With fall officially here, it won’t be long before it gets cold enough that you need to run your heating system. With that usage often comes increasingly high energy bills. While heating can be a significant expense in Utah, several factors can contribute to your energy bills being higher than necessary.
This includes your heating system not being properly maintained, or your home having numerous drafts. By following these basic tips, you can help keep your energy costs low while still ensuring your home is comfortable throughout fall and the coming winter.
Check and Replace HVAC Air Filter Regularly
If you have a central heating system with a furnace or heat pump, you should keep up with replacing the system’s air filter. The general rule is that you replace a disposable filter or wash a reusable filter at least once every three months.
However, this rule doesn’t necessarily apply to every situation, as there can be times when a filter gets so dirty that it clogs in as little as a month or two. This is often the case if you have indoor pets. Filters with a higher MERV rating also tend to clog much faster since they are more efficient and trap more debris.
At Gunthers Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing, we recommend replacing or washing your filter before turning your heating equipment on for the first time. Check it every month to make sure it hasn’t started to clog. You can tell if you need to replace or wash the filter if it’s starting to look dark or has a thick layer of dust and debris on its surface.
Once a filter starts to become clogged, there is a restriction in the amount of air the blower can pull into the furnace or air handler. The result is that the system’s heating performance decreases, leading to longer heating cycles and increased energy consumption. In most cases, running your heating system with a dirty, clogged filter will typically lead to somewhere between a 5% and 15% increase in your monthly energy bills.
Not replacing or washing the filter often enough also puts more strain on your heating system and leads to an increase in wear and tear. Another concern if you have a furnace is that it can end up frequently overheating and shutting down if the filter is clogged.
Schedule a Heating Tune-Up
Furnaces and heat pumps both have a variety of essential maintenance tasks that should be performed at least once a year. While the specific maintenance requirements are different between the two, they can make a major difference in heating performance and energy efficiency.
In addition to keeping your energy bills lower, having a certified HVAC technician service and inspect your heating system at the start of the season helps avoid common issues. These problems can result in the system breaking down and needing to be repaired before it can run again. The other major benefit of annual maintenance is that it helps protect and potentially extend the system’s lifespan.
Some of the most important steps in maintaining a furnace include cleaning the burners, cleaning the blower and flame sensor, and inspecting and testing the electronic igniter and all the switches. Cleaning the burners ensures that the gas fully combusts and the furnace puts out as much heat as is necessary. It also helps ensure that the furnace doesn’t produce carbon monoxide, which can happen if the gas doesn’t fully combust.
If you have a heat pump, it’s crucial that you have both coils cleaned and the refrigerant level checked before winter starts. Dirty coils have a major impact on a heat pump’s performance and can lead to a 20% to 30% decrease in efficiency.
If the system is low on refrigerant, it also won’t work nearly as well as it’s supposed to. If the refrigerant level is much too low, the system won’t be able to heat at all. That means you’ll have to rely solely on the system’s electric heating strips, which will result in a substantial increase in your energy bills.
Upgrade to a Smart Thermostat
If you currently have a standard programmable thermostat or an old analog unit, upgrading to a smart thermostat is beneficial. With an ENERGY STAR smart thermostat, you’ll see around an 8% reduction in your annual heating costs on average. In Utah, that typically adds up to savings of somewhere between $50 and $150 a year. A smart thermostat will also reduce how much your AC system runs during the summer so that you’ll save on your cooling costs as well.
The best smart thermostats are “learning” models that can automatically adjust the temperature setting themselves. The thermostat uses motion sensors to learn the household’s daily routines. It then starts turning the temperature up or down based on these routines.
For instance, it will turn the temperature down by a few degrees at the time everyone normally leaves in the morning to reduce how much the heating system runs when the house is unoccupied. It will then turn the temperature back up early enough that the house is already fully warm again by the time the first person normally gets home.
All ENERGY STAR smart thermostats also have an energy monitoring feature in the app. With this feature, you can directly see how any changes you make to the thermostat settings impact how much your heating system runs. This feature also provides recommendations on changes you can make to decrease energy consumption without negatively impacting your comfort.
Check Around Windows and Doors for Drafts
Drafty windows and doors are a common problem that can result in substantially higher energy bills. Not only do air leaks around window and door frames let heat out, but they also allow cold air inside. This leads to a heating system having to run more often, taking a longer time for the house to get fully warm.
If you can feel cool air coming in around any window or exterior door, it means you need to replace the seals or weather stripping. Resealing any drafty windows and doors is easy and doesn’t take much time. It will help you avoid issues with cold spots in your house and unnecessarily high heating costs.
Keep Curtains and Blinds Open During the Day
Make sure to leave your curtains and blinds open during the day. You can take advantage of the natural heat from the sun to help keep your house warm and reduce the amount of work your heating system must do.
The amount of heat your house gets from sunlight streaming in through large south- and west-facing windows can be substantial. However, if the windows are only single pane, you’re better off investing in insulated curtains or blinds and keeping them closed to block out the cold air coming in through the window.
Since 1910, Gunthers Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing has been the most trusted source for residential and commercial HVAC in American Fork. We have what it takes to ensure you can stay comfortable without breaking the bank. Whether it’s servicing or repairing your heating system, upgrading to a new system, or installing a smart thermostat, you can trust us to provide top-notch work at an affordable price.
We’re proud to be a Lennox Premier Dealer, and our experienced technicians can service and repair HVAC equipment from all other brands. To schedule a tune-up and get your heating system ready for the change in seasons, contact us at Gunthers Heating, Cooling, and Plumbing in American Fork today.
