Most homeowners rely on the furnace filter to remove impurities from their homes’ air supply. Regularly changing the furnace filter improves the filter’s ability to capture dust, pollen and other pollutants, because once the filter’s surface is full, its performance decreases significantly. A number of problems ensue when the filter becomes full. Learn why changing the furnace filter year-round helps you avoid costly problems.
If you aren’t changing the furnace filter regularly:
- Your furnace and central air conditioning may fail. Experts agree that one of the common causes of HVAC system failure is attributed to failing to change the filter. A full, dirty filter eventually starves the HVAC system for the air it needs to operate, which creates a domino effect: The fan motor must work harder, and will ultimately burn out, causing the unit to overheat and fail.
- Your HVAC system will consume more energy to operate. When the motor has to work harder to compensate for a lack of air, it will consume more energy to operate.
- Indoor air quality may decline. It’s common sense that as the filter’s surface fills with pollutants and dust, reaching capacity, it will no longer trap pollutants. As a result, those pollutants will continue to float around in your home’s air.
- You may have to replace your HVAC systems sooner. Neglecting to change the furnace filter leads to overworked components that you will likely have to replace. At a certain point, it will no longer be worth replacing components, and you’ll have to face replacing the entire system, lowering your return on investment.
- You’ll pay more to operate the systems. As the system compensates for the dirty filter by working harder, you’ll pay more in terms of energy costs.
Changing the furnace filter is obviously an important tasks. Here are some guidelines to follow:
- When you use your furnace or A/C on a regular basis, check the filter every month. When it’s dirty, replace it with a new one.
- In other seasons, change the filter every three months.
Arpi’s Industries has served greater Calgary homeowners since 1963. Contact us for more information about changing the furnace filter.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Calgary, Alberta about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about Changing the Furnace Filter and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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