This article was published in October 2021 and may be outdated.
Now is the time to perform important fall maintenance tasks to ensure your home heating system operates at peak efficiency during colder weather.
Regular maintenance of your natural gas furnace can help prevent carbon monoxide hazards and keep your furnace operating at its best when you need it most.
- Get it checked: Have your furnace and ventilation system tuned-up by a qualified heating contractor.
- Install a new air filter: A filter clogged with dust and dirt restricts air flow, which can cause the furnace to run hotter, reducing its efficiency and life expectancy. Check and change your filter regularly.
- Make space for proper ventilation: Store boxes, tools and clutter away from your furnace. And never keep gasoline or other combustible materials such as paper, chemicals, paint, solvents or cleaning products nearby, as they can explode. Even vapours leaking from containers can cause an explosion.
- It’s not a shelf or clothes rack: Don’t lean anything against the furnace or water heater. And if your furnace room doubles as a laundry room, don’t hang laundry or a clothesline from your equipment – it’s a major fire hazard and reduces airflow.
- Make sure your carbon monoxide alarm works properly: Accumulation of CO can be caused by a faulty appliance, clogged chimney, inadequate venting, or a build-up of engine exhaust. While CO alarms aren’t a substitute for proper installation and regular equipment maintenance, they do provide some reassurance. A CO alarm can warn of deadly carbon monoxide in the home before toxic levels are reached. If your CO alarm sounds, evacuate your family and pets and call 911 or Manitoba Hydro at 1-888-624-9376 for an emergency inspection.
- Clean and repair leaky eavestroughs: A thorough cleaning will prevent ice and melting snow from dripping onto the natural gas meter and/or pressure regulator and freezing when the temperature drops. Ice on the regulator can obstruct the vent, causing a malfunction and allowing excess gas to enter the home.