Your furnace is an essential part of maintaining a comfortable home environment, but unfortunately, it won’t last forever. Even the highest-quality furnace needs occasional repairs or eventual replacement. If you’re wondering if you need furnace repair in Salt Lake City or may need to replace your furnace entirely, keep an eye out for these warning signs.
Know Your Furnace’s Age
Every furnace has a limited lifespan to some degree. A well-maintained system lasts 15 to 20 years on average, although some particularly hardy furnaces may last 30 years or more. If your furnace is 15 years old or older, it’s a good idea to have a plan for replacement in mind, just in case. Doing your research ahead of time can minimize stress when your furnace does break down.
If you’re not sure how old your furnace is, try looking around on its surface. Most furnaces have a small plaque or label that states the make, model, and year of manufacture, among other information.
Pay Attention To Changes
If your furnace suddenly starts making odd noises or you start noticing strange smells, it may be a sign something is wrong. Most of the time, these things can be fixed with just minor repairs and maintenance. However, it can be a sign that your furnace is nearing the end of its lifespan, especially if these small repairs are becoming more frequent.
Keep An Eye On Your Utility Bill
Another good sign that your furnace may need repairs or replacement is your utility bill. If you see unusually high costs every month, your furnace may be struggling to keep your house warm. This may be fixable, but it could also mean it’s time to upgrade. Even if your furnace is keeping up, investing in a more energy-efficient system may pay off in the long run.
Breathe Deeply
Decreased indoor air quality can be another sign of a failing furnace. If you and your family notice that you seem to have allergy symptoms even during the winter, it may mean that your heating system is pumping dust and allergens into your home. Some failing systems may even cause visible dust in the air.
Stay Cozy
Of course, one of the most obvious signs of a failing heating system is cold spots and inadequate heating. Your furnace should be able to heat your home evenly and efficiently, so if you find yourself constantly feeling cold even when your thermostat is turned up high or notice that some rooms just won’t get warm, you may need a new furnace.
If you’re looking for a trustworthy and reliable heating repair company in Salt Lake City, the professionals at Scott Hale can help. We can assist you with routine maintenance, emergency repairs, or complete installations of new systems.
Our homes are supposed to be a sanctuary from the cold, the place where we should feel cozy and comfortable during the long winter. If you’ve set your thermostat to the temperature you’re normally comfortable with, but you’re cold indoors, there may be a number of things that you’ll want to check out. There may be a simple fix for your problem, or you may need to contact your local Salt Lake City heating repair company for an inspection.
Drop In Outdoor Temperature
A significant drop in temperature may be the simple explanation for why your house feels cold even though your thermostat is set to a comfortable temperature. Your heater could be struggling to maintain that temperature because it’s getting colder outside. You may also need to adjust your thermostat to a higher temperature, but that could lead to a bump in your energy bills. By considering some of the things listed below, you might be able to keep your home cozy without adjusting your thermostat when the temperature drops outside.
Leaky Windows
Your windows could be allowing cold air into your interior. That’s going to affect your temperature control and will actually cause more wear and tear on your system as it tries to maintain your thermostat setting. Old windows are notorious for letting in draughts, but new windows are expensive. Consider insulating your windows with clear plastic film sold for this purpose. The film helps block cold air from entering your interior space.
You Need More Insulation
Another reason your house might be extra chilly is because you need additional insulation. You may not have enough insulation in your attic or crawl space. In such cases, cold and damp air can be penetrating the scant insulation and into your living space. Consider adding additional insulation to block that cold air from getting into your interior.
Furnace Inspection
Of course, you might certainly suspect a furnace issue if you suddenly notice that your home is chillier than usual. It’s possible you need Salt Lake City furnace repair or just a simple tune-up and filter change. You don’t want to risk a breakdown, especially during a cold snap, so as soon as you suspect there may be a problem, it’s a good idea to contact your HVAC service provider to check things out.
Scott Hale offers affordable and reliable HVAC service to customers in and around Salt Lake City. Our company’s certified furnace pros can evaluate your furnace and also help you troubleshoot exactly why your home is colder than usual. Call us to learn more or schedule a service appointment today!
The cooler months of the year are upon us, so people are going to start spending more time indoors.
