With the calendar rounding into fall, you’ve probably noticed a few changes happening around you. The weather is starting to cool off, days are featuring less and less daylight, and you probably haven’t needed to run your air conditioning as often lately. Cooling season is nearly done for the year, and that means it’s time to start preparing your heater for the hours of use that lie ahead.
Maintenance and tune-up services are critical for any major appliance, but this is particularly true for your heating system. In fact, we recommend all homeowners schedule a tune-up service every autumn in order to prepare their furnace for the months of use that lie ahead. Why is fall the best time to do this? Here are a few reasons why this is the most opportune time to get this important annual maintenance out of the way.
Contractor Demand Is Typically Low
The fall season is typically the “shoulder season” for heating and cooling contractors. As the weather starts to cool off, people need their air conditioning less and less. That means fewer repairs and fewer new system installations. However, it’s also before the peak of heating season, and that means those services aren’t quite picking up steam yet either. That means contractor demand is typically low during this period, and that means you can often schedule your tune-up and have it done either that same day or within one business day. You’ll be prepped and ready to go in no time.
You Don’t Urgently Need Your Heater
When the weather outside dips to frigid temperatures, going without your heater for even as little as an hour or two can cause temperatures inside your home to plummet down to uncomfortable lows. However, during a heating maintenance service, you won’t be able to turn your heater on and utilize it. You might be able to use small space heaters as a substitute, but these often don’t heat more than one small space. Thus, the experience isn’t all that enjoyable, and for that reason many people choose to skip it entirely. This also isn’t ideal.
When you have your maintenance service completed before the start of the heating season, you probably won’t need your heater while it is being tuned up and maintained. That means no disruption in your comfort, no sudden dip in indoor temperatures, and a better and more enjoyable experience.
The Majority of Heating Breakdowns Happen on the First Cycle of the Season
Believe it or not, the overwhelming majority of damage to heaters happens right at the start of the season. In fact, it happens from the moment you first fire up your system. When your heater has been sitting dormant and quiet for months on end, a lot of wear and tear and damage can happen. Parts can wear out and lose their ability to do their job. Different things begin to age and fall apart. However, you probably don’t know these things have happened simply because you haven’t run your heater in a while.
You’ll probably learn fairly quickly that something has gone wrong with your heater during its dormancy. In most cases, these parts fail and your heater stops working during its very first cycle of the season. For example, your pilot light may have worn out, resulting in your furnace failing to start up. This means you’ll find yourself in the tricky situation of needing an emergency repair, and you’re probably not alone in this. In fact, the first big chill of the season is another busy time for heating contractors, as people everywhere discover they need to have their system fixed. This might make it difficult to find someone who can handle your issue right away.
Instead, preparing ahead of time for this first cycle of the season can help you avoid the potential problems it can bring. When your heater is properly tuned up and prepared, its first cycle and every cycle after that will be uneventful. Your furnace will turn on and start working appropriately, your home will warm up as expected, and you’ll even enjoy outstanding energy efficiency throughout the season too!
Call today to learn more about Blazer Heating, Air, and Plumbing's maintenance plan and to ask about our fall specials on tune-ups.
Dial (804) 277-2458