As a homeowner or even a landlord, you have the ultimate responsibility for the maintenance of items in your home. That includes the furnace, an essential part of your home heating system.
After all, it’s significantly cheaper to prevent it from breaking down than it is to spend thousands replacing it. However, qualified furnace repair technician can easily fix major issues.
How the Average Furnace Works
A furnace is designed to heat air. The heated air is then moved throughout the house through dedicated ducts, allowing warm air to feed into every room. At the same time, the cooler air will move downward, being sucked into the furnace and heated. This is why most houses have furnaces on the lower floor or basement of the house. Physics dictates that cold air sinks, allowing it to be warmed by the furnace and help your home remain at a constant and comfortable temperature.
Furnaces can be powered by electricity or fossil fuels like oil and gas. It’s worth noting that electrically powered furnaces are generally better for the environment but they can cost significantly more to buy, potentially ruining their cost-effectiveness.
Importance of Servicing
If you’re interested in extending the life of your furnace then the first step is to contact a local firm and ask them to service your furnace for you.
A service will ensure that all parts are functioning correctly. This is important if you want to avoid the furnace breaking down when you need it the most. Alongside this, the service will ensure the furnace is working as efficiently as possible. This reduces the strain on it when operating, effectively extending its life.
Of course, more efficiency means your fuel will go further, helping to keep costs down.
It is also worth noting that regular servicing helps to prevent leaks, specifically carbon monoxide which can be very dangerous.
Visual & Audio Inspections
While a furnace service technician will have a lot of knowledge about your furnace, they won’t be familiar with the creaks and groans your machine naturally makes. You are more likely than anyone else to be aware of what sounds and looks right on your furnace.
In short, you need to visually inspect your furnace several times a year. This will allow you to locate any issues and decide what to do about them, even if that then means ringing a professional.
The same is true about strange sounds. If you detect any coming from your furnace it is best to get some professional help. You could be avoiding an expensive repair. Again, you know the sounds your machine makes and are most likely to notice if it starts to make strange or peculiar noises.
Cleaning Vents
Your furnace pumps warm air around your home through dedicated ducts. This is an efficient system. However, in order to minimize any issues with dust allergies, the ducts have vents that filter out the larger pollutants in the air.
Over time, the vents will get clogged and need to be removed. If you don’t do this regularly the airflow will be reduced or stop altogether because it can’t get past.
This will place a strain on the furnace and is likely to shorten its life.
More modern furnaces will also incorporate a filter. This will be designed to improve the quality of air in your home. Naturally, this filter is only effective if it is either cleaned or replaced regularly. You should log the dates in your schedule to ensure you don’t miss them.
It is possible to remove most vents to clean them with a vacuum or even under running water. But, don’t forget to slide the vacuum trick up the ducting as well, to ensure you remove as much debris as possible.
Avoid Running Out Of Fuel
As well as cleaning the vents and servicing the furnace, you need to keep an eye on the fuel level. When it gets too low the furnace is likely to suck in debris as well as fuel. This can then block the jets in the furnace and create a more complicated and expensive issue.
Blocked jets may be cleaned or replaced but it is much easier to avoid the problem and the strain on your furnace by avoiding running out of fuel in the first place.
Improve Insulation in Your Home
Another great way to prevent the need for furnace repairs is to reduce the strain on the furnace when in use. An effective way to do this is to increase the amount of insulation in your home. The better insulated your house the easier it will be for the furnace to bring the house to the right temperature.
This will naturally reduce strain on your furnace, helping it to last significantly longer.
Don’t forget, it’s not just about increased insulation. You also need to be vigilant and fill any gaps or cracks you can see. These will let warm air out as well as letting cold air and pests in. Pay particular attention to the areas around doors and windows.
Lower your Thermostat
You may have been told to lower your thermostat in order to reduce your energy bills and save yourself some money. In theory, this is good advice. What you may not have realized is that this approach will also reduce the strain on the furnace.
Anything that lowers the strain on a furnace will help the furnace to last longer without expensive repair bills.
Keep Your Options Open
As your furnace ages, it is likely to need a higher level of maintenance and even repairs. The result is a gradually increasing annual bill. You’ll need to be objective regarding how frequently the furnace needs repairing. The more often it is, the closer your machine is to being replaced.
While you want to adopt these furnace repair prevention tips, you need to monitor the available grants for replacement systems. Knowing how to extend the life of your furnace also means knowing when you can get grants and other aid to replace your furnace with a modern energy-efficient solution.
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