The best way to prepare for an unexpected situation tomorrow is to anticipate and prepare for it today. Unfortunately, furnace mishaps happen at the most inconvenient times, so knowing what to expect, troubleshoot, and have ready is crucial for a homeowner’s ability to be prepared. So, where do you start? If this has piqued your interest, keep reading. This blog is for you! Listed below are a few tips & tricks provided by your experts at Grove City Heating & Air Grove City Heating & Air to assist you should your furnace ever malfunction in the middle of the winter season.
Ask yourself these questions:
Is There a Gas Leak?
You and your family’s safety is a top priority. Therefore, it is number one at the top of this list! If a furnace malfunctions, you immediately want to rule out a possible gas leak. Natural gas does not have a smell. However, for safety reasons, a sulfuric compound called mercaptan is added to make detection easier. If you notice an unpleasant, rotten smell coming from your furnace, have everyone (including all pets) in the home exit the house, call your gas company and wait for their approval to reenter your home once the issue has been resolved.
How Do I Perform Basic Troubleshooting Steps & What Do I look for?
Once a gas leak has been ruled out, you will want to move on to some basic troubleshooting steps to find out what is causing your furnace not to work:
- Start by checking to see if the pilot light went out. If your furnace is turning on but not blowing warm air, this may very well be the case. Perhaps the pilot light does need to be relit. If you need to know how to do so, generally, there are manufacturer instructions labeled on the side of your furnace.
- The circuit breaker may have tripped if the furnace is not turning on. If so, Perform a quick check to see if the furnace switch needs to be flipped back into place.
- When it comes to furnace issues, the thermostat often gets overlooked. If your thermostat doesn’t seem to be working and the display is not responding, try swapping out the old thermostat batteries for a set of new ones. This simple fix may be the resolution to your furnace dilemma. It’s worth a try!
- Check the heat mode on your thermostat. You may be thinking that you did not change the thermostat settings, so there’s no way that “heat mode” got turned off. But you never know. It’s always best to check and confirm.
At What Point Should I Call a Service Professional?
After going through all these steps, if you are still encountering issues with your furnace not blowing warm air or powering on, it would be time to call a service professional. Basic troubleshooting steps are a great option to fix a simple issue, but we do not suggest performing in-depth inspections or self-repairs. Instead, call us today; we would be more than happy to assist you with your furnace needs and send one of our NATE-certified technicians to your home. We will get you squared away.
How Do We Stay Warm in the Meantime?
While you are waiting for your scheduled technician to arrive, you may need to find some ways to keep your home as warm as possible. For example, if you have a fireplace, now would be a fantastic time to utilize it. Gather your family together and enjoy the warmth from the hearth while enjoying some extra time with your family. These are handy for situations like these. As a side note, with safety in mind, keeping fireplaces unmonitored for long periods is not recommended.
We hope this has been informative to you. Having your furnace go out randomly during the winter season is frustrating enough as it is. But not knowing what to do as a result of it will cause an already sour situation to become even more bitter. If you have any questions or need to schedule a technician to come out to your home, please do not hesitate to give Grove City Heating & Air a call today at (614) 490-7540 or schedule an appointment online by clicking here!
