Summer has officially ended on the calendar and Fall is underway. Temperatures are all over the map this time of year and we don’t even know how to dress for the day. In the home it’s a great money saver to simply have a few cozy blankets on the couches, but inevitably we need to turn on the furnace. The first ‘heat on’ of the year can be dramatically postponed for some, while others love the feel of the warmth pumping through the heating veins of their home right away! These vital systems in our basements need maintenance and care to ensure they perform for us when it counts. An annual maintenance on your HVAC equipment is necessary to ensure you have done all you can to prepare for the upcoming cold weather.
Often, the first time we turn up the temperature on our thermostats, we will smell all of that collected dust on our furnace’s heat exchanger, burning away. For a Winnipegger, that can be a pretty cozy and comforting smell lol. As long as there are no smoke alarms going off, that is a completely normal smell and should not last much longer than the first couple of heat cycles each year. If it does, that smell may be worth looking into. If Weather Tech Heating & Cooling performed your annual service on your furnace, that won’t cost you a dime to have us come out to assess. We warranty all of our annual service’s.
Sometimes a home’s heating and cooling system can make noises. Even the quietest system on the market, the Lennox SLP (99% efficient), makes some noise, however, I am speaking about the noises you may hear that don’t belong. The obvious grinding or squealing from the furnace will tell us that something is definitely wrong, however, sometimes it doesn’t even sound like the furnace itself. Very often we find the noises can come from the ductwork itself! Whether your duct work is old or new, sometimes it can be affected by contraction and expansion of the temperature differences it can experience from the furnace and air conditioning equipment. Alternatively, we have also found that the pressurization of the ducts from the blower in your furnace can cause the thin metal of your ducts to produce a ‘pop’ or ‘banging’ noise. We coined this issue to be an ‘oil canning’ of your ducts. Many times this can be fixed very easily. It first involves locating the origin of the ‘oil canning’ and to try and ascertain whether it is an issue of the following:
- Too much airflow
- Too high of a temperature
- Improper duct installation
- Airflow restrictions
- Improperly set gas pressure
That said, it can be a simple fix, or even one that you have a professional hvac technician address.
If it is a ‘whistle noise’ this is also another very common issue we tackle. All too often it is due to improper duct design or a restriction which has built up causing the furnace’s blower motor to perform an uninvited tune in your home. Once again, unless it’s an obvious issue such as a new register which you have installed or simply a furnace filter that needs to be changed out, it can also be something that needs a trained eye to take a look at.
Comfort is not just about the temperature in your home…
At Weather Tech Heating & Cooling, comfort is about that heating/cooling system that goes unnoticed. Not causing obnoxious smells, erratic temperatures or middle of the night, cringing noises! It’s running quiet because it’s working the way it was designed to work with adequate duct design, with proper installation procedures and set ups, with regular preventative maintenance. Your HVAC system should never be a ‘going concern’. It is the single largest unsung hero of any home. Tempered, humidified, clean, breathable, purified air. It provides a necessary component of your family’s well being.
We promise to provide the expertise needed to ensure your family can think about something besides, anything besides, the heating system in your home.
How’s the WEATHER in Your Home?