Your Greater Kansas City home’s heating system may need some upkeep before you turn it on for the season. These 12 maintenance tips can better prepare your furnace for fall.

1. Replace the Furnace Filters

You should replace your home’s HVAC filters every three months. However, this task proves especially helpful before you turn on your furnace for the season.

Clean filters can save you money on your fall and winter heating bills. This tip can also ensure your heating system blows out clean air, reducing your indoor allergy symptoms.

It also helps keep your home warmer and prevents your furnace from overworking to maintain the set thermostat temperature. You should use high-quality filters and ensure they are the right size for your furnace.

2. Inspect Your Ducts for Damage

Factors like age and the weather can cause damage to your heating system’s air ducts. They can develop cracks, holes and punctures that prevent them from keeping out cold air.

Damaged air ducts likewise contribute to higher heating bills and excessive energy use. You should inspect them thoroughly and replace ones with extensive damage before you turn on your home’s furnace for the fall.

3. Clean and Seal the Air Ducts

If your ducts do not have damage, they should still have proper sealing for cold weather. You should inspect them closely and look for any openings around them. Cold air that comes in through openings around the air ducts causes your furnace to work harder and poses a challenge to keeping your home sufficiently warm.

You should use mastic tape to seal your heating system’s ducts. Mastic tape holds up better than duct tape and works better to keep out cold air.

4. Clean Out Your Home’s Air Vents

You should clean out your home’s air vents before turning on the furnace for the fall season. The vents can accumulate grime like pet hair, dust and dirt. Not only can this residue get in the air and trigger allergy symptoms, it can also prevent your furnace from working efficiently.

You can use a soft-bristled brush to clean the outside of the vents. You should also remove the vent covers and vacuum out any grime and clogs inside of them.

5. Test Your Furnace Thermostat

Before you turn on your heating system, you should also test its thermostat. To test the thermostat, you should set it to a higher temperature than the actual air temperature. You should then ensure the furnace turns on and blows out hot air.

If it fails to produce hot air or struggles or fails to reach the set thermostat, you need to have the thermostat repaired or replaced. An HVAC technician can install a new one and ensure it functions properly in your furnace.

6. Check the Furnace’s Gas Connection

If your furnace uses gas as its heating source, you need to check its gas connection before turning it on for the season. A cracked heat exchanger or a dirty burner in your heating system can cause your furnace to malfunction. It can also compromise the air quality in your home and shorten the life of your furnace. An HVAC technician can inspect the gas connection and repair or replace parts like the heat exchanger or burner.

7. Clean the Condensate Drain

The condensate drain in your furnace can get clogged with residue like dirt and dust. Once it gets clogged, it prevents the furnace from draining water. The water instead leaks out onto your floor, causing damage to not only the floor but also your home’s walls and ceilings.

You can prevent a water leak by cleaning out the condensate drain before the start of fall. Cleaning the drain should also involve removing and flushing out grime in the drain’s pipe.

8. Clean the Area Around Your Furnace

Keeping the air around your furnace clean can help it run more efficiently and safely. Items like cardboard boxes can easily catch on fire. Dust and dirt on the floor around the furnace can get clogged in its filters. Removing items around the furnace and keeping the floor around it clean likewise make it easier for an HVAC technician to access it if it needs repairs.

9. Listen for Unusual Noises

Before the start of fall, you may find it helpful to turn on your furnace and listen for what noises it makes. Noises like loud banging or rattling can hint at a potential problem inside the heating system. It could have a loose part, such as a bolt or screw that needs replacing or reattaching.

It may also need a new belt if you hear it making noises like squealing or groaning. If you are not sure about the noises it makes, you should contact an HVAC technician to have it professionally inspected and serviced.

10. Change the Direction of Your Ceiling Fans

This maintenance tip has nothing to do with servicing the furnace itself. However, it can help your heating system work more efficiently.

Rotating your ceiling fans clockwise during the fall and winter helps them draw cool air up toward the ceiling. It also allows the fans to push warmer air from the furnace down into your home.

Your furnace avoids having to work excessively to keep your house warm. You can save money on your home heating bills and reduce your home’s carbon footprint.

11. Install Storm Windows

Likewise, this tip does not involve a service to your home’s furnace. However, it does help your heating system work better.

Storm windows help keep out cold air. They also prevent warm air inside your home from escaping through the windows.

You can enjoy warmer indoor temperatures and a more comfortable house during the fall and winter. Your furnace also uses less energy, translating into lower energy bills you have to pay.

12. Schedule Professional Furnace Maintenance

A professional HVAC tune-up can maximize the performance and efficiency of your home’s furnace each fall. A professional HVAC technician will thoroughly inspect all of the components inside of your home’s heating unit. They will also test and calibrate the thermostat to ensure it functions correctly.

You can expect your technician to inspect the gas valves and pressure regulators inside the furnace. They will measure temperature rises to make sure your system can keep your house sufficiently warm. They will also clean parts like the coils and flue to ensure your furnace runs smoothly and safely.

Choose Us for Your Fall Furnace Maintenance

As a locally owned HVAC business, we treat our customers’ homes with respect. The technicians working for our business wear uniforms and ID badges for your safety and convenience. They also wear shoe covers and use drop cloths to avoid getting your home dirty while they maintain your home’s heating unit. Our team not only works on furnaces. We also install and service air conditioners and work on plumbing, including leak detection and water heater services, in both homes and businesses throughout the Greater Kansas City metro area.

We have won several awards for excellence from organizations like NextDoor. Our technicians even carry portable air conditioners and heaters in their service trucks to ensure you remain comfortable while we work on your home’s HVAC system. Our team at MVP Air Conditioning, Heating, Plumbing & Electric has the solutions you need to maintain your furnace for the fall. Contact us to learn more!

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