Changing Your Air Filter

You wouldn’t drive your car five years without changing the oil right? Many people know that changing the oil regularly in your car is vital to keep it running well. Some do not know that changing the air filter in your furnace is just as vital. In this post we will go over how to replace the filter for your furnace.

1” Filters

1. Turn your furnace off, the most common way is to turn the switch off at the furnace. If you do not have a switch at your furnace you can also turn the temperature down at your thermostat and wait for the furnace to be off.
2. Once the power is off locate where your furnace filter is, sometimes it is written on the ductwork where the filter is. Most commonly your air filter is located in the return air duct on the side of your furnace.
3. You should change a filter every 1-3 months, if you pull your filter out after three months and it has built up a lot of dust and pet hair you may want to change it more often, remember the filter is there to improve the air in your home and if it is clogged it cannot do its job properly.
4. You can either write down the size or just bring the filter to any hardware store and they should have the same size. Or you can call us and we can set you up with a new case of filters.
5. When installing the new filter remember to install it in the correct way. There will be an arrow on the filter indicating which way the air flows. This is often TOWARDS the furnace.
6. Once the new filter is installed, put the cover back on the opening and turn your furnace back on.
7. Congratulations you have just completed one of the most important routine home maintenance activities!

4” Filters

These filters are significantly larger than the 1” filters and therefore do not need to be changed as often. The procedure to change these filters is the same as the 1” filter but they only need to be changed every 3-6 months again depending on the quality of your air.

Washable Media

Some people may have an Electronic Air Cleaner or EAC. These EAC’s are very effective at cleaning the air by using current to charge the particles and cause them to stick to the EAC plates these need to be cleaned as often as a regular furnace filter, about every 1-3 months. They also have prefilters that need to be vacuumed and washed with a hose.