Common Signs of Furnace Trouble

With autumn officially here, your furnace will be seeing more and more use. That makes now the ideal time to check for signs of potential trouble. It gives you some time to schedule repairs before the weather gets too much colder. Only a trained technician can properly diagnose a problem with your furnace, but you’ve likely become very accustomed to the system’s normal functions. If there’s any change in those functions, you should shut the system down and call in a service technician to perform a formal diagnosis and repair. 

Luckily, there are a number of common signs that occur no matter what the specific problem with your furnace is. They’re easy to detect and you don’t need to diagnose the cause of them to know that something’s wrong. They include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Low Air Flow. Blockages in the filters or ducts can slow the flow of air down, as can problems with the fan or fan motor. In some cases, a breach in the ducts can lower the air flow as well.
• Low Heat Levels. Clogs in the burners can lower the amount of heat being released from the system, as can a number of other issues. Both low air flow and low heat levels force the heater to work harder than it should.
• Strange Noises. Any noise that doesn’t match your system’s regular functions is a sign of trouble. It can include hums, groans, rattles, clanks and similar sounds.
• Higher Bills. Unexpectedly high bills can reflect a component that is malfunctioning and may be laboring to complete its task. If your heating bills take a sudden spike, especially if you haven’t used the system any more often than usual.

For high-quality heating repairs throughout the Denver, CO area, call on the friendly pros at Bell Plumbing and Heating today!