When cold weather arrives, you need your heating equipment to work properly without any issues. That’s why residential and commercial air conditioning and heating contractors recommend regularly maintaining your equipment. After all, you don’t want it to conk out when you need it most.
There are certain mistakes you should avoid in particular when using your furnace. Learning about them can help prevent you from committing mistakes that might lead to damage or increased energy bills. Here are some of them:
Trying to heat your home faster. Do you ever come home to a freezing house, then crank up the heat, hoping your house will instantly feel warmer? All this does is force the unit to run longer. Working overtime can cause your furnace to break down, so instead of doing this, install an automatic thermostat that lowers the temperature when you’re not around and automatically turns it up a notch about an hour before you get home. Thus, you’ll arrive at a comfortably warm house without overworking the heating equipment.
Not replacing the air filter. You might think you need a heating or air conditioning repair, but sometimes you just have a dirty air filter. Make sure to clean or replace your filter when it’s dirty. This will also prevent your HVAC unit from becoming a source of dirty indoor air that could result in health concerns. Allergies and asthma flare-ups can sometimes be traced back to a dirty air filter.
Letting in drafts. Drafts will make your home uncomfortably cold. They’ll also force your furnace to work twice as hard, which can lead to damage and higher utility bills. Check your windows and doors; often, drafts enter through cracks or gaps around them. Seal up any that you find with weatherstripping and caulk. This is a cheap and easy way to prevent drafts.
Neglecting maintenance. It’s easy to forget about your HVAC unit if it’s running well, but this is no excuse for neglecting regular maintenance. Have your unit checked by a professional at least once a year to make sure it’s ready to handle the heating needs of your home when winter arrives. This will help prevent potential issues from getting worse and becoming more expensive to repair.
Get in touch with Cool Zone Air Conditioning & Heating for your heating and AC repair and maintenance needs. We also offer commercial air conditioner installations. Call us today at (623) 777-3881 or fill out this form.
