How to Prepare Your Commercial Furnace for Winter
Being a furnace during a Minnesota winter is a little bit like being a hockey goalie when your whole defensive line is sitting injured on the sidelines. The onslaught keeps coming, there’s little time to recover, and you have to do your best to keep the puck (or, cold weather, to extend the metaphor) at bay.
While no one would argue that both residential and commercial furnaces have a tough job in front of them at the start of each winter, there are things that you can do to prepare your HVAC system for the cold season that will keep it running smoothly and efficiently all winter long.
In fact, yearly furnace maintenance will not only reduce the risk of electrical hazards and other malfunctions, it will also improve heating power, efficiency, and indoor air quality!
Let’s take a closer look at how to prepare your commercial furnace for winter, so you can lower utility bills and increase comfort inside your facility.
Why Schedule Commercial Furnace Maintenance Each Fall?
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, heating accounts for over 30% of energy consumption in most commercial buildings, so installing and maintaining an efficient furnace is a smart way for business owners to save money.
What’s more, the loss of heating that can come from malfunctioning furnaces may result in loss of revenue or even complete closure of operations. Lastly, heating for businesses sometimes isn’t only about the comfort of the people inside; maintaining proper temperature may also protect expensive and/or highly delicate equipment.
A furnace that isn’t prepared for winter will not only run less efficiently, (and costs you more in heating bills), it can also be a safety hazard.
While there are some things you can do to improve your furnace’s efficiency, like regularly changing the filters, booking a furnace maintenance appointment before your furnace’s busy season is a necessity. During your maintenance appointment, you’ll discover problems before they become expensive repairs, make necessary upgrades proactively, and also optimize your furnace’s efficiency and performance throughout the winter.
What Happens During a Fall Furnace Maintenance Appointment?
Furnace maintenance visits require an hour or two of work per unit.
During your appointment, we will:
● Clean and inspect parts, changing out any that are old or worn
● Change air filters (if needed)
● Lubricate motors (to prevent them from overheating and burning out)
● Tighten electrical connections
● Check thermostat calibration
● Clean indoor and outdoor coils
● Measure refrigerant pressure
● Replace defective furnace insulation
● Repair leaks in piping, coils, and fittings
We’ll end by running a performance test to ensure that the system is working as it should be. If we discover repair needs, we’ll arrange for the work necessary to fix them.
Please note that the above work should be completed once yearly, but every couple of years it’s worth replacing defective ducting and piping, or, if it is still in good condition, cleaning air ducts. Clean air ducts not only increase energy efficiency, they also ensure that you are breathing the freshest and cleanest air possible.
It’s also worth periodically considering an HVAC control upgrade, as new energy management technologies, such as smart thermostats, are always improving.
Get Expert HVAC Services for Your Commercial Business
If you would like to schedule a furnace maintenance appointment for your commercial business, and are located in the Twin Cities Metro Area, we here at Quality Systems Heating and Cooling would love to be of service. Contact us today for a free quote!
We bring three generations of experience to our HVAC business, and we are experts in keeping furnaces working optimally through the harshness of Minnesota winters. Financing options are available, and we guarantee kind and responsive customer service and quality craftsmanship!