Don’t Tune Out Your Fall Maintenance

5 Important Reasons To Tune Up Your Furnace:

• Greatly decreases the chance of a breakdown.
  Systems tend to break when they are working the hardest. For example, on a major holiday when you are hosting a house full of people, doors are constantly opening and closing. On a cold day, this forces your furnace to work harder to maintain the indoor temperature. This increase in run time enhances the probability of system failure.
• Keeps your energy costs down.
  According to EnergyStar.gov, 46% of the cost of the average 3,000 sq. ft. single-family home’s utility bill derives from its heating and cooling system. Properly maintaining your equipment keeps it running at optimum capacity, preventing the spikes in your utility bill that a poorly running HVAC system can cause.

• Increases the health and safety of those living in your home. Your furnace is a fossil-fuel-burning piece of equipment. When fossil fuels, such as natural gas, propane, or oil, are burned, they emit combustion gases. These emissions contain harmful gases like carbon monoxide and methane. Your furnace is designed to properly exhaust these gases outside, NOT into your home. Unfortunately, this design can be compromised—for instance, when your furnace has a cracked heat exchanger. Checking for these cracks is one of the many diagnostic tests performed during your tune-up.

  IMPORTANT NOTE: All homes should have an updated and active CO detector located on each floor.

• Validates your current or extended warranty. Some manufacturer and extended warranties can become void (or the manufacturer may deny coverage) if the equipment is not regularly maintained by a licensed HVAC professional.