Why to Schedule Furnace Maintenance Now

During the fall and winter seasons, it’s likely that you’ll be cranking up your heating system a lot to stay warm. With heavy usage, there is a lot of demand on a furnace system’s internal components. With a furnace tune-up, you can have your furnace prepared for this demand. Preventive heater maintenance will help you reduce the potential of a costly repair or sudden breakdown. Over 50 percent of service repair calls are due to lack of regular maintenance. You’ll also be increasing the longevity of the unit by 30 percent. Preventive heater maintenance is the best way to ensure a comfortable and warm home during the chillier months. There’s nothing worse than waking up to no heat when it’s cold outside.

What’s Done During a Furnace Tune-Up?

During a furnace tune-up, service technicians complete a long list of tasks. These tasks include visual inspections, cleaning parts, lubricating parts, making adjustments and conducting safety tests. Here’s a list of the details:

• System Inspection: A technician will fully inspect the ventilation system, including all joints, screws and ducts.
• Mechanical Parts: The furnace cover and blower-compartment cover are removed for an inspection of the unit’s mechanical parts. The blower compartment is checked for any obstructions, and the blower motor is fully lubricated.
• Pilot, Sensor and Burners: The burners are removed and checked for any defects. The pilot, sensor and burners are also cleaned.
• System Tests: The meter is tested for fuel usage, and a safety test is completed to check carbon monoxide levels.

Preventative Maintenance You Can Do On Your Own

For the most part, furnaces are easy to maintain, and there are number of tasks that you can do on your own for maintenance. Dirt is the biggest enemy when it comes to furnaces. It lowers efficiency and wastes fuel. Keeping the filter system, blower and motor clean are the most important. The furnace filter should be changed at least once a month during periods of constant use. You can easily check the filter yourself. If it’s clogged or dirty, simply clean or replace it. To clean the blower and motor, remove the panel that covers the filter for access. The panel may have either slip-fit hooks or be held in place by screws. Either way, it’s easy to remove. You can clean the blower and motor with a wire brush and bleach solution.

HVAC Services and Products at Commonwealth Cooling & Heating in Fairfax, VA

For over two decades, Commonwealth Cooling & Heating has been providing HVAC services for businesses and residents in northern Virginia. In addition to our flat-rate billing, we offer Internet coupons for savings on new systems, repairs, seasonal tune-ups and maintenance plans. Customers can also take advantage of our flexible financing plans with the purchase of a new system. Make sure to visit our website to learn more about our special discounts.

At Commonwealth Cooling & Heating, we install a wide variety of top brand heating and cooling systems like heat pumps, hybrid systems, furnaces, boilers, ductless units and more. You’ll find that our leading brand products come with high AFUE, HSPF and SEER ratings for energy efficiency.