How to Tell When You Should Leave Heating Tasks to a Pro

There’s a big difference between a home heating system that’s well maintained and one that’s not. The former is more likely than the latter to operate without breakdowns, use less energy and provide balanced heating and clean indoor air. Proper furnace and heat pump maintenance requires a combination of do-it-yourself and professional heating tasks. Heating Tasks You Can Do Yourself

• A dirty air filter can restrict airflow through your forced-air heating system, making your furnace blower or air handler and compressor work harder than necessary. Dust and debris can also collect on HVAC components as well. This means wasted energy and more frequent repairs. Check your air filter once a month, and if it looks dirty, replace or clean it (depending on the filter).
• Make sure your heating vents and registers are not blocked by rugs, furniture or other objects.
• Remove any leaves, sticks, foliage and other objects from the outside compressor unit of your heat pump for optimum airflow across the coil. If you’re handy, clean the fan blades, motor and coil, following the manufacturer’s recommendations.

Heating Tasks for a Professional

• Your technician should clean, lubricate and/or adjust various mechanical components in your heating system, including the blower motor, the ignition and the burners. He should also tighten electrical connections and make sure terminals are clean. Inspecting your furnace exhaust system, including pipes, flues, chimney, etc., is important for your family’s safety.
• If a heat pump provides heat in your home, your technician will inspect and adjust airflow, making sure the refrigerant level is at the prescribed level. He’ll also clean indoor and outdoor coils, as well as the condensate drain and pan.
• A comprehensive maintenance tune-up should also include a thermostat check and an inspection of your ductwork for any leaks.

To discuss signing up for our Comfort Club maintenance program, please contact Stack Heating & Cooling in the Greater Cleveland area. Our goal is to help educate our customers in Cleveland, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about heating tasks and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide. Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Orla/Shutterstock”

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