Your home's heating system rarely ever fails at the end of the winter season. Instead, it fails right in the slap middle of the coldest temperatures and adverse weather conditions of the year. Luckily, if you educate yourself on a few things, you may be able to remedy the situation and avoid needing to call a professional HVAC technician who may not be able to show up at your home for hours, depending on the time of year and the number of calls that were receive before yours.

Is Your Home's Furnace Not Emitting Any Heat?

If your furnace doesn't seem to be allowing any heat to come out, you will want to check all of your circuit breakers as well as the on and off switches for anything related to the furnace. If the power is good and everything is in the "On" position, but you still do not have any heat, then you should contact a skilled HVAC technician for diagnostic testing and repair.

Is the Furnace Running Constantly?

If you notice that your furnace is constantly running, the problem could be with an inside component of your unit. Just to make sure, though, you will want to check your air filter to ensure that it is clean and not clogged. A clogged air filter will result in poor performance, including a constantly running furnace. Also, check the vents in all of the rooms in the house to ensure they're open. This can also have a negative impact on the performance of your unit. If all of this checks out, contact an HVAC professional. It may just need a quick tune-up or adjustment, or an interior component could have failed and needs to be replaced. In any case, it is usually beyond the skill level of a typical homeowner.

Is There a Strange Odor Coming from Your Furnace?

It isn't uncommon for a furnace to produce a musty or dusty odor, especially when it is started up for the first time in a while. However, if this smell continues or the odor presents itself at some other point in time, you may want to check the air filter, as the problem could be a dirty air filter that simply needs to be cleaned or replaced. If the odor that you are experiencing is a burning-type smell, then you will want to turn your heating unit off immediately and contact a professional HVAC company in your area. If your furnace operates off of gas and you smell gas, don't worry about switching it off. Instead, gather everyone in the home and leave. Head to a neighbor's and phone the local fire department to inform them of the situation.