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Winter is coming, which means furnaces and heating systems will be running all day and night.
That way, homes remain warm and safe throughout the hazardous cold season. You can already imagine how taxing that would be on your appliance without proper maintenance. But what can you do to prepare your HVAC system for winter?
With climate change getting worse, the seasons are becoming harsher and more erratic. You need to make sure your furnace and heating equipment are prepared for it.
They have to efficiently heat your home when you maintain and take care of the appliance. By doing so, your home will have reliable heating equipment all winter long.
You can maintain some parts of the HVAC system on your own, but other parts require professional help. Below are the crucial precautions you need to take and most of them need professionals. You’ll know what to check during your HVAC system maintenance with said professionals, whether it’s HVAC repair or air duct cleaning.
Air Duct Cleaning and Other Crucial Precautions for Your Commercial HVAC
In the old days, people made many preparations for the coming of winter, like storing food and buying winter clothes.
They also made sure that they have sufficient firewood and heating at home. In modern days, ensuring we have proper heating for winter remains, though in a different way.
But these heating systems are machines, thus they should undergo regular maintenance. Air duct cleaning should also be a priority since this is where the air flows through. Follow these precautions to maintain your HVAC system in prime condition before the winter season.
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1. Have a Tune-Up Before the Season Comes
After a long period without use, there’s probably a lot of dirt and dust trapped in the HVAC system. Damaged wires and circuitry issues are also a possibility, so it’s best to have it checked. If so, an HVAC repair should be in order because neglect of these issues is dangerous for the occupants.
The dust and dirt can trigger allergies and other health issues among the occupants. Meanwhile, improper wiring can cause electrocution and other horrible accidents.
Other several issues can befall your system, but those are the most common. To prevent these from happening, you can call professionals for an annual HVAC tune-up.
Professional maintenance and HVAC repair give all that the system components need. It will undo all the wear from the past season and resolve any performance flaws. Without proper maintenance, the heating system will be less efficient, making it difficult to heat your home.
The maintenance will also spot any need for heating repair before it leads to a system breakdown. After all, it’s always better to resolve issues early when it comes to appliances. This ensures that your appliance will also last for many more winters to come.
2. Regularly Clean and Change its Filters
An HVAC filter removes contaminants from the air that comes through the system. It helps make your room as comfortable as possible by removing pollutants.
Time to remove those dust, dirt, and allergens and prevent them from entering your room. But if the filter is old or damaged, you’ll be exposed to that unhealthy pollution.
Aside from health, dust also causes inefficient performance and damages the HVAC’s internal components.
Hence, filters need to be replaced regularly, anywhere between monthly to every 12 months. This depends on the type of filter your system is using something you can find in the manufacturer’s information.
Because heating systems are in heavy use, it’s common for filters to fill up faster. They’ll also need replacements more frequently, almost monthly. If things go awry, you might even need a new one earlier than expected.
3. Prepare Your Commercial HVAC Humidifier
Some homeowners use whole-home humidifiers to replenish the moisture that’s absent from winter air. This equipment can be found as part of your HVAC system and requires yearly maintenance.
What you should look out for is the humidifier’s water panel which should be changed twice every season. Ideally, you do it before the start of the winter season for maximum efficiency.
For hygienic purposes, you should also remove the humidifier’s water reservoir. This will prevent microbe and mineral scale buildup inside your appliance.
You can also wipe the exterior housing of the system yourself and ask for help in cleaning the intake vent. The intake vent leads to the fan if your humidifier is fan-powered or uses steam. The drain line also needs an inspection to make sure there’s no leakage.
4. Clean Your Commercial HVAC Furnace
A maintenance tune-up will clean the furnace’s interior chambers, but you have a separate responsibility.
As a homeowner, you have to keep the area around your heating system clean and clear. You don’t want dirt and debris to get sucked up into the furnace or air supply.
If there are any items around the furnace, remove them so that the airflow to the unit is unobstructed. Flammables should be stored at least six feet away from the heating system. Avoid leaning items against the furnace’s exterior since it may catch fire.
Another reminder is to ensure that access doors and exterior panels are firmly attached to the furnace. Some models have loose panels that prevent the HVAC system from turning on.
5. Your Thermostat Might Need Reprogramming
Because of the different seasons, you’d want to ensure that you have the right temperature settings. Temperature preferences differ per household for heating and cooling. You need to choose comfortable but energy-efficient setpoints for hours when the house is occupied.
When the house is unoccupied, it is recommended to lower the thermostat temperatures to save energy. And because your heating system runs less, it helps its longevity as well. That will reduce the number of times when you need to call professionals for an HVAC repair.
Meanwhile, your fan can be set on AUTO so the blower runs only when the heating system cycles. This will prevent excess energy consumption and instances of cold air blasting through the vents.
Conclusion
When Jon Snow says “Winter is coming”, there’s an ominous ring to it that prompts everyone to get ready.
That’s not to say one should underestimate winter, but fiction has its way of making the season mysterious. In reality, winter is still a dangerous season to be unprepared for Night King or not.
Your HVAC’s heating and air will keep you and your family safe and warm during the cold season. That’s why it’s important to maintain and inspect the appliance before winter arrives.
Tune-ups help diagnose your appliance and fix minor problems in its system that affect its efficiency. For example, damaged wires and circuitry are no joke and can cause malfunctions at the worst times.
Having professionals take a look at your commercial HVAC will help lengthen its lifespan. Filter and air duct cleaning, for example, are important to make sure your appliance remains efficient. Whether it’s for health reasons or product efficiency, it’s best to have the appliance checked.
