What to Do When Your Furnace Breaks Down in Winter?
Rugs and other insulators can help maintain a more comfortable temperature in your home during a power outage. Using gas appliances to cook with and eating/drinking hot foods/beverages can also raise body temperature. Start by turning off the power to your furnace by opening your electrical panel and finding its dedicated switch or breaker, then flipping it back on again. Here’s what you should do when your furnace breaks down in winter.
Check Thermostat Settings For Accuracy
A bad thermostat is one sign for furnace repair. Winters can become cold nightmares when your furnace fails, leading to freezing temperatures that damage furniture, floorboards, fixtures, and pipes and create an unsafe situation for you and your family.
As soon as your furnace breaks, one of the first things you should do is check its thermostat settings to ensure they are accurate. Furthermore, ensure no obstructions might restrict airflow through its vents, leading to overheating in your space heater.
Checking for gas leaks should also be high on your list since natural gas has an odorless composition and needs an additive called mercaptan to make detection easier. If you detect a sulfuric or rotten egg smell as evidence of gas leakage, call your gas company immediately and evacuate from your home until professional assistance arrives.
Inspect Furnace Power & Connections
If you live in a very cold area, furnace issues are an all-too-familiar occurrence during winter. Should any emerge, it is crucial to take steps immediately to prevent further damage until an HVAC technician can arrive and assess your needs.
- One simple solution to furnace issues is to ensure that thermostat settings are correct.
- Alternatively, resetting circuit breakers may help restart furnaces that have shut off for various reasons.
- Inspection of electrical connections should also include looking for signs of loose or broken wires.
- This could present serious safety risks – potentially leading to tripping or overheating issues and system shutdown.
It’s also a good idea to regularly replace and inspect furnace air filters; dirty filters restrict airflow and reduce your furnace’s efficiency, negatively impacting its performance. Inspect your home’s vents and ducts regularly, too, to ensure that they remain unobstructed.
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Ensure Gas Supply Is On
If your gas furnace isn’t working as it should, check the control switch that regulates gas delivery to its heating system and ensure it is in the “on” position. If your furnace features a pilot light, ensure it’s lit by following the manufacturer’s instructions to relight it. Furthermore, inspect vents to ensure they’re free and unobstructed; blocked vents impede airflow and could lead to a malfunctioning furnace.
- If you detect a foul odor within your home, this could indicate a gas leak.
- If this is the case, immediately evacuate and call emergency services and your gas provider to mitigate the potential risk.
- It is imperative to take such measures since living without a functioning furnace can be extremely hazardous.
- If these troubleshooting steps don’t solve the issue quickly enough, call in professional repair services for further assistance, and they should be able to address it efficiently.
Reset the Furnace Using the Circuit Breaker
Resetting your furnace after its breaker trips is an essential step to ensure proper system functioning, yet it is also relatively straightforward and simple to complete. Moreover, such simple maintenance can increase the lifespan of the furnace system.
Start by cutting power to your furnace. You can accomplish this either by switching off its switch nearby or switching off its circuit breaker at your electrical panel. After switching it off, allow a few minutes to fully reset before continuing your work.
Once the breaker has been switched back on, locate and press the reset button—typically found in the blower compartment—of your furnace. Be sure to press firmly for at least 30 seconds to ensure its success, restore the gas supply, and turn on the furnace. When completed, turn back on the gas supply and turn on the heating mode while waiting for professional heating technician assistance.
Check Furnace Filter For Blockages
If your furnace keeps shutting off unexpectedly, a warm air filter could restrict airflow and force your furnace to overheat, eventually leading to its breakdown altogether. To prevent this issue from arising, be sure to change out your filter regularly and follow any maintenance instructions provided in its owner’s manual.
When purchasing a filter, always ensure it is the appropriate size. If unsure, refer to either your existing one’s markings or your furnace’s owner manual to help confirm which filter option best meets your needs—using too-large filters may even damage your heating and cooling system!
While waiting for a repair technician, utilize other heat sources like wood stoves or fireplaces. Also, try sealing off all doors, drawing curtains shut tighter, and covering any cracks with blankets for extra insulation. Finally, consume warm foods and beverages to help increase body temperatures.
Look For Furnace Error Codes
Most furnaces notify you of issues via flashing LED lights. Each brand’s flashing pattern and errors differ, but most have a chart available explaining what their code means. You should check the manual or look for stickers near the LED light that explain what this code signifies.
If the red light continues to flash, you must contact a professional furnace repair service immediately for diagnosis and repair. While you wait, you can do a few things to reduce further problems: check breaker box circuit breakers to ensure the dedicated furnace breaker is not tripped.
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Conclusion
When your furnace breaks down in winter, staying calm and acting quickly to address the issue is crucial. We have explained the best remedy is to get your furnace fixed. Meanwhile, use alternative heat sources to insulate your home to stay warm against cold air.
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