It’s winter in Oregon, and your furnace is working overtime. One way to keep your furnace happy, and your home warm all season long, is to change your furnace filter regularly.
If you own a home in Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, or any county throughout Oregon, then your furnace is already working overtime. The last thing you need is for your furnace to stop. If your furnace is approaching the end of its life, you might already be dealing with costly repairs, or an urgent replacement. However, some changes might be easier to make than others, starting with changing your furnace filter regularly.
Have you changed your furnace filter lately?
Changing your furnace filter may seem like a no-brainer, but plenty of Oregon homeowners overlook this routine household upkeep. The general rule of thumb is to change your furnace filter every 30 to 90 days, depending on the type of filter your furnace uses. Taking care of this simple task can be extremely cost-effective, and help you save money, keep your heating bills low, and avoid costly furnace repairs and/or replacements.
Your furnace filter traps allergens that constantly float around in your air.
Your furnace filter will eventually get clogged with whatever gets pulled into your ducts. It could be dust, dirt, fur, dander, hair, bugs, cobwebs…you name it.
When your furnace filter is filled with debris, your furnace winds up working double-time to push air through the filter. This causes extra strain during a time of year when your furnace is already pretty busy. If your furnace is older, or losing its efficiency, you want to avoid this type of extra work.
A clogged filter can cause your furnace’s blower motor to overheat.
When your furnace blower motor overheats, it can trip safety sensors, and even cause your furnace to shut down. Clogged filters can also put extra stress on other components of your furnace, leading to cracks in the heat exchanger. This can create an extremely dangerous situation, as a cracked heat exchanger can allow carbon monoxide to cycle into your home, and affect everyone who lives there.
Recommendations vary when it comes to how often you should change your furnace filter.
We’re a licensed Bryant contractor, and have worked on just about every make and model furnace, heat pump, and air conditioner in the market for the past 20+ years. In the process, we’ve seen plenty of situations where a dirty or clogged filter caused major issues with otherwise healthy furnaces and equipment.
Even when your brand of furnace filter recommends changing the filter every 60 – 90 days, we suggest that you at least check your furnace filter every 30 day. If it appears dirty or clogged, or is filled with clumps of debris, change it. In addition, if someone smokes inside of your home, you’re using a wood stove during the winter, or you have pets, 30 days is probably the longest you want to go before you change your furnace filter.
The bottom line: a dirty filter will decrease the efficiency of your furnace, and cause your furnace to work harder in order to heat your home.
Don’t let your furnace break down because of your filter. Check it, change it, and stay warm all winter! Contact Comfort Connection today to talk about any issues you’ve been having with your furnace. We can also discuss the pros and cons of setting up an annual maintenance agreement with you.
