Furnace Filters: How and why you should change them
It seems minor, but filters are easy to forget about and important to your furnace’s ability to keep you warm. Changing filters is crucial to a healthy furnace and a comfortable winter.
The function of the filter is to protect you and your furnace components from dirt and debris that may be floating in your air. Internal parts of your furnace can be very sensitive to particles and keeping your furnace clean can significantly extend the life of your furnace.
A dirty filter not only causes long term damage from particles, but can cause your furnace to work harder. Since air flows through the filter to warm your home, dirty filters block that air flow making your furnace work harder to push air through. A furnace that is working harder will wear faster and can even have short term damage and part failure from over work even in a brand new unit.How often should you change a filter?
For the average home, you should change your furnace filter once a month.What size is your filter?
Filters come in several sizes. To find the size, open your filter box in your furnace. The size of your filter should be written on the side of your old filter. Sometimes locating the filter box can be tricky. If you have any trouble locating it give us a call and we can help.Are filters expensive?
No. Most systems don’t need anything fancy and a filter should only cost a few dollars.
How do I change it?
Locate and open your filter box. Slide out the old dirty filter. Slide in a fresh clean one. It is that easy!