Now is the Time to Prep Your Furnace in Western PA

Professional Inspecting Furnace
Prep your home’s furnace or heat pump for winter soon because Winter Is Coming!! And it comes especially quickly in Western PA.  In November 2014, temperatures dropped down to 14 degrees! Make sure your home furnace is prepped for the inevitable dropping temperatures by getting your systems inspected and prepped sooner – rather than later!

Prepare for colder months before winter, and ensure your systems are up to par and working at full capacity by scheduling an appointment with Top Notch before the cold months occur. By getting your inspection and prep done now when we’re less busy, you will get more availability, rather than right before the first frost when we’re in our peak season and hustling all around the Pittsburgh area, from South Fayette, Shadyside, Squirrel Hill, Upper Saint Clair, Mount Lebanon, and more.

The first step you should take in preparing your furnace for winter months, is having a professional come in to inspect and clean it. The small fee of an inspection, will more than outweigh the cost increase an inefficient furnace could collect through sky high, wasteful energy bills.

Replace Furnace Air Filter

We suggest replacing your air filter, or rinsing your reusable filter. Next time you buy a filter, you might want to look into reusable filters, which don’t require replacing, but instead just rinsing. Some filters need to be replaced once a month, others, every three months. This depends on the quality of the filter, as well as other factors such as geographical location. For Top Notch customers located in Allegheny, Washington, Butler, Somerset, Armstrong, Fayette, Beaver, Greene, and Westmoreland Counties, we suggest checking your air filters monthly, and changing them when they look dirty.

Another item in your furnace or heat pump that we will review and potentially recommend replacing, is the humidifier pad. Your furnace’s humidifier pad should be replaced at least once a year.

After that, we’ll check other items, like your blower blades, blower belt, and potentially oil the blower motor (given it is an unsealed blower motor). We will look for loose belts, which can increase furnace operation time, and also frayed or cracked belts, which can stop your furnace from operating altogether. We also review your heat pumps’ return duct, condensation drain, filter, filter slot, and internal pieces within it to make sure everything is running well, and clean. We also may suggest cleaning the heating ducts, depending upon how they look, when you had renovations last, the last time you had them cleaned, etc. We change your humidistat from off to about 40-50% room humidity. We make sure that your blower doors are replaced properly to keep carbon monoxide away from the air that circulates throughout your Pittsburgh Home.

All in all, our thorough inspection of your system will ensure that it is in optimal shape to heat your home this winter, safeguarding your home and your family against dust, toxins, and other safety hazards. Save money on your energy bills and keep your home safe and comfortable by getting your furnace inspected and cleaned before use this year.