Furnaces are fantastic pieces of equipment and the one thing standing between people and freezing cold temperatures in their homes come winter. This is especially true in areas like Calgary, Canada, where it can get brutally cold. A furnace is also very prone to getting dirty. It’s working pretty hard and can attract quite a bit of gunk. After the winter has passed, you should work to maintain your furnace so that It’s good to go for the next winter.
If you live in the area, you can find some quality furnace repair to help you with repairs, replacements, cleaning and much more. The important thing is that you get it clean. Here are a few ways to clean your furnace.
Ways to Clean Your Furnace
Clean Out the Burner
Any sort of furnace that runs on any type of fuel is going to have a burner. This is what gives a flame to ignite the fuel so that it creates heat, which is then forced through the ducts by the blower. Think of a furnace in many ways like a convection oven. What you want to do here is locate the burner and make sure that the nozzle (the part where the flame comes out) is completely clean. You don’t want any dust or debris in this part of your furnace.
Clean the Blower
This is a very involved step in cleaning the furnace, though it’s not at all difficult. It’s just a bit time-consuming. The blower sort of looks like a metal seashell in many ways, with an unmistakable hole in the side where you will see an exposed fan or some sort of rotating piece. Now, you can get in here and clean this well, with a can of pressurized air. Or you can remove it and make sure it’s thoroughly clean, which is the better way to go. It will just take some time.
Check the Flue
The flue of your furnace is what vents it outside. If you don’t know anything about furnaces, its flue is like the exhaust your dryer has that makes sure the hot air from the running of the machine blows outside. While a furnace does blow out heat, that’s coming from its internal mechanisms. What a furnace expels are dangerous gases that the furnace lets off as its exhaust, which are vented outside. So check the flue very carefully for dings and dents and cracks and openings. Clean around the seals and make sure everything is functioning properly. You may also clean out the flue with a long brush from the outside, to ensure there’s nothing stuck in it that would cause the exhaust to vent back into the home.
Clean Your Ducts
Your ducts are likely to accumulate a lot of grit and grime, particularly around their openings, or the grates. It will likely be too difficult to work up into the ducts, and they’re likely not that dirty inside, as the furnace’s blower would move any particulates toward the openings. But you definitely want these areas nice and clean, or else you’re blowing some pretty nasty stuff around your home once that furnace is fired up. This can cause a foul smell and can even create hazardous breathing conditions, especially for people with pre-existing problems.
Consider Hiring the Pros
Finding a company that handles furnace repair is always your best bet if you want to outsource the cleaning of your furnace to the professionals. Now, of course, this is a job that you can do yourself. There is no special skill-set that’s required per se. However, it can still get a little tricky, especially if your furnace is very dirty and you have to start disassembling parts of it like the burner and blower. It might be a lot easier for you just to get the professionals to come in and handle everything quickly.
No matter which way you end up going here, it is very important that you’re running a clean furnace come wintertime. You want to do what you can to maintain your furnace now so that it actually works well when you need it the most.
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