While Birmingham, Alabama, experiences a long hot season, winters can be bitterly cold. Having a functional heater is important to keep you and your family comfortable, and, luckily, there are a few easy ways to keep tabs on the condition of your heater. Read on to learn about how to check up on the status of your heater.
Pilot Flame
The pilot flame inside your furnace should be blue at all times. If your pilot flame has turned yellow or is flickering or sputtering, you’ll want to shut off your system and call a technician about your furnace right away. This could mean that carbon monoxide gas may be building up in your system. Other signs of this include soot, condensation, or a rotten smell.
Inconsistent Temperature
If you walk through the rooms of your house, the temperature should be more or less the same. Dramatic shifts in temperature could mean that your system is having a difficult time effectively dispersing warmed air throughout your home. Most often, this is because your system or your ductwork is getting older or you have an air leak.
Excess Dust
While your heater’s air filter helps keep dust out of your home, the ductwork and blower fan should also help keep dust levels at a minimum. If you regularly replace your filter but are noticing an uncharacteristically large buildup of dust, it may be time to call a technician to get that checked out. This buildup will probably occur around air vents, but you may also notice it inside your unit.
If there’s a lot of dust, you may also notice that your house is extra dry. These two conditions tend to go hand-in-hand: a system that has a hard time filtering dust often also has a hard time regulating the humidity.
If you notice any of the above signs, give Total Comfort Heating & Air a call at (205) 386-2056 to schedule an appointment with a professional technician so that you can get your heater back in working order today!
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