. Be careful if you decide to try this repair on your own, because there are problems that can arise from an improper repair.  Adjusting the Limit Switch  If your furnace blower runs constantly and you don’t have your thermostat to the Blower ?On? position, you probably have a limit switch issue. The limit switch in your furnace is responsible for cycling your blower and it’s a delicate little instrument. It’s vital that it’s adjusted carefully, which is why it’s best to leave to professionals, even if you can find information about how to do it yourself.

15. THE END For more details, please visit: http://smile-hvac.ca/services/furnace-repair-regina/