You can experience a miserable winter in Delaware if your furnace doesn’t do its job of reliably heating your home. A failing heating unit can make your family feel sick, cause higher heating bills, or add deadly carbon monoxide gas to the air. By taking into account the sounds and smells emitting from your furnace, as well as examining the equipment’s components, you can get a good idea if your furnace needs maintenance work or needs to be replaced altogether.
Seeing the Gas Flame Change Color
When a furnace’s gas flame seems inconsistent and is no longer strong or blue in color, you should contact an HVAC professional to examine your home’s furnace for possible carbon monoxide issues. The burner flame may appear yellow and weak if carbon monoxide is present. Other indications of carbon monoxide may include soot streaks around your furnace, a great deal of rust on appliance jacks or pipe connections, and water leakage from the base of vents, flue pipes, and chimney bases.
Smelling Noxious Odors
A gas furnace that emits the smell of rotten eggs is a sign that the heating unit may have a gas leak. If the furnace has an electrical or burning odor, the furnace’s motor may have burned out or have components that are rubbing together. Odd smells coming from your furnace are a warning sign that you should contact an HVAC professional to determine what may be the source of the furnace’s odors.
Taking Age into Account
A well-maintained furnace should work well for 15-20 years. If you are experiencing more problems with your heating unit that require frequent maintenance calls, it may simply mean that you need a new furnace because age has taken its toll on the equipment. An old furnace may often break down in the last two years of its lifespan.
Experiencing Cold Drafts in Your Home
If you find that you frequently need to adjust your thermostat in the cold winter months in Delaware, your furnace may be in need of repair. Uneven heating distribution and experiencing cold drafts are indicators that your furnace is not functioning properly. Remember to examine your roof for the formation of ice and the inside of your windows for condensation—these may be signals that your furnace needs repair or replacement.
Noticing Higher Heating Bills
A furnace’s internal components may wear out when it gets old or needs maintenance. The first indication of this may be that your energy bills seem to consistently be rising. If your air ducts are well sealed and you still experience high heating bills, contact a professional HVAC technician to take a look at the state of your furnace.
Hearing Strange Noises from Your Furnace
When you are in tune with the sounds your furnace makes but find that it is making more pops or rattles than usual, check to see if any internal components are loose. A loose part can become a bigger problem for your unit. If the blower runs more often than is typical for your furnace, the blower needs fixing or replacement.
Feeling Dryness in the Air
A broken or failing furnace often doesn’t do a good job cleaning the air in your residence. It also causes the air to feel stuffy and lacking in moisture. If the residents in your home begin to suffer from dry skin, sneezing, or coughing, look into whether your furnace is the root of these health issues.
If you take good care of your furnace but experience strange sounds coming from the unit, do an examination of the furnace and make note of anything that appears out of the ordinary. Unpleasant odors or a weak, yellow gas flame are signs that you need to contact an HVAC professional immediately so that a gas leak or carbon monoxide poisoning doesn’t put your family’s health in jeopardy. Some furnace problems simply require the replacement of parts, while others are an indication that you should replace your furnace with a newer model.
A well-functioning furnace keeps the air in your Delaware home warm and clean, and an experienced HVAC technician can perform maintenance on your unit to ensure that it runs smoothly. First Class HVAC has been providing heating and clean air solutions for the residents of Delaware and Maryland for over 40 years. Contact us today to learn about furnace models that can keep your home’s air warm and smelling fresh, making your residence a great place for holiday entertaining.