|
Clean or replace furnace filters.
Dirty filters slow air-flow through your HVAC system
making it work harder and costing you more money.
Check manufacturer’s maintenance
instructions to make sure your furnace and heat pump
are in best working order and have your HVAC system
serviced if it has been over a year. Keep your outdoor
unit free of debris from fallen leaves or overgrown
shrubbery.
Clean registers, baseboard heaters,
and radiators. Make sure furniture, carpeting or drapes
does not block their air-flow or pose a fire hazard.
Close the vents to the crawlspace
of your home in the fall to prevent cool air from penetrating
under your house.
Caulk and seal air leaks where plumbing,
ducting or electrical wiring penetrate exterior walls,
floors and ceilings.
Test your home for air tightness.
On a windy day, hold a lit incense stick next to your
windows, doors, electrical boxes, plumbing fixtures,
electrical outlets, ceiling fixtures and other locations
on exterior walls. If the smoke moves sideways, you
have located an air leak that may need caulking, sealing
or weather-stripping.
Check your ductwork for leaks
and sections that may have separated. Secure the connections
with mechanical fasteners such as sheet metal screws.
Seal the joints with duct mastic or butyl rubber tape.
|
