Winter Tips

To get ready for the winter season, here are some things that you should be doing before the heating season:

• Turn power to the furnace off.
• Make sure that the area around your heater is clear from any household items.
• Clean or replace the air filter and vacuum the blower compartment.
• Check that the pilot light is lit.
  (Most newer units don't have one.)
• Oil the motor & check the belt.
  (Most newer units don't have one.)
• Set your humidifier to "ON" or the "Winter" setting.
  The humidistat should be set at 30-35 percent.
• Carefully vacuum around the thermostat.
  (Now is a good time to check the program on digital ones.)
• Set the thermostat above room temperature by at least 10 Degrees.
• Turn power to the furnace on.
• Listen for the furnace to come on, and check to see that it's getting warm.
• Set the thermostat to a lower setting than the room temperature, and make sure that after a few minutes that the unit goes off.

This is also a good time of the year to replace the batteries in your smoke detectors, and to make sure that they are working. Also, if you don't already own a Carbon Monoxide detector, get one!

Have a comfortable winter.