You fire up your furnace, the gentle hum fades into the background, and you sink into the comfort it provides without a second thought. That’s how it’s supposed to be, but your furnace can hit a roadblock: a dire need for maintenance, and if it isn’t met, it can have serious consequences for your system.
Furnace maintenance isn’t just a good idea–it’s crucial to keep the heat on. Your furnace sends out signals like warning shots to let you know that it needs maintenance. Let’s teach you what some of those are.
Sudden Increase in Utility Costs
The end of the month rolls around, and you notice a sizable spike in your bill. As far as you can remember, you didn’t change your habits or behaviors, and the energy rates are the same, so what gives?
Your furnace receives a simple “ON” signal from the thermostat and works tirelessly until the thermostat sends an “OFF” signal when the target temperature has been achieved. If it’s chugging along with damaged components or a large gap in its maintenance history, it may have to expend more energy to hit that target. Maintenance can help alleviate this.
Furnace Short Cycling
Short cycling is typically an air conditioning problem, but it can happen with your furnace as well. Don’t worry–it doesn’t mean you need furnace replacement, but it does need to be addressed ASAP.
This could happen because your flame sensor is clogged with soot and debris that builds up over time from standard operation. Your flame sensor is a safety mechanism that prohibits gas from exiting your gas line if it can’t detect a flame, otherwise you would just pump gas into the air of your home and create an explosive hazard.
Your House Heats Unevenly
Your home should be heated evenly, but if your furnace just can’t meet its expected output, you’ll notice rooms that are farthest from the furnace may still feel chilly. This is fairly easy to detect by monitoring the temperature in a room close to the furnace’s location (since there’s a shorter distance for the conditioned air to travel in the ductwork), then walk to the farthest room and feel the contrast.
Don’t Delay Furnace Maintenance
Furnace maintenance is an annual service that greatly reduces the issues you’ll face with your furnace throughout its lifespan, and it even increases its lifespan potential to boot. Don’t look at maintenance as an inconvenience. See it for what it is–a smart way to reduce stress and lower your lifetime spending on heating bills and repairs.
Our team of Home Performance Experts has served the I-5 corridor from Blaine to Marysville, Oak Harbor to Concrete, and the San Juan Islands since 1972 with a mission of Improving Lives™. We look forward to serving you too! Contact Barron Heating and Air Conditioning today for service.