Homeowners may find the heater not working when they need to heat their house. They see their thermostat is working and the central air system is still in fine shape. But for whatever reason, there is no hot air blowing out despite the heater running.
Believe it not, this is not an unusual problem. What’s more, there are several possible reasons why you could be experiencing no heat in your house.
The reasons could vary from technical setbacks, a faulty thermostat or your furnace simply needs maintenance.
Your Furnace Needs Maintenance
Homeowners may come across the peculiar problem of having the heating stop after working for a short time. This happens when the furnace detects a problem mid-cycle. This usually signals that it is time for your furnace to be maintenanced.
Furnace maintenance is critical to ensuring your home heating system is consistently operating at full efficiency. A maintenance session with your highly skilled and friendly Apollo Heating & Air Conditioning technician will involve clearing out residue, buildup and debris that can hamper energy efficiency and heating quality.
Here is a checklist of benefits from regularly performing furnace maintenance:
- Motors spin without resistance
- Burners hold fires without using excess gas
- The furnace experiences less stress
- There is less damage to parts such as motors and wires
- The central air system lasts longer and works better
If you are still experiencing heater system difficulties or your heater at home is blowing cold hair and you don’t know why, consider these basic verification checks.
You want to make sure your thermostat is set in the HEAT position. Also, be sure to set the temperature WARMER than the current indoor air. Ensure your furnace power is on using the fan switch on the control or thermostat to test for power to the furnace.
Another commonly overlooked task is checking the circuit breakers in your home’s circuit breaker box (electrical panel) to ensure they are in the ON position.
Examine your furnace power switch to be sure it is in the ON position — it looks like a light switch on a gray box located at the furnace.
Technical Setbacks Preventing Home Heating from Operating Correctly
Furnaces built after the 1990s come equipped with a safety switch or safety shut out. They are designed to act as safety measures to prevent heating and air conditioning if there is a technical issue that can cause a hazard. In this case, the home heating will not come back on until the original problem is resolved.
Such Problems Causing the Shutdown include:
- Dirty Evaporator Coils
- Clogged Pipes
- Full Air Filters
- Broken Wires
- Burnt Control Board
- Dead Blower Motors
When the entire system does not start, you may contact Apollo Heating & Air Conditioning so we can perform additional diagnostics on a heater not working. Our experienced technicians can resolve these problems for you!
Heating System Not Adequately Heating Your Home
The first step is to check your filter for buildup. If you have one-inch-thick furnace filters, a once-a-month filter replacement is recommended. Two-inch thick filters — and other high-capacity pleated filters — usually only need to be changed every other month or less, depending on the filter type. You will strain your furnace if you do not change your filter when recommended as it will block proper air flow.
Examine all return air grilles to be sure they are not blocked. Return air grilles are larger and are located on a wall or the ceiling in newer homes, and typically on the floor in older homes.
It is also recommended you check the supply registers to make sure they are open and blowing air.
Other Signs A Service Call Is Necessary
You might hear your indoor-unit fan come on, but the from the registers is not warm or the fan is turning on and off more frequently than usual. Be aware — if your system control has a “Constant ON” feature, you will not always feel warmth, even though air may be blowing.
Please take the time to schedule a maintenance call and keep your system happy, and healthy. To learn more about our Planned Service Agreement and to schedule a maintenance with us call us at 509.987.1500.
