Does My Furnace Need Summer Maintenance?

With the summer months among us, you may find yourself wondering if this is a good time to schedule maintenance on your furnace. The quick answer is yes! Your furnace is going to be inactive for several months ahead, so now is the time to take advantage of the probably much-needed maintenance and precautions. While your home’s furnace has been engineered to work as safely as it can, it is still smart to take these precautions in order to be as safe as possible. At Express Air, we want you to be fully informed on how to best maintain your home’s furnace so you can keep warm this winter without missing a beat. Below are just a few of the things you can do to ensure your furnace is ready for the next busy season.

Give it a good clean

Cleaning your furnace is an extremely beneficial practice for whenever the seasons change. More importantly during the winter to summer transitions, since it had just worked its hardest for the year. If you neglect cleaning your unit during the season changes, your system will likely build up a large layer of dust and debris in all areas of the unit, and potentially result in long-term damage. We recommend that it is safest to call a trained professional for this process.

Replace the filter

Replacing the filter from your furnace is a great way to ensure your furnace will run properly the next time you need to use it. Before changing your filter, make sure to check that you have the right filter to fit your furnace. It is recommended to change it at least every 6 months, but sometimes more often than that depending on how much it was used during the winter months. Wondering where your furnace filter is located? Great question! Depending on the unit that your home uses, the filter can be in various places. Consult your furnace’s user-manual to locate yours!

Turn off the pilot light

If you’re not using your furnace during the non-winter months, it’s smart to turn off the pilot light when it’s not in use. While a benefit of pilot lights is that they typically don’t use a lot of fuel, there is ultimately no benefit of leaving it on. Another benefit of turning the pilot light off is that it saves even the little bit of money that it costs to run it!

Check the electric components

For this process of maintenance, it is best to hire a professional for the electrical checks. This process is just to ensure the wiring for the furnace isn’t loose or disconnected in any way. Although this is a smaller item on the checklist, it is still beneficial to make sure all parts of the furnace are in tip-top shape.

Now is the time to get your furnace ready for the months where you need it most. You deserve to be relaxing in the summer sun, not working on your hot furnace. Let us do the work for you! The professionals at Express Air Conditioning and Heating are ready to help you with any of your heating and cooling needs. For any assistance with your furnace summer maintenance, contact us at Express Air for help today!