When the weather outside turns frightful, there’s nothing more delightful than a house perfectly warmed by a reliable furnace. But for such a sophisticated piece of machinery, it can run quite a pretty penny if used improperly. You don’t want to spend upwards of $2,000 running it for a single cold season, and at Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning, we don’t want you to either.
To make sure that doesn’t happen, here are five money-saving tricks for homeowners during the winter.
1. Switch to a Smart Thermostat
Smart thermostats are a great decision across the board and regardless of the season. These fixtures are tech-forward and can be controlled via any kind of smart device. This will allow you to adjust the temperature of your household from virtually anywhere with WiFi.
And that’s only the beginning of what you can do. A smart thermostat can reduce your heating costs by 10%, and that number only goes up if you schedule a regular furnace tune-up. Smart thermostats will also build a monthly energy report so you can know for certain how much energy you’re using and what you can do about it.
2. Use Energy-Saving Techniques
When you perform a furnace tune-up, you can ensure your heating system is running the best it can, but that doesn’t mean you can’t give it an extra push. You can take steps to reduce the strain on your heater and allow it to run with less effort.
If you have a ceiling fan, you can switch the rotation of the blades to push down warm air when it’s needed most. This is usually as easy as shutting the fan down and switching the direction switch on the center motor. You want the blades running counterclockwise in the summer to create a downdraft and the opposite for an updraft when it’s cold.
But even if you don’t have a fan, you can use your curtains to maintain heat strategically. Any south- or west-facing windows should be opened during the day to allow warmth from the sun. Then at night, you pull the curtains closed, preventing any heat loss through the glass.
3. Keep Your Furnace Clean
There’s a good chunk of the year when you’re not using your furnace. In that time, it’s bound to accumulate dust and debris. That’s why we suggest getting a furnace tune-up every year in the late fall. But before you do that, you can do some work on your own.
This can be as easy as vacuuming any dust around your furnace. And for the parts that the vacuum can’t reach, you can dampen a rag and wipe them clean. Doing this allows your furnace to function the way it should with no deterrents, but there are many internal components in your heater that need serving as well.
We don’t suggest trying to clean the inside of your furnace yourself. It’s a lot safer and more effective to arrange for a furnace tune-up, where a professional can work with all the minute details that they’re trained to focus on.
4. Schedule an Annual Furnace Tune-Up
There are many good reasons to perform an annual furnace tune-up for your household. It allows you to stay covered under your heater’s warranty, where you otherwise be stuck paying for a full repair on your own. It also makes sure that your system is running in the best way possible. The little things that our technicians clean and adjust quickly add up in terms of performance.
And while there is a cost to regular tune-ups, it doesn’t compare to the cost spent on repairing a faulty unit. There’s even the chance for a technician to find a repair and fix it before it escalates into a bigger problem. They will do this, as well as:
- Test the safety controls
- Clean and lubricate the parts that need it
- Adjusting electrical components
- Check for leaks in the system and ducts
- Tighten belts and pulleys
- Inspect the heat exchanger
All this work allows your heating system to last for years longer, and it gives you the chance to make the most out of your investment.
5. Find the Right HVAC Provider for You
In order to get a furnace tune-up you can rely on, you need the best provider you can get. And if you live in Plano, TX or the surrounding area, that provider is Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning. We’ve been striving to serve homes for years in every aspect of plumbing and HVAC they may need.
When you work with us, you can trust that you get the guarantee of five-star service with every job we do. We even provide a two-hour work window, so you aren’t waiting all day for someone to show up. So to save time, money, and struggle on your furnace, call Sirius Plumbing and Air Conditioning. It’ll be a cool choice for a cold day.
