The heat of summer is finally past and cooler weather is on the way. As a homeowner in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, you want to know how to keep your furnace in good shape for years to come. Here are five things you can do to extend the life of your residential furnace and save money on heating costs along the way:

Avoid Running Your Heater Full Blast

Running your furnace night and day is a sure way to reduce its lifespan. So, if you can bring down your thermostat setting by just a couple of degrees, that alone can reduce the strain on your system and help you get many more good years out of this appliance.

Running ceiling fans clockwise — the opposite of their direction in summer — and on low speed can help you to feel warmer in winter. This lets the fan pull cool air up and push warm air down to eliminate cold spots. You may be able to lower the thermostat setting a bit and save some money on energy costs, too.

Change Air Filters When Needed

Every HVAC system works more efficiently when you clean or replace air filters regularly. Most manufacturers recommend replacing air filters every three months, but you may need to replace yours more frequently if you have a lot of dust and pet dander clogging them. Clean air filters allow air to flow freely through your heating system, putting less strain on it and helping it to last longer.

One way to help your HVAC filters last longer is to keep the levels of dust, pet dander and microbes down by maintaining consistent house-cleaning habits. The more particles you remove through regularly cleaning your pet’s bedding, dusting and vacuuming, the fewer particles there will be to clog your air filters.

Seal and Insulate Your Home Against the Cold

Holes, cracks and gaps around your home create air leaks that can cause your furnace to work overtime to maintain cozy indoor temperatures. Seal gaps around doors and windows with weather-stripping. Consider replacing inefficient windows with double-paned glass to keep the heat inside. And have your attic and insulation checked for air leaks.

Upgrade Your Thermostat

Old analog thermostats are often less accurate than their modern digital counterparts, and this inefficiency can also overwork your furnace. You can set up today’s programmable smart thermostats to adjust your home’s temperature based on the number of hours that you occupy the house, thereby maximizing efficiency.

If you leave to go on vacation over the holidays, you won’t have to worry about whether you forgot to shut off the heating system. If you did, you can access your smart thermostat remotely from anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection.

Have Your Furnace and Ductwork Checked

Like all the other systems and appliances in your house, your furnace can benefit from regular inspection and maintenance. An annual furnace inspection can often detect minor problems before they escalate.

You’ll also want to get your ductwork cleaned as needed to improve efficiency and keep dust and debris buildup from clogging your filters. Repair cracks and gaps found in the ductwork right away. The sooner you conduct needed repairs to your heating system, the better your furnace will function, and the less wear and tear it’ll sustain.

If you haven’t had your furnace inspected in a long time, contact cean State Air Conditioning & Heating for preventive maintenance. We’ll check your system and give it a tuneup from top to bottom to keep it running smoothly so that you can stay warm this winter.

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