Preparing Your Heater for Winter Weather

With the drop in temperatures, service calls for heating units are on the rise.

One of the most important things you can do to make sure your heater is working right, is also one of the simplest.

"The main thing on the heating system is to keep the filter clean so it is running at its top efficiency," said Darren Kirkpatrick, the Service Manager at Ferguson-Veresh Heating and Air in Wichita Falls.

A dirty filter not only stops air from flowing efficiently, if it gets too dirty it could get sucked up into the heating unit causing severe damage.

Another tip, if you have a gas furnace, make sure it's vented properly and never put something flammable near your heater, because when the unit kicks on, it could start a fire.

Also, don't put anything in front of your vents.

Heating units are designed to pump out a certain amount of air, which also means don't shut any vents in part of your house you're not using.

"The ducts are designed to move so much air flow," said Kirkpatrick, "and if you're shutting those down, you're trying to push more air out of grills that may not be able to handle it, so your airflow will be reduced."

Finally, if you're unsure about whether your heater is working right, call for help.

"It needs to be checked out by a professional to check the efficiency of it," explained Kirkpatrick, "check all the safeties to make sure they are all working properly."

Kirkpatrick also said if you have a gas furnace, make sure you also have a working carbon monoxide detector.

That way if your furnace is not vented properly, you'll know.