Can I Use A Thicker Furnace Filter

NO. A furnace filter has a critical job to perform and a filter cannot be run without i. For a furnace to work properly, it should always be equipped with a clean, working filter. As nosotros'll see, a dirty filter tin cause bug, and so can having no filter at all. When it's cold outside, many of us rely on furnaces to heat our homes. If you're not an HVAC professional, you don't demand to know much most how your furnace works, but there is one part EVERY homeowner should exist familiar with: the filter.

Practice All Furnaces Accept Filters?

Yep, all furnaces & heat pumps take filters. If your home uses another type of heating system, like a banality which uses water to heat the dwelling, you will non have filters, just for a furnace or heat pump, a filter is a vital component. A furnace filter serves as a barrier to take hold of dust and droppings that comes in through the render duct then it doesn't make it to the blower fan. This protects your furnace and keeps your air cleaner since your HVAC arrangement isn't recirculating allergens back into the air.

It'due south important to understand that all warm air furnaces and rut pumps are designed with filters. Some furnace filters are disposable, and others are made to be cleaned and reused. Either way, furnace filters must be changed periodically so they tin can continue to perform their vital part and protect your furnace and broadcast clean air.

washable filters

Running a Furnace With a Dirty Filter

Since filters aren't designed to keep working indefinitely, even if y'all have a filter in your furnace, information technology could exist clogged if information technology hasn't been changed in a while. A dingy furnace filter tin can cause some serious bug. Namely, it impedes air from flowing properly through your furnace, and can trigger information technology to close downwards.

This can result in a colder domicile. Since the furnace will have to work harder to get air through, you lot can as well await higher free energy costs. If you notice your heating bills seem high and your house isn't getting every bit warm as it should, the start matter to check is the filter on your furnace.

Additionally, if your furnace is too overworked or too clogged, it could incur damage. For case, when there isn't enough air blowing over the heat exchanger, the exchanger can get overheated and fissure. Even if your furnace doesn't break as a direct result of a clogged filter, the added clothing and tear on the system can cause the system to eventually fail and require a replacement or extensive repairs sooner than it otherwise might have.

How Oft to Change a Furnace Filter

how often should you be changing your air filter

Irresolute your furnace filter can be an "out of sight, out of heed" situation for some homeowners. Even during winter months, when we rely on our furnaces to continue our homes comfortable, nosotros aren't likely to think almost the health of our system until there is a lapse in its role. When it comes to irresolute your furnace filter, this is a simple style to prevent problems from occurring and maintain the wellness of your furnace. You may be surprised by how often this task should be on your to-practice list.

Central PA Furnace Services

Yous should bank check your furnace filter once every month, especially during the wintertime when your furnace is working difficult to keep your abode warm. Remove the filter and hold it up to the light to see if the light shines through. If the filter is still translucent, you tin continue to use information technology. However, regardless of its advent, y'all should change your filter after three months for 1″ filters and every half dozen months for v″ filters. If the filter doesn't let light through, information technology's fourth dimension to change information technology. You volition also be able to see the dust and debris accumulation on the filter and tin make a sentence call to change information technology out but from the appearance of information technology.

What Happens If You Don't Have a Filter in Your Furnace?

If you discover that your furnace has a dirty filter, simply it'due south a disposable filter and you don't have a replacement on hand, you may be tempted to simply remove information technology and permit the furnace run for a while without a filter. Technically, y'all can temporarily run a furnace without a filter. Withal, it'south important to emphasize the word "temporarily" here. Running a furnace without a filter overnight, for example, isn't likely to cause problems, just you should never allow this to plough into a long term solution.

Running a furnace without a filter for an extended period can cause some serious issues. The consequences of running a furnace without a filter include:

Poor air quality:For one, not having a filter in place means there is nada to forestall grit and droppings from being sucked into your furnace and recirculated throughout your dwelling. This ultimately leads to inferior air quality for you and your family to exhale in your home. This can exasperate any breathing issues like asthma and allergies. If y'all have air purifiers in your home, they volition accept to work harder to filter out allergens in the air.
Polluted duct piece of work:Another upshot is that some air pollutants will settle in the duct piece of work. Since in that location is moisture present, these conditions promote mold growth to occur in your duct work. This contributes to an overall decline in air quality every bit well as to a more astringent health hazard, particularly for those with mold allergies.
Organization failure: We've focused on air quality and health consequences so far, but it'southward important to recall that a furnace filter's primary role is to protect the furnace itself. If there'due south no filter in place to provide that protection, the inner workings of your furnace tin can go coated in grime. The evaporator coils or the blower motor could easily fail due to the added stress.

Schedule Routine Preventive Maintenance

It's easy to take our furnace for granted and fail to requite it the upkeep it needs to go along working properly. In addition to changing out filters, this as well ways checking on your furnace to make sure everything is in proficient working social club. Typically, you'll desire a professional to carry these routine checkups. There are a lot of different filter types to cull from and a professional tin can recommend one that will work more efficiently and filter out certain particulars that others can't.

Routine preventive maintenance does more than help y'all avoid firsthand bug. Information technology's the best fashion to proactively do all yous can to maximize the life of your furnace. A well-maintained furnace tin can final longer than i that is developing problems or suffering from habiliment and tear. A well-maintained furnace will likewise work more than efficiently and more effectively than one that is functioning in spite of clogged filters or other problems.

Total HVAC Services From Dwelling Climates

a home in central Pennsylvania having their air filter upgraded

Home Climates offers service melody-ups for HVAC systems so you lot tin can maintain the health of your organisation. We recommend scheduling a furnace tune-up every fall then you tin be sure your furnace is in tip-acme shape before colder atmospheric condition hits. Even if you do chose to expect to have maintenance done during the winter, a furnace tune upward is still important and helpful. Our service technicians can take care of replacing filters in addition to inspecting the furnace and diagnosing whatever possible bug.

In improver to offering tune-ups, Home Climates can help with any of your HVAC needs. If you're dealing with an immediate problem with your furnace, for instance, and demand to schedule a furnace repair, Home Climates tin can help. We are committed to customer satisfaction in all we practise and will partner with you in any way we can to assist you lot relish uninterrupted, efficient heating in your home.