What Could Happen If You Don’t Have Your Heater Serviced Regularly?

Autumn, what a wonderful time of cool weather, colorful trees, and preparing for family gatherings during the holidays. There are plenty of fun things to do during the fall months and, in fact, your schedule can start filling up fast. This fall make sure that one item on your schedule is getting your heater serviced by qualified professionals. While it may be tempting to forgo the furnace tune-up this year, keep reading to find out what can happen if you don’t have your home’s heating system serviced regularly. 

How Often Should A Furnace Be Serviced

Let’s start by defining how often “regular maintenance” should happen – at least once a year. An annual check-up and fixing of any issues is a great way to increase the longevity of your home’s heating system. Just like clearing gutters and washing away dirt buildup outside your house is a regular spring cleaning rhythm, so too should furnace maintenance be for your household every fall. 

Possible Outcomes of Infrequent Heater Maintenance 

What’s the worst that could happen? Like many homeowners, you may think that the worst thing that could happen if you don’t go through with preventative maintenance for your furnace would be that it stops working. While unexpectedly not having a functioning heater in the frigid winter months is grueling (more on that later) the worst case scenario is even more tragic. 

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning 

A crucial function of any furnace is the heat exchanger, which removes poisonous gasses, such as carbon monoxide. These gasses are a natural result of the combustion process that creates heat. Normally, a well-functioning furnace vents out the poisonous gasses and blows them away from your home. 

Over time the heat exchanger can develop cracks because it is constantly expanding and contracting with temperature changes. If there are cracks in the heat exchanger this can allow these dangerous gasses to escape into the home or building instead of being pushed out. 

The best way to prevent a serious, possibly fatal situation such as carbon monoxide poisoning is to have your home’s heating system inspected at least once a year. 

Poor Indoor Air Quality

It doesn’t take long for the air filter of a poorly maintained heater to become clogged with dust, debris, or even mold. If an air filter gets completely clogged and can no longer keep particles out, the heating ducts in your home become coated with airborne particles. In turn, these unwanted air particles begin to circulate throughout your home along with the heat. 

Making sure to have professional furnace maintenance every year is not only critical to the heating system itself, but for you and your family’s health – especially those with asthma. 

Inconsistent Temperature

Do you feel like you’re constantly turning your thermostat up and back down again? Is your family perplexed by a chill in one room and sauna-level temperatures in the room down the hall? These are what HVAC professionals call temperature variance. 

Temperature variance can be caused by a furnace’s blower motor being covered by a coat of grime, causing it to not adequately move air. Inconsistent temperature can also be caused by a calibration issue with the thermostat, or holes in air ducts. 

System Failure (Breakdowns)

Many people would agree that having a heater break down unexpectedly during the winter months has a drastic effect on their day-to-day living, to say the least. Sure, you can run space heaters, but the little heat they provide comes at a costly expense on your electricity bill. Homes with fireplaces are better positioned for a heater break down, but fireplaces are not always sufficient at heating more than the living room. 

Your best chance at avoiding a broken heater is to have it inspected before its season of use is in full swing. A thorough inspection and completion of any tune-up requirements gives our clients peace of mind as they move into the colder months and invite friends and family into their home. 

Conclusion

You can greatly minimize or eliminate the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning, poor air quality, temperature fluctuations, and your heating system breaking down altogether by having your home’s furnace inspected each fall. Make sure to have a reputable HVAC company in Placer County service your home’s furnace before the chill of winter sets in. 

Call Maki today to schedule a check-up for your home’s heater!