No one wants to be sitting at home the middle of January when suddenly your furnace conks out. Or realizing after successive nights of shivering in bed that your furnace isn't keeping your house warm. Furnace problems do happen, unfortunately, and the sooner you're able to diagnose those problems, the better chance you'll have of fixing them yourself, or at least of being able to easily explain the problem to a service person. Here are some troubleshooting tips for common furnace problems:
Your Furnace Won't Work at All
This could be a number of issues, but you'll want to check the obvious and easiest ones to fix first. Is the furnace getting power? Check the on-off switch (if it has one), then go to the breaker box and make sure the circuit breaker hasn't tripped. If that's not the issue, check the thermostat. Is it set to "heat"? Is the temperature set above the temperature in the room?
If you have an older furnace, has the pilot light gone out? Relight it. If it goes out again, it's time to call the service technician. Same goes if the electronic ignition isn't working properly, though this will be more difficult to diagnose on your own.
If you hear rattling or banging inside the furnace before the it shuts down, you could have loose or detached parts, or maybe a belt has slipped. You might be able to reattach the belt, though mechanical issues with the motor will require professional help.
Clogged burners in the furnace will result in substandard heating and eventually may shut down the system. Annual maintenance should prevent this and other common furnace problems.
If the Furnace Won't Heat Properly
This could be a number of issues, some of which you can address yourself while others may require service. The air filter could be clogged, the ductwork might be dirty or leaking, mechanical parts may need cleaning or lubrication, or perhaps you just need a new furnace.
For help addressing furnace problems in your Broken Arrow area home, please contact us at Air Assurance.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in the Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Oklahoma area about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). Credit/Copyright Attribution: “docstockmedia/Shutterstock”