Experiencing Problems With Your Heat?

Ways To Troubleshoot Before Calling For Service

Of course, with almost anything you find in your home, your heating system is bound to run into some efficiency problems at one point or another. Unfortunately, there are many problems that your heating system could potentially face. For many of us, when a heating problem arises we immediately call for service help. But, perhaps to your own surprise, you may be able to troubleshoot the issues yourself before reaching out for assistance. Below are some everyday heating problems that your Central Maine home can face and ways you can potentially fix them.

Common Heating Issues and Solutions

Does your home feel drafty and have cold spots?

A common heating system problem is that there are places in a house that don’t seem to get warm or stay warm no matter what you do. If this is the case:

• Make sure vents and areas where hot air is supposed to come from aren’t blocked by other household items such as furniture, rugs or curtains.
• Consider adding additional insulation to those drafty rooms.
• Add door sweeps to any doors that lead to the outside and add caulking and weather stripping to windows and doors.

Is your heat just generally not working properly?

While this certainly seems like a big problem (and absolutely can be) there are some easy fixes for this that you can try yourself that could potentially solve the whole problem.

• Make sure you aren’t out of heating fuel. If you do find yourself running on empty, contact us for a delivery.
• Check all power switches to make sure they are set to “on” or “start”. Additionally, make sure that any pilot lights are lit if your system has one.
• Reset the red burner switch on any oil-fired furnaces or boilers. However, avoid doing this more than once as that can cause a flood of oil.
• If you have a forced-air system, it may be time to change your air filter if air isn’t flowing from the vents. Also make sure your vents are clear and are not blocked by any furniture or other household items.

Is your home’s air dry?

Not only can dry air be related to a heating system problem, but also it is not good for flooring, woodwork, electronics, furniture or people with a respiratory condition.

• A great solution for dry air in a house is to add a whole-house humidifier to your heating system.

Are you experiencing carbon monoxide leaks?

A carbon monoxide leak can also be related to a heating system problem.

• Make sure that there are carbon monoxide detectors on every floor of your house, specifically outside all bedrooms. Carbon monoxide detectors should get new batteries every six months and should be replaced every five years.

Is your heating system cycling?

A dirty air filter or a defective thermostat can cause your boiler or furnace to cycle, meaning it shuts off and then goes back on more than usual.

• Change your air filter if necessary and make sure your thermostat is working properly.

If your heating problems persist after troubleshooting please contact Murray-Heutz so we can help. We service and install a long list of heating products in Turner, Lewiston, Auburn, Lisbon, Poland, and the surrounding Maine areas. We also have heating oil and propane service plans that we would love to tell you about.