Unfortunately, this means that there’s a higher risk of transmission of communicable diseases, such as influenza and even COVID-19. Because you and your family members are likely going to be spending more time in your home, you must ensure that the air quality is as good as possible.
What Dangers Are In The Home?
Besides the risk of the transmission of viruses, there are many other sources of danger in the air of most homes. Indoor air pollution is a serious matter. It includes pollutants, such as:
It surprises some people to know that the sources of indoor pollution include some of the things that are considered normal.
Things like household cleaners, space heaters, chimneys, and even attached garages can have a negative impact on the air quality of the house.
A whole-home air purifier system can help to reduce these indoor air pollutants.
How Might Indoor Air Pollution Make Influenza And The Coronavirus Worse?
You might not think too much about how the quality of air in your home can impact your potential to contract an illness or the way in which you heal from it. There are some profound impacts that it can have when the illness is related to the respiratory system.
Influenza and COVID-19 both impact the respiratory system. Because you inhale air pollution, there’s a chance that it can irritate the lungs and windpipe. This might make the symptoms of the respiratory illnesses more pronounced.
What Can You Do To Help Improve Air Quality In The Home?
There are three components to improving the air quality in your home – relative humidity, air purity, and air freshness. A whole-house humidifier can help to keep the relative humidity from dipping too low.
When the air is too dry, there’s a higher risk of respiratory illness transmission because the lungs depend on some moisture in the air to prevent them from drying out.
Residential indoor air quality in Salt Lake City is a big concern, but it can be addressed with a whole-home air purifier. High-efficiency models, which are available from Scott Hale, can help reduce the virus-sized particles by up to 80 percent, which can also help to reduce the chance of transmission of the flu.
Air freshness, which has to do with the ventilation of the home, is the final component in trying to stay healthy this winter. A full home system allows fresh air into the home and helps to force out the stale, used air.
Contact Scott Hale today to find out what options can help you to improve the air quality in your home this winter.
Whether there is too much hair or grease trapped in your drains, your sink or toilet can unexpectedly clog at any time. While this inconvenience can be a headache, there are ways that you can fix your clogged drains on your own.
Before you call a drain cleaning service, try out these tips for the best ways on how to unclog a sink drain. If you think your issue is more significant than you can handle, Scott Hale’s experienced drain plumbers in Salt Lake City will be happy to help you!
Start With Hot Water
With everything that can get stuck in your drain, one of the easiest ways to get your drains clean is by pouring boiling hot water down the drain. This should be the first thing you do to try to clear any blockage.
For the best results, you should boil a half-gallon of water and pour it right into the drain opening. After doing this, turn the water on and see if the water drains the right way. If not, repeat the process, and if it still doesn’t work, it means you have a stubborn clog that will require an alternative solution.
Use Baking Soda And Vinegar
Before starting this technique, make sure you remove any standing water that is in your sink. As one of the best ways to unclog a sink, this mixture is easy to use, and you don’t have to buy chemical drain cleaners.
Start by pouring a cup of baking soda into the sink drain and then add in the same amount of white vinegar. The mixture should begin to bubble.
Then, after 15 minutes, run your hot water. If it is draining properly, some of the blockage has been eliminated.
Plunge Away
One of the most common and best ways to unclog a sink, using a plunger usually always does the trick. Plungers can be efficiently used for sink and toilet clogs and are recommended by drain cleaning companies.
For a sink clog, try to use a sink plunger which is smoother on the surface. Make sure you have around three inches of water in your sink and plunge it up and down over the drain.
For your toilet, repeat this process with a toilet plunger.
Plumber’s Snake
This tool is often used by professionals during a drain cleaning service and is regarded as one of the best ways to unclog any drain.
You start by disassembling the drainpipe and P-trap to find any blockage behind the wall. Then, insert the snake until you feel resistance, which is a signal of blockage.
If you don’t have a plumber’s snake, try to use a metal wire coat hanger by straightening it out.
When Should I Call A Plumber?
It’s normal to want to avoid calling for a drain cleaning service, but sometimes it is necessary to protect your home. If you aren’t sure of the severity of the clog or have no prior experience of draining, then calling a plumber would be better than trying to tackle the issue yourself.
Do you have a stubborn clog in one or multiple home drains? Call us for reliable and professional drain cleaning services in Salt Lake City!
