Fall is Here: Change Your Air Filters

The transition of seasons is always a good time to think about changing the air filter that plays such an important role in your home’s cooling and heating system. With Florida’s lengthy cooling season, air has circulated through your home’s forced-air HVAC system thousands of times, and an effective air filter eventually will get clogged with dust and debris.

A dirty air filter will block smooth airflow in your home’s HVAC system, forcing the A/C or furnace to work harder to move air through the equipment and ductwork. This wastes energy and stresses the equipment. Similarly, with a clogged filter, dust will be more likely to collect on sensitive HVAC components, creating friction, impeding smooth operation and leading to more frequent breakdowns. An air filter working the way it’s intended not only prevents these situations but also helps improve indoor air quality.

Get in the habit of inspecting the air filter monthly during the high-use summer season and during the winter if your heating system is often in operation. If you live in a particularly dusty area, or perhaps construction is occurring near or inside your home, you’ll probably want to inspect the air filter even more often.

Determining whether you need to replace an air filter is easy. If it’s covered with dust and debris, or if you hold it up to a light and can’t easily see through it, you’ll want to change the air filter.

When you decide to change air filters, don’t make the mistake of selecting the cheapest available replacement – a flimsy, flat-panel filter that cost a couple bucks at the grocery or hardware store. These typically only sift out the largest dust particles, and miss the microscopic airborne particulates that can endanger the health of home occupants. For a few dollars more (under $10), you should be able to buy a higher-efficiency filter that will remove the great majority of contaminants.

For more advice when to change air filters or improve indoor air quality, please contact us at Rinaldi’s Energy Solutions. We provide quality HVAC services in Orlando and the surrounding area.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Orlando, Florida and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).

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