Know the Benefits of Furnace Maintenance for your Comfort and Safety

Brace yourselves. Winter is coming. The days are getting shorter and soon there will be a chill in the air. While enjoying these last days of warm temperatures and all that the colorful fall season offers, it’s also the time to properly prepare your home’s furnace for winter. So, before you turn on your heating system for the first time, make sure it can handle everything that our Ohio winter has in store to keep you family safe and comfortable in the coming months.

While there are certain DIY steps you can take for your home’s maintenance it’s also important to call in the pros who have the expertise, and specialty tools to keep your system performing perfectly. Not maintaining your furnace properly means sacrificing important comfort, safety, and cost savings benefits.

1. Comfort

It may seem obvious, but it’s still good to point out that the most important benefit of having a properly maintained furnace is that your home remains warm during the cold Ohio winter. Ignoring this critical piece of machinery can mean a total breakdown if basic maintenance steps aren’t taken or serious problems aren’t caught early.

Your furnace needs some love and attention to keep you warm all winter long. Be sure to change your air filters regularly so air flow remains high. A professional can help clean or repair any dirty, corroded, clogged, or broken parts which would lead to slower heating. A service technician can also test whether your thermostat is registering the right temperature, which will help maintain the heat level you desire.

2.  Better Air Quality

We spend a lot of time indoors in the winter so air quality inside our homes important to our health and that of our family. DIY furnace maintenance should include cleaning dust and debris from inside ducts and vents. Remove vent covers and wipe down or vacuum inside. Removing dust, dirt, dander, and allergens will keep your air cleaner. During a tune-up from a professional, they will clean the inside and outside of the furnace and the blower, which will also help with air quality.

3.  Increased Safety

Just because something hasn’t been used in a while, doesn’t mean it’s safe to turn on without proper checks and maintenance. First, remove any obstructions from in front of heating vents or even items which may have fallen inside. Along with cleaning your vents, this helps reduce the risk of fire.

But further safety precautions are necessary to ensure smooth operation of the entire system. Over the summer, pilot and gas pressure could have shifted outside of manufacturer guidelines or electrical connections could have come loose or been damaged. During a professional tune-up, your Waterwork’s service pro will check the system controls and shutoffs, check fuel lines for leaks, test and tighten electrical connections, and inspect gas pressures, burner combustion, and the heat exchanger.

4.  Better Efficiency

An improperly maintained furnace will be inefficient in heating your home properly. Dirty and clogged filters mean your furnace works harder to heat up your home. Loose belts mean slower heating and longer running times. This translates into a higher usage of power and gas. Insulating air ducts with loose seals will let warm air escape and contribute to the inefficiency of your system. A professional tune-up can increase the efficiency of your furnace and get you warmer faster.

5. Save Money

All that added efficiency turns directly into savings on your heating bills. Investing in your furnace now will keep it running better for longer and is less expensive than the alternative. By scheduling a furnace tune-up, you may be able to put off the cost of replacement few extra years and avoid the high cost of emergency repairs. In the end, a tune-up this fall will save you a bundle in the future.

Before you turn on your furnace this fall, make sure to follow the proper DIY basic maintenance steps, then call The Waterworks for a professional inspection and tune-up visit. Keeping your furnace in top shape this winter is priority number one for your family’s comfort, safety, and health. Call The Waterworks experts today for better care, better value, and better results!