Indianapolis winters are long and cold, and the high cost of heating has local homeowners looking for ways to increase HVAC efficiency and reduce costs. While annual preventive maintenance by a reputable HVAC contractor is the number one way to ensure the highest level of furnace efficiency, operating your furnace with a dirty air filter is the number one way to negate that efficiency and potentially cause expensive damage to your furnace.
The Role of the Air Filter
The air filter in your furnace serves three major functions that affect system performance, longevity and your health.
- It helps keep the interior of the furnace clean to prevent expensive damage to essential components.
- It helps ensure proper airflow to the system to ensure efficiency, safety and optimum comfort.
- It removes harmful particles from your home’s air, including allergens, like dust mites and pollen.
A clean air filter is essential for optimum airflow, healthy indoor air and optimum efficiency.
The Dangers of a Dirty Air Filter
A dirty filter lets dust infiltrate the furnace. Dust buildup on components, like the fan, heat exchanger and motor, can cause premature failure, and will considerably reduce the efficiency and lifespan of your furnace.
When the air filter is caked with dust, airflow is severely restricted. The result is reduced comfort and efficiency, overheating, erratic cycling and a possible system shut down.
Air filters are your first defense against poor indoor air quality. A dirty air filter won’t effectively trap harmful particles in the air, which can exacerbate allergy and asthma symptoms and lead to serious health problems down the road.
Replacing Dirty Air Filters
Inspect your air filter every month. When it’s dirty, exchange it for a high quality, pleated filter that will trap smaller particles and offer the best protection for your furnace, while maintaining healthy indoor air quality.
For more expert advice about how dirty air filters can affect your furnace, bills and comfort, please feel free to contact Mowery Heating, Cooling and Plumbing in the Indianapolis area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Brownsburg, Indiana and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Matt-Howard/Shutterstock”
