It's important to maintain your furnace for safety and operating efficiency. Follow the tips listed for the type of furnace in your home.
Floor furnace
- Avoid lint build-up by vacuuming the floor furnace and the area around it regularly.
- Keep children away from the grill, as it gets very hot.
- Avoid fires - don't place rugs, furniture or combustible items over or near the grill and do not block the airflow.
Wall furnace
- Clean inside the burner compartment of built-in, vented wall furnaces once a month during the heating season to prevent lint build-up or in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Never place combustible items on or near the appliance or vent.
Central gravity furnace and central forced-air heating
- Keep furnace heat registers free of obstructions.
- Don't store items nearby that might stop or restrict airflow.
- Many gas furnaces use air from the indoors to operate. Lint, dust and pet hair carried by air, or items stored in or around the furnace can block or restrict airflow. In order to operate safely and efficiently, your gas furnace must be kept free of dust and lint build-up and other obstructions stored near the furnace. Never store or use flammable products, such as newspapers, flammable liquids or cleaning products near the furnace.
- Most forced-air furnaces have a filter that cleans the air before heating and circulating it throughout the home. Inspect your filter monthly for lint build-up during periods of furnace use. Clean or replace the filter if necessary. Replacing filters often can improve appliance efficiency and reduce your energy consumption.
- When installing a new or cleaned filter, be sure to re-install the front panel door of the furnace properly so it fits snugly. Never operate the furnace without the front-panel door properly in place because doing so may create the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
- Most new forced-air furnaces have a safety (interlock) switch that prevents furnace operation when the filter compartment door/panel is not in place.
- Note: some older forced-air furnaces do not have a safety switch and can be operated with the filter compartment door or panel off or not properly in place.
Unvented Space Heaters
- Always install and use unvented space heaters in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Unvented space heaters are not to be used as the sole source of heat in your home.
