Avoid Common Furnace Mistakes

If you are like me, when it comes to my home’s furnace, the main thing that I care about is this: when I turn it on, it works properly and efficiently and pumps warm air into my home. Of course, this is oversimplifying it a bit, but you catch my drift … I’m not really interested in learning all the ins and outs of how my furnace works and why—just furnace mistakes I might be making. Your friends at Masters Heating & Cooling can handle the job of Fort Wayne heating specialists just fine, right?

That said, it is a good idea to have some basic knowledge about your furnace. Homeowners often make mistakes when it comes to taking care of their furnace or operating it and with a little knowledge, these issues can be avoided. Here are some Furnace 101 tips and highlights that can help you steer clear of common mistakes and problems:

1. CLEAN FILTERS ARE CRITICAL. If you take nothing else away from this blog, make sure it is this. Changing your air filter regularly is the easiest and most inexpensive thing you can do to help keep your furnace clean and operating smoothly.
2. DON’T SKIP REGULAR MAINTENANCE. It’s easy to do….the system seems to be working OK, so why do I need to pay for a tune-up? Don’t fall into that trap… regular maintenance and annual inspections and heating system tune-ups by licensed HVAC professionals will help ensure little problems don’t become big ones. They will also determine if your old furnace is still efficient or if replacement may be needed.
3. THE RIGHT THERMOSTAT IS IMPORTANT. Many homeowners ask us, “Do I have the right thermostat for my system?” This is an important question because the thermostat is the regulator of your system. It tells your furnace when to come on and for how long. There are many factors that determine a correct thermostat fit, including whether your system is single-stage or multi-stage, or if you have a zoned system. Call Masters today and we can make sure your thermostat is right for your home. We can also show you the benefits of our line of Honeywell and Trane programmable and WiFi thermostats, which enable you to monitor and set the temperature in your home anytime, anywhere.
4. INSTALL CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS. Carbon Monoxide (CO) detectors are basically an early-warning system. A malfunctioning or damaged furnace may emit unhealthy levels of CO that a detector will alert you to. If your detector goes off, call Masters immediately for a furnace inspection.

Those are just a few tips for avoiding some common mistakes that should help keep your furnace running the way it should during the winter weather that is settling over the Fort Wayne, Decatur, Angola, Greenwood, Mishawaka and Indianapolis areas. Another good tip is to call your friends at Masters today and let us schedule your furnace maintenance with our Energy Savings Agreement. This plan includes an annual 17-point precision furnace tune-up, priority service and discounts on parts and labor. Call our professionals today for more info and while you are at it, please like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.