As winter approaches, residents are thankful for their home’s furnace to keep them warm and cozy during the cold months. However, your home could easily become uncomfortable and even dangerously cold this winter without a reliable heat source. So taking care of this essential piece of equipment should be a top priority. However, many homeowners are unaware that the mistakes they are making could be sapping the life out of their furnace. Below are a few tips from the HVAC experts at Parobek Plumbing & Air Conditioning that will help homeowners provide the best care for their furnace and ensure that they will have no issues from overworking the unit unnecessarily.
Use Tech To Your Advantage
For decades, homeowners have been relying on their thermostats to regulate the temperature in their homes. And if you wanted to cut back a bit on your energy bill, you tried to remember to reduce that temperature several degrees before leaving home for the day. This frugal trick has proven to reduce the cost of heating a house by around 10%. But, it is hard to make that thermostat adjustment part of your daily routine. And then the house is cold when you return home. However, technology has solved both of these issues.
A programmable thermostat will take care of temperature adjustments for you, so you never forget to save on your heating costs. In addition, the unit will increase the temperature just before you return home so that your house is warm and inviting. You can save even more by setting a second program to reduce the temperature after everyone is asleep. Then increase the temperature just before everyone begins their day. Between the time you are sleeping and away from home, you could reduce your furnace’s workload over 75% of the time.
Keep The Warm Air
You would never leave a door or window open in the wintertime. But if your house is drafty and has air gaps around windows and doors, you could be losing the same amount of warmed air. That means you are overpaying to heat your home, and your furnace is being overworked. So walk around the house to see if there are gaps that can be sealed with foam or caulk to save energy and the life of your furnace. Also, be sure that you are closing drapes and blinds at night to add an extra layer of insulation over your windows. It will help cut down on the heat that is escaping from your home.
Locate Your Heating Registers
If you are known to rearrange the furniture in your home regularly, take a few moments to locate all the heating registers in your home. Make sure that none of them are blocked by furniture or a new, longer set of curtains. This step will ensure that the warm air is easily able to circulate throughout the house.
Finally, with the holiday season coming, be careful about where you place extra seating and decorations. These items could block the heat from certain rooms and cause you to turn up the thermostat and add to the workload of your furnace. Also, remember that your live holiday tree would prefer to be as far from the heating vents as possible to provide the maximum cheer to your home and also keep the warm air flowing properly.
If you are concerned about the function of your home’s furnace or need a pre-winter service and maintenance visit, call (512) 910-8123. The experts at Parobek Plumbing & Air Conditioning will inspect and clean the entire system to ensure that it is ready to keep your home warm this winter and your heating bills as reasonable as possible.
