Need a new HVAC system?
Good maintenance of your HVAC system is just as essential to its efficient and long lasting performance as maintaining your automobile or any other piece of machinery. Proper care and monitoring of your comfort system will assist with better performance and a longer life of service to your home or business.
Any machine needs to be kept clean in order to operate at its maximum potential. When your HVAC system tries to function under clogged and dirty conditions, it must work harder to provide the comfort you are demanding from it. It will do its best to keep chugging along as well as it can, but it will have to work much harder. This will not only consume more energy, an unpleasant symptom that will show up on your utility bills, it will also put much more wear on the system itself. This may cause more frequent breakdowns, costly repairs, and ultimately, a necessary replacement. One big favor you can do for your HVAC system and your family's respiratory health is to CHANGE THE FILTER REGULARLY.
A seasonal cleaning and maintenance check by properly trained professionals can help to minimize energy consumption and many times prevent problems in the system from becoming critical and interfering with your comfort during seasonal extremes. Some consider it annoying or inconvenient to have to remember to call for preventative maintenance. However, it takes annoyance and inconvenience, not to mention cost, to a whole new level if you put it off until your furnace has unexpectedly breathed its last at 2 a.m. on a cold, sub-freezing January night.
More than one third of the energy consumed in the United States is used to heat and cool buildings. HVAC systems are one of the single largest users of energy in a home or business. According to a study by the CEE (Consortium of Energy Efficiency) as much as 50% of energy use can be conserved with preventive maintenance, along with proper installation and sizing of commercial units. Although the study did not include residential research, there is every reason to believe that homeowners can expect to save as much using these same measures with their HVAC systems.
WHAT IS A ‘CLEAN AND CHECK’?
What does a Clean and Check Maintenance call include? SAFETY FIRST. All electrical components are checked for proper amp draw, safe wiring, and connections. Furnace heat exchanger and burners also are evaluated for safety. A Clean and Check Maintenance call also includes:
- Taking apart the unit and cleaning all the parts individually; the burners, heat exchanger, blower, controls, valves, and pressure switch.
- Cleaning the inside of the unit
- Running the system through a series of diagnostic checks after re-assembling it to make sure that everything is functioning properly.
FURNACE LIFE EXPECTANCY
The life expectancy of most furnaces today averages between 15 and 20 years. Like every other machine or appliance that is in regular use, your furnace will lose efficiency as it ages and necessary repairs will become more frequent. It may also begin to make strange noises, such as pops, bangs, rattles, squeaks, or squeals.
SAFETY
As your furnace ages, one of the symptoms it can sustain is a crack in the heat exchanger, which will allow CO (carbon monoxide) to leak into your home. CO is a dangerous and poisonous gas that has no scent and cannot be seen or tasted. Exposure to this gas can cause symptoms that could be confused with influenza; including headaches, nausea, burning eyes, dizziness or drowsiness, as well as fluttering or throbbing heartbeat, cherry-red lips or an usually pale complexion. If a person experiences a high level of exposure CO, it can cause loss of consciousness or even death.
CO poison results from the incomplete burning of fuels such as charcoal, wood, oil, kerosene, propane, or gas. While carbon monoxide detectors can give warning about a CO leak, the best course of action to prevent CO poisoning is to be sure that your fuel burning appliances (along with flues, vents, and chimneys) are regularly and properly maintained. If you notice any of the above-mentioned symptoms without identifying their cause, please open your doors and windows, call 911, and have your furnace system professionally checked IMMEDIATELY.
