How Often Should You Change Your Furnace Filter?
Winter tips for your forced air heating equipment.
Your home’s Furnace filters are a safeguard against dust, bacteria, viruses and other pollutants that can negatively impact your indoor air quality. Poor indoor air quality, or IAQ, can lead to some considerable negative effects on your life, including the following:
- Aggravated allergies, asthma symptoms and other respiratory ailments
- Dry, itchy skin and red eyes
- Household odors
- More dust accumulation
- Reduced efficiency and reliability for your heating and cooling equipment
Your furnace’s filter actually gets as much of a workout in the summer as it does in the winter. Your central air conditioner uses the same ductwork that your furnace uses. At Burt’s Reliable, we’re happy to help you keep your home’s air filter clean and clear.
How Often to Check Your Air Filter?
We recommend that you check your filter at least once a month during the peak heating and cooling seasons. Doing so gives you an opportunity to determine if it’s dirty or clogged and resolve the issue quickly. In addition to negative impacts on your IAQ, dirty filters restrict airflow from your HVAC equipment, making it work harder and increasing your energy costs. Checking your filters can make a noticeable difference to your heating and cooling efficiency.
You should shut down your furnace before checking the filter, which can typically be found in the blower compartment.
Dealing with a Dirty Air Filter
How you deal with a dirty or clogged air filter depends on the type of filter you have:
- If you have a reusable air filter, you will wash away all the dust and sundry debris. Then, let the filter dry and return it to its slot in the furnace.
- If your filter is disposable, then you’ll need to replace it. You can find disposable air filters in most home stores, and they are generally quite inexpensive.
Upgrading to a More Effective Filter
Regrettably, many heating and cooling systems come equipped with lower-quality filters that block some airborne particles but let others slip through. You can significantly enhance IAQ by upgrading to HEPA filters.
What exactly is a HEPA filter? HEPA stands for High-Efficiency Particulate Air. These highly efficient filters capture up to 99.97% of particles that pass through them. A whole-house HEPA filter can virtually eliminate all pollutants sized 0.3 microns or larger, including common allergens like dander, mold, dust mites, and pollen.
Has Your Furnace Received Annual Maintenance from Burt’s Reliable?
Another crucial way to ensure your forced air heating is running cleanly and efficiently is to bring in a professional HVAC technician to service it. For over a century, Burt’s Reliable has been safeguarding the home comfort of families in Mattituck and other Suffolk County communities. We’ll give your system a thorough inspection, cleaning and lubrication, plus repair any lingering problems that could be negatively impacting your IAG or heating efficiency.
Arrange your home’s furnace tune-up before winter arrives in full force. Contact us to request service.