5 Dangers of Skipping Fall Heating Maintenance in Adel, GA

Since your heating system will play an essential role in keeping your Adel, GA, home warm this winter, the fall is the perfect time to give it a tuneup. Nevertheless, you might thing you can to skip this crucial step for various reasons. Here are five reasons why neglecting to schedule fall heating maintenance would be a mistake:

Greater Risk of Breakdowns

The reason for heating maintenance is to prevent problems. When service technicians perform tuneups on heating systems, they typically clean valves, tighten bolts and screws, inspect ductwork, clean vents, examine thermostats, and test the system’s controls and sensors. While performing these tasks, they may often detect hidden issues that, if not addressed, may eventually inflict catastrophic damage on your heating system.

The origin of your heating system’s difficulties may lie in something subtle that has been building for a long time. It may be impossible to notice any trouble in the early stages without looking closely inside the system. Therefore, skipping heating maintenance may eventually lead one of your system’s parts to fail at an inopportune moment and take you totally by surprise.

If this happens, repairs will probably be much more costly and take considerably more time. The risk that such a breakdown may take place during an ice storm only worsens the situation. Scheduling regular heating maintenance is an excellent way to guard against this possibility.

Shorter System Lifespan

The same issues that may cause one or more of your heating system’s parts to break down may also lead to the system permanently ceasing functioning. Whereas repairs can take care of the former problem, nothing less than a full system replacement can deal with the latter.

The average useful lifespan of a gas-powered heating system is about 15-20 years. For electric heating systems, the equivalent figure is about 20-30 years. Thus, as your heating system ages, it only becomes progressively more important to never skip maintenance.

Higher Heating Bills

Even if skipping maintenance does not cause your system to malfunction significantly, you’ll still have to contend with the issue of declining efficiency. As heating systems age, they’ll gradually lose their ability to use energy efficiently. Periodic tuneups can stop or reverse this process, but ignoring the need for them will only accelerate the decline.

A higher monthly heating bill is the most obvious consequence of lower system efficiency. The onset of winter will almost certainly heighten this effect. In short, paying for autumn heating maintenance can save you money.

Safety Hazards

Heating systems have many sensors and safety devices that detect leaks of natural gas, carbon monoxide and other dangerous substances. For a variety of reasons, any of these sensors may malfunction. Without regular maintenance, however, you may never be aware that it’s happening.

If your heating system leaks carbon monoxide, malfunctioning sensors may have particularly deadly consequences. Carbon monoxide is both toxic and odorless, meaning that without a special sensor, you’ll have no way to determine whether it’s leaking from your heating system and poisoning you. This alone should prove how critically necessary regular maintenance is for your house.

Poor Indoor Air Quality

When you don’t maintain your gas-powered heating system, the fuel may not completely combust. As a result, it will produce smoke and soot. Although they have special valves that should safely remove these waste products, those valves may malfunction.

This means that without a periodic checkup, your heating system may expel all kinds of harmful pollutants into your home. Over time, dust, insect droppings, pollen and other threats to indoor air quality will also find their way into your ductwork, and your heating system may end up pushing these things into the air in your home. Changing your system’s filters about once every two to three months can mitigate this problem, but regular maintenance is still indispensable.

Skipping your heating maintenance appointment will only set you up for trouble once the weather in Adel, GA, gets colder. Don’t tempt fate. Call Waller Heating & Air Conditioning and schedule heating maintenance services today.

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