There’s a furnace in your house. It keeps you warm. From time to time it needs maintenance. When it’s working well, you’re warm and comfortable from one room to the next. When it’s not up to par, you notice a lack of heat, or none at all.
That’s about as much as the average person knows about their furnace. If you count yourself among that group, this blog is especially for you. Because the more you know about your furnace, the better off you’ll be.
Here’s some vital information you’ll want to consider…perhaps even print a copy of it.
Air filters and your gas furnace
Newer model programmable thermostats alert you when your filter needs to be cleaned or replaced. That’s great if you have one. If not, you’ll have to figure it out the old-fashioned way…checking the filter for yourself on a regular basis – monthly would be a good place to start.
Here’s the bigger issue. The cleaner your filter, the easier time your furnace has in keeping you warm and comfortable. Conversely, a dirty filter forces your furnace to work harder to push enough warm air into your home to meet the demand set by the thermostat setting.
Better air quality with an air purifier
Adding a whole-house air purifier to your heating and cooling system will provide added comfort while ridding your home of 99% and more of indoor pollutants. There are different types of air purifiers and Optimum Air installs and maintains them all.
Gas furnace and carbon monoxide
With a gas furnace comes the possibility of gas and carbon monoxide leaks. That’s why, during an Optimum Air heating system and inspection, we thoroughly check your heat exchanger and flu. A well-functioning flu ensures that gas is properly venting outdoors. Carbon monoxide can enter your home through a crack in your heat exchanger. Common CO symptoms include headaches, dizziness, weakness, nausea, vomiting, chest pain, confusion, and even passing out. If you notice any of these symptoms repeating themselves, contact us right away.
Quiet & Odorless
That’s how your gas furnace is SUPPOSED to run. Some furnace noises are made during normal operation. However, pings, pops, rumbles and screeches aren’t sounds that you’d hear from a furnace that’s running like it should.
Odor-wide, you may notice a burning dust or dirt smell during your furnace’s first few cycles. Any other odor can signal trouble, especially if you smell gas, burning rubber, or plastic. If you smell natural gas, leave your home immediately and walk away from your house before calling 911 or your gas provider. Turn your furnace off if you smell burning odors other than dust and call Optimum Air.
Ongoing Maintenance
Number one on your list of “things to know” is that furnace can’t give you its best performance without annual preventive maintenance. That’s a service we perform efficiently and gladly here at Optimum Air for all our customers. We’d like to do the same for you. Contact us now to schedule service before it ends up on the back burner.