What Happens When You Don't Change Your Furnace's Air Filter

One of the most routine problems that we encounter at Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning in Edmonton is filthy air filters. They might seem like a very tiny piece of the overall home comfort puzzle, but the role they play in helping us maintain comfort is a lot bigger than most homeowners recognize. Regardless if it is cooling season or heating season, having a clogged air filter can cause a host of problems for your heating and AC system.

So what exactly happens when you forget to switch out your air filter? Here are a just a couple of the side effects you might encounter:

• Diminished airflow. This is easily the greatest headache you’ll note when your home’s air filter is severely clogged. The longer the air filter goes without being changed, the more dirt, dust and other particles build up. Of course, this hinders air from passing through the filter as it should, meaning your system is working quite a bit harder to leave you with the same amount of air.
• Frozen coil. If your system is working harder because of a dirty air filter, you also run the danger of having the cooling coil freeze inside of the system, because it’s operating overtime to give you cool air.
• Total loss of cooling or heating. This is also a possibility if your air filter goes neglected for months and months on end. In essence, you will have worked your system so hard that something quits working or wears out and needs to be replaced or serviced.
• Short cycling. Short cycling means the heating and cooling system turns on and off more than it should. When your system short cycles, it can overheat or break down from the added work, which could end up causing damage to your system.

In addition to these, you can also expect:

• A shorter equipment lifecycle
• Reduced energy efficiency
• Diminished air quality
• Increase in dust and debris
• Lack of comfort