Furnace breakdowns never happen at convenient times. Fortunately, you can help prevent furnace breakdowns from happening through regular maintenance. Here are 10 reasons your furnace can break down—but with regular maintenance, you can prevent most of these issues!
When your air filters are clogged or dirty, your furnace has to work much harder to move air through the filter and into your home. When a filter is too badly clogged, it can trigger a safety mechanism in your furnace that stops it from working altogether! Change your filter regularly and you can avoid serious problems.
Gas furnaces use pilot lights or ignition systems to light the gas used to provide heat to your home. Your pilot light may not be lit, and if it’s not, it’s usually possible to attempt to relight it yourself. Don’t attempt this if you smell gas, however; instead, leave your home immediately and call 911.
You can also attempt to fix ignition systems by checking any error codes that may appear, and then looking them up in the owner’s manual or online.
Can’t get your ignition system or pilot light to work? Call us!
Blower motors are complex; there are lots of moving parts that can have issues, including their belt drives, blower wheels, and more. Problems with the blower motor can lead to poor airflow and even no airflow at all! It’s vital to clean blower wheels and ensure that your belt drive is clean. These aren’t repairs you should do yourself; let our maintenance team help!
As your wiring gets older, connections between your wires and the parts of your furnace they’re powering can loosen. Eventually, they can completely break free, cutting off power to parts of your furnace. By tightening connections regularly and replacing old or faulty wiring, you can stop your furnace from breaking down.
The most common ductwork problems are located at the vents and registers around your home; if they’re blocked, the rooms they’re in won’t get the heat you need. Worse yet, blocked vents can cause your furnace to work too hard and can disrupt the airflow to and from the furnace. Check for any blocked vents or registers, and consider cleaning out your ductwork.
Flame sensors detect whether or not flames are burning when gas is being released; without them, gas could flow without being burned, causing a serious health and safety hazard. Unfortunately, when your flame sensor is dirty or damaged, it may trigger even when your furnace is working properly, shutting it off. Cleaning your sensor regularly with help from our maintenance team will reduce the risk of problems.
Problems with your thermostat might seem pretty straightforward; when your thermostat isn’t working, your home might not be as comfortable as you’d like. Things are a little more complicated than that, though; a faulty thermostat could make your furnace work much harder than it needs to, contributing to wear and tear.
When your gas valve isn’t opened enough, it can limit gas flow, drastically reducing the efficiency of your furnace and even stopping the gas from igniting. Ensure that the valve is fully open.
You might also encounter electric problems if there are too many appliances on your circuit. Your furnace should be on its own breaker, and if your breaker is tripping too often, you may need to upgrade your service.
Limit switches turn on your furnace blower when your furnace gets hot enough. This ensures that your home is heated to the right temperature, and stops your furnace from overheating. When your furnace overheats, your limit switch will also turn off the furnace to prevent safety hazards.
Regular furnace maintenance can help prevent wear and tear. Furnaces are full of moving parts; as they get dirty and wear down, they can stop working as efficiently. Regular maintenance can help prevent your furnace from breaking down.
We offer furnace repair and installation in Orillia. We also offer furnace maintenance, so that you’ll need to repair and replace your furnace less often. Contact us today!
