Over the years we spent a lot of time educating our customers about the need for maintenance. Lots of people still have the mistaken opinion that when a service company recommends a maintenance program they are just trying to line their pockets by performing un-necessary work. It is true, (and I’m being honest) that from a service company’s standpoint having customers with maintenance agreements is a predictable source of income. However, that does not overshadow an even more important truth: without proper maintenance, central heating and air systems will fail more often and waste money on energy costs.
That is why we are going to mention, by way of reminders, why you should have a professional technician do a seasonal check-up now on your furnace or heat pump HVAC system before the coldest days of the winter season hit us. For that matter, it should be done once a year. There’s nothing new here, no flashes of enlightenment. Just plain, good ol’ reminders. Ten reasons to inspect and tune-up your central heating & air system:
- Reliability – Do you rely on your home’s heating system? Then it needs to be reliable. What would happen if you never did maintenance on your car or truck? As you clearly know, regular maintenance is an absolute must to have a reliable automobile. In the same way, having a qualified technician inspect your system clean it, tune-up the operation, and verify that it is operating as it should will make your heating system reliable. There may be small problems that are found that can be easily fixed, preventing a complete breakdown on a cold wintery night.
- Peace of mind – If you know your furnace or heat pump will be reliable this winter, that will give you peace of mind. There are plenty of things out of our control that can stress us out. Don’t add to that list by neglecting your family’s comfort this winter. Peace of mind is worth it.
- Energy efficiency – If your equipment is not operating properly, it may produce heat for your house, but at a higher cost. Back to the automobile comparison... Over time spark plugs get wear down, air filters get clogged, things get out of adjustment. The same thing applies to your furnace or heat pump. A tune-up done now will verify that the system is operating the way the manufacturer designed it. Obviously with age it won’t be able to operate exactly as the day it was installed. However proper maintenance will ensure the best possible gas pressure, combustion efficiency, refrigerant pressures, amp draws and voltages to ensure the equipment is operating at peak efficiency. A heat pump with low refrigerant or a defrost board not timed correctly, or a gas furnace with low gas pressure or a dirty heat exchanger can force your HVAC system to run longer than necessary to keep you and your family comfortable, resulting in excessive utility costs.
- Comfort – A properly operating heating and cooling (HVAC) system will maintain the home at the optimum comfort levels. Proper airflow, temperatures and humidity levels have a huge impact on how comfortable your home “feels”. Your HVAC system can keep the temperature exactly at the thermostat setting, but excessive airflows and/or low humidity levels will still make your home feel uncomfortable.
- Longevity – When a central heating and air system is properly maintained and tuned-up, it will have a longer useful life. Putting statistics and studies aside, think about it logically. (Bring in the car comparison...) How many miles do you think you can get on your car before a major engine overhaul? 100,000 miles? 150,000 miles? Now think about how miles you can get if you don’t change the oil or air filters? See where we’re going with this? It is true that if you just ignore your heating and air system it will do okay for a while, maybe even a few years. But it is an expensive investment that you want to protect for more than just a few years.
Do you need more reasons? A smart person like yourself probably didn’t need to go past reason number 1. So if you want to know more about what the trained staff at GAMA Air can do to help you keep your system running at top notch, check out our webpage about our safety check and tune-up service. And of course we’re only a phone call away, at (310) 651-6936. But we’re only half-way through. Stay tuned for an upcoming post with the remainder of the 10 reasons to maintain your forced air furnace or heat pump HVAC system.
Do you have other questions that you’re eager to get a response on? You’re at the right place! Fill out the form on our “Ask an Expert” page, and our resident expert will get back to you quickly with an answer.