Winter is finally here, and that means you’re probably relying on your furnace on a daily basis. There are a couple of precautions that you need to take while you’re using your furnace that often, one of which is cleaning the air filter every couple of months. If you don’t do this, you run the risk of causing short cycling to occur in your system. Let’s take a closer look at short cycling, and the damage it can cause to your furnace.
Short Cycling and Air Filters
Short cycling is a behavior in which your furnace turns itself on and off every couple of minutes. It is caused by heat becoming trapped in the furnace, typically because the air filter has become clogged with debris. This causes the temperature in the furnace to rise until the limit switch activates, which shuts the system down to protect it. The problem is that the limit switch can’t actually solve the cause of the overheating. When the furnace restarts, it’s just going to overheat again and shut down again. This cycle continues indefinitely, until the furnace starts to break down from the massive increase in wear and tear that short cycling creates.
If short cycling is not dealt with as quickly as possible, it starts to have lasting negative effects on the furnace. Parts begin to wear out and break down years ahead of when they normally would, and the overall life of the furnace is shortened quite a bit. In order to prevent this from happening, get your air filter cleaned every other month during the winter. If your furnace is already short cycling, turn it off and call for repairs immediately.
If your furnace needs repairs, call Touchstone Heating & Air Inc. We cover all of Gainesville, FL.