Furnaces are still the most popular way to heat American homes.

538,000 of the 911,000 new homes built in 2020 installed forced-air furnaces, with 83% of these using gas as the fuel source. There’s a good chance you have a furnace in your home, so you should know how to care for it.

In today’s post, we’ll discuss the importance of routine maintenance for your furnace. A bit of preventative maintenance goes a long way in preserving your furnace so that it lives a full, efficient life span. Keep reading and you’ll know what you need to do.

Reduce Repair Costs

One of the most important reasons to invest in routine furnace maintenance is to reduce repair costs. If you look inside your furnace, you’ll see countless moving parts – blowers, motors, sensors, etc. 

Over time, these parts experience a lot of wear and tear. You need to stay on top of maintenance and cleaning so that they don’t wear down to the point of failure. Once they fail, you’ll be past the point of preventative maintenance and find yourself in the realm of costly repairs.

Annual maintenance involves examining the various components of your furnace and cleaning them. Doing this at least once per year will help you avoid major repairs. 

Improved Air Quality

Americans spend an average of 90% of their time indoors. For that reason, we need to make sure our indoor air quality isn’t failing us. If you don’t perform simple maintenance on your furnace, especially duct cleaning and filter replacement, your air quality will drop.

You should be replacing your furnace filter every 90 days or so. The filter traps contaminants, leaving you with pure air flowing into your ducts, but the debris builds up over time. If you don’t replace the filter, not only will you breathe in these contaminants, but you’ll put a lot of strain on your furnace as well.

Lower Energy Bills

A well-maintained furnace gives you greater energy efficiency, which leads to lower energy bills and a greener household. Gas furnaces are much more efficient than they used to be, some of them operating at 98.5% efficiency, which means they convert most of the fuel into heat for your home.

If you neglect routine maintenance, however, the efficiency will drop. Over time, you’ll see your gas usage go up and your bills with it. 

Less Risk of Failure

Having your furnace professionally inspected and maintained at least once per year will keep it running well. The longer you go between rounds of maintenance puts the furnace at greater risk of failure and furnace replacement.

We don’t have harsh winters on the West Coast, but it still gets cold in the winter. The last thing you need is to have your furnace break down on a chilly January night. Stay on top of maintenance, and you can rest easy knowing this won’t occur. 

Prioritize Maintenance for Your Furnace

Now that you know why you need to prioritize maintenance for your furnace, we’ll tell you how to do it. Furnaces are complicated pieces of machinery that require professional expertise. There’s maintenance you can do at home, but if you want it done right, it’s best to hire the best in the Portland area.

Ultimate Comfort is Portland’s heating and cooling specialist. To schedule your furnace maintenance, contact us today.