Planning ahead almost always has a positive outcome. Although it may seem insignificant, planning ahead can greatly improve how well your furnace performs when it’s placed under a heavy load during the cold Greenwood winter. That’s why Complete Comfort encourages you to take a look at this pre-winter furnace checklist to ensure that you’ve done everything possible to keep your furnace working well all winter long.
Get It Inspected Early
Before you turn your furnace on for the first time, it’s a good idea to have a technician from Complete Comfort inspect it. You may want to do this before you turn your furnace on to make sure there aren’t any problems with it that could become worse by turning it on. This can help save you money on repairs and ensure you don’t have a breakdown. Plus, by scheduling an inspection early, you’ll be able to select from a larger range of available timeslots so you don’t have to inconvenience yourself.
Change Your Air Filter
The hot summers in Greenwood can produce dusty conditions. Even in a well-sealed home, this dust can often find its way inside. This means your HVAC system’s air filter is likely to be fairly clogged, even if you don’t run your system often. To ensure your furnace has plenty of air to heat throughout the winter, our team at Complete Comfort recommends that you inspect your air filter and replace it if necessary. Then, throughout the winter, you’ll want to check your filter at least once a month to see if it needs to be replaced.
Clean The Area Around Your Furnace
If your busy summer has resulted in items being piled around your furnace, now is the perfect time to do some decluttering. In general, the area around your furnace needs to be free from any obstructions to ensure the furnace can properly vent any exhaust fumes. Plus, given the high temperatures inside a furnace, the act of leaving items around your furnace could cause these items to catch fire. Move all items away from your furnace and instruct everyone living in your home to avoid stacking any items near the furnace throughout the winter.
Check Your Furnace’s Flame Color
A strong flame in your furnace is essential to efficient heating. That’s why you’ll want to check this flame to ensure it’s the correct color. While an orange or white flame is preferred when burning wood, a blue flame is what’s best when you’re dealing with a gas furnace. The color of the flame is critical. In fact, if you notice the flame is any other color besides blue, you’ll want to call Complete Comfort as soon as possible. A white, orange or yellow flame indicates a problem with the burner that could create dangerous conditions inside your home.
Make Sure All Vents Are Open
If you’ve previously closed vents in unused rooms in your home, now is a great time to open them. That’s because closing vents can cause problems with your furnace, even though conventional wisdom says that closing vents in unused rooms are a great way to save energy.
The technicians at Complete Comfort want you to know that closed vents can create higher-than-normal pressure in your air vents, putting excess strain on your furnace. Plus, if you close vents during the winter, the cold air in those rooms could escape and cause the rest of your home to cool down, as well. By having all of your home’s vents open, though, you avoid all of these problems to set yourself up for a comfortable winter.
Check Your Flue
To ensure your furnace can properly breathe this winter, it’s important to check the flue opening on your roof. For the best results, it’s a good idea to climb onto your roof and inspect it up close. When you check your flue, you’ll want to make sure that it’s free from any and all debris that could prevent proper venting. You’ll also want to make sure that the flue cap is completely intact, so it doesn’t crack under the weight of snow.
While you’re on your roof, it’s a good idea to check and make sure the shingles around your flue are in good condition to ensure you won’t experience any leaks. Of course, if you aren’t comfortable climbing on your roof, a technician from Complete Comfort is happy to do the job for you.
Confirm Thermostat Settings
Given the wide range of temperatures that you experience in your home throughout a typical winter day, it’s vital to confirm the settings on your thermostat to ensure they are set for optimal efficiency. In particular, you’ll want to check and make sure the times and temperatures you set last year still apply to your schedule this year.
Since daylight saving time ends around this time, you’ll also want to make sure your programmable thermostat is set to the correct time so your settings will be executed correctly. Lastly, you’ll want to check and make sure your thermostat battery is fresh so your thermostat doesn’t die when you need it most.
Examine Last Year’s Utility Bills
Sometimes, even with a thorough inspection, your furnace may have an issue that’s impossible to detect. One way an issue may make itself known is through higher energy usage that will show up on your utility bill.
To help prepare yourself to detect these issues, it’s a good idea to take a look at last year’s utility bills so you know what to expect on this year’s bills. Then, when you receive this year’s bills, you’ll be able to quickly spot if they’re significantly higher. If s, you’ll know if you need to call Complete Comfort for assistance.
Test Carbon Monoxide Detectors
One of the few downsides of having a gas furnace is the potential release of carbon monoxide. Although this isn’t a common occurrence, you still need to be prepared to ensure a carbon monoxide release doesn’t endanger your family. The best way to do that is to test the carbon monoxide detectors in your home.
Your detectors should have a button you can push to perform a self-test. If you hear the beeping noise, you know your detectors are good to go. It’s also good to make sure you have at least one detector on each floor of your home. By doing so, will ensure you’re alerted if there is a problem.
Ready For The Unexpected
Once you’ve completed your pre-winter furnace checklist, you should be good to go. If something unexpected happens, though, the professionals at Complete Comfort are ready to help you at a moment’s notice. In addition to emergency furnace repairs, we can take care of furnace maintenance and installation, and we can also take care of your air conditioner. Plus, we offer a variety of plumbing services, including leak detection and drain cleaning.
For over 15 years, people all around Greenwood have trusted us with their home maintenance and repair needs. We take our jobs seriously, which is why people rate us highly after we complete the work in their homes. If you need assistance preparing your furnace for winter, contact us at Complete Comfort today.
Contact us at Complete Comfort Heating Air & Plumbing in Greenwood, IN, today for more information on heating, air conditioning & plumbing service. Call us at (317) 648-5133.
Author Bio:
Brittany Katterjohn
Brittany is a marketer, entrepreneur, and writer with previous business development experience in the home maintenance industry. She currently manages the marketing for Complete Comfort Heating, Air & Plumbing and has a passion for helping people by simplifying seemingly complicated topics related to home maintenance and repair.
