Weekly Maintenance for your Home

January – Week 01

Just like preventative maintenance on your car, if you take care of a few small items around the house every week, you can avoid many emergency breakdowns and expensive repairs.

Filters

I know you get tired of me asking you to check your furnace filters every month but the reality is that a clogged filter can actually double your cost of heating. If the air can't get through the filter the furnace will run longer to try to heat the house. The heat from that unnecessary furnace on-time is simply lost up the chimney. In an extreme case, a really clogged filter could even over-heat the furnace itself. Every filter slows the air flow down a little, but clean filters do their necessary job with the best air flow possible. Not all filters need to be cleaned or replaced every month but if you don't know how often yours need attention, check every month until you can set a pattern for your own house. For much more on filter details check out "Filters-Furnace" in the Search tab above.

BAROMETRIC FLUE DAMPERS

If you have an oil furnace with a chimney, it is a good idea to inspect the barometric damper to be sure it is functioning correctly. The barometric damper is found in a "T" joint located not far from the furnace along the flue pipe between the furnace and the chimney. It is a little round disk that pivots and has a weight on the bottom to keep it in the correct position. This allows the chimney to draw air from the furnace room to mix with the exhaust gasses, which makes the chimney work properly. The weight is adjustable to control how much air it will allow into the chimney. Leave all adjustments of this weight to the furnace serviceman. What you want to inspect for is so that when you push this little damper with your finger, it will swing freely. There are times when the pivots get dirty and it no longer swings freely. If necessary, simply clean around the two pivot points with a brush until the damper does swing back and forth freely when pushed. That is not a lot of work, but it is important for the maintenance of your chimney and the good functioning of your furnace.