When it’s thirty degrees outside, the last thing you want is your furnace to die. There are several ways to know if your furnace needs repaired or replaced before bad weather arrives. Be prepared for winter with HVAC maintenance and get some peace of mind. Douglas Cooling & Heating will efficiently manage your heating and cooling needs, whether it’s installation of a new system, regular maintenance, or repair work.
Significant Signs:
Regardless of the season, your heating and cooling equipment wears down over time, and frequent HVAC maintenance is required to keep your system in tip-top shape. You may wonder if there are telltale signs to indicate whether your unit needs a repair or just needs to be replaced. Check out these troublesome signs your furnace may be showing:
- Dry and dusty: Older furnaces aren’t able to clean your air and add moisture to it like newer models. If your house feels dry or stale during the winter, you may have an issue with low humidity levels. Low humidity creates a dry environment, which makes allergies worse in the winter and allows dust to accumulate more. Investing in a new furnace will help raise your humidity levels and keep your whole family healthy and happy.
- Age of the system: If your furnace is close to fifteen years old, replacing the unit is better than constant, expensive repairs. Older heating and cooling systems begin to drop in efficiency, and your energy bill will increase. Newer technology offers sadded benefits, like boosting energy savings and saving you money in the future on repairs.
- Repeated repair work: If your equipment requires frequent repairs, the cost to keep your current unit running might not be worth sinking money into it. Equipment that needs more work becomes less efficient, resulting in higher energy bills. Douglas Cooling & Heating will inspect your unit to determine if the unit is worth the added expense of repairing it or if replacing it would be better.
- Uneven temperatures: If some rooms in your home are too hot or too cold, you may have leaky ductwork, faulty thermostat readings, or your unit may be going out. The best solution is to call Douglas Cooling & Heating to have HVAC maintenance performed on your system. We will determine if the unit is at fault or if the thermostat needs replaced.
- Yellow flame: A furnace should have a bright blue flame to indicate that it is running correctly. If your flame is yellow or flickering, you should contact a professional right away. A yellow flame means carbon monoxide could be seeping into your home.
- Strange noises: Furnaces near the end of their life may begin making weird noises. You might notice squealing, popping, banging, or rattling when your heating and cooling system first starts up or as it runs. Preventive HVAC maintenance performed twice a year could determine if the noises are treatable or if it’s just a sign that your unit needs to be replaced.
Repair or Replace?
If you are experiencing any of the above-mentioned signs and still aren’t sure what to do, call a professional at Douglas Cooling & Heating! Sometimes the repair is small and can be easily fixed with a simple service call. If the problem is much more significant, our technicians will give you options on how much the repair will cost compared to the cost of a new heating and cooling system.
The most important thing is to increase efficiency to save you money. If the unit can be fixed and will operate efficiently for several more years, you should consider repairing instead of replacing. However, if constant repair work is needed to keep your furnace running, you are losing money on frequent repairs and decreased efficiency from your system.
Get the most out of your furnace this winter by scheduling HVAC maintenance to keep it running efficiently. Call Douglas Cooling & Heating for maintenance or if you are in doubt about replacing your current heating and cooling unit. Our NATE-certified technicians are ready to help you save money and energy!
Assuming you take good care of your water heater, you can expect it to last a long time. No water heater lasts indefinitely, though. At some point, you will need to install a new system. The key is knowing when that’s required. There are a number of different signs that you should look for that indicate that your water heater is getting to the end of its life. If you start to notice one or more of these signs, it’s a good idea to consult with a professional about whether or not it’s time to replace the system. We’ve outlined a number of those signs below. 
We’ll be deep into the heating season before too long, which means now is the time to make sure that your furnace is ready for it. The better you prepare your home for the cold months, the better off your systems will be and the more comfortable you will be. There are a number of ways to make sure that your furnace is properly prepared for the heating season. Read on to find out more about them. 
We’re a lot closer to heating season than you may think, which means now is the time to make sure that your home’s heating system is in good shape. If you can’t rely on the heating system you currently have installed in your home, then it’s time to install a new one now. You don’t want to get deep into winter before having your heater fail on you. There are some signs that you should look for that indicate that it’s time to replace your heating system. Be sure to call a professional if your heater is exhibiting these symptoms, whether you’re using a heat pump or a furnace. 
We still have a few weeks of hot weather to go before things finally begin to cool off. That means that you still need to be keeping a sharp eye on your air conditioner for any developing problems. There are all kinds of ways that an air conditioner could begin to malfunction under the strain of daily use. We’re not going to cover all of them here, but we can go over some of the most common problems to afflict air conditioners during the summer. 
You should be especially watchful for any signs that your air conditioner is having trouble during the summer, when the strain on the system is at its highest. Preventive maintenance can lower the chances of problems developing by a substantial amount. However, no amount of maintenance can completely remove the possibility of a problem of some kind afflicting the system. The faster you can identify the problem, the faster you can have it fixed and the better off the system will be. One of the easiest ways to quickly identify that your air conditioner is in need of repairs is to listen for any odd sounds coming from your air conditioner. 
Assuming you take good care of your ductless system, you can get quite a few years of use out of it. No amount of care will get your ductless system to last forever, though. Sooner or later, you are going to have to replace your ductless system. It’s better to be familiar with the signs that your ductless system is failing, so that you can have it replaced as soon as possible. You don’t want to have the system suddenly fail on you in the middle of the hottest season of the year. Have a look at some of the most common indications that your ductless system needs to be replaced. 
