Should I Run My Furnace Fan Continuously in the Winter
Dan has been in the HVAC manufacture for 23 years with experience ranging from installation and overhaul to sales and distribution.
Rising Fan Causative Performance and Efficiency
Cleaning the fan on our furnaces is something that has likely never been done, or we've paid significant amounts of money to have someone do it for us. Neither has to be the case anymore.
Removing a blower assembly is not an overly complex task and performing this maintenance has a prissy set of benefits.
- Improves fan performance
- Increases fan motor efficiency
- Removes large amounts of dust from your arrangement
- Lowers the chances of motor failure
- All of these equal less money
It's decisive to understand that all electrically operated devices play improve when clean. When these devices ferment better, they also work more efficiently. The added insulation of dust on electrical components causes an increase in operating temperature, and there is little that is harder on electric components than high operating temperatures.
Of course, in this case, if the buff blades are caked with dust, you right away have added resistance on the fan, which causes the motor to work harder, let alone less space between the blades, thus causing a lower output of air. The list goes on.
Flat-footed Drive vs. Belt Driven
Today's furnaces typically run on a direct drive fan and motorial assembly, meaning the sports fan wheel is attached directly to the motive. A belt-driven buff, however, has a belt that runs from a pulley on the fan to a pulley on an externally affixed motive. How the motor and the fan are placed in the furnace, in this showcase, can vary, but you know right forth if you see a swath in there, what you have.
The following steps will explain how to dispatch your blower assembly, clean it, and, of course of instruction, re-install it without the use of whatsoever specialty tools, science books, or money fagged. Let's get started by using a direct ride blower assembly as our example. You'll be surprised how much ungraded can stick to a lover moving at 1200 RPM.
Acquiring Into Your Furnace
This is what the inner of your furnace looks like or similar.
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Basic Furnace Construction and Safety
As you see in the picture here, the furnace is divided into 2 basic sections. The upper section is commonly known as the burner compartment, but we will be focusing on the butt division, commonly renowned as the blower compartment.
The blower compartment contains your electric fan assembly (fan, squirrel cage, and motor) and typically your ascendance board. In the guinea pig of a horizontal unit of measurement, the arrangement is basically the same; still, in a down-flow system, these compartments are bu switched in most cases. Either room, the pursuit will go for.
As we proceed, safety and care essential lean to this job. Whenever working with electrical and/or accelerator-burning appliances, you must go with caution. Non only does this help secure your safety, but it also prevents causing much damage than upstanding in our guess.
For removing the blower, there are 3 main things that you penury without doubt of:
- The force to the unit is off either by a switch or breaker control panel.
- When pulling retired the blower, jazz that the fan bequeath twisting freely, so be sure your fingers are in a good location to avoid them beingness cadaverous or cut.
- Pay care to the wires and parts that are attached. This is a sheet metal cabinet, so there are edges that can via media wiring insulation and/or damage parts that aren't properly set up aside or handled.
No of this is meant to panic attack you away from doing this maintenance because, Eastern Samoa I same, it's non rocket science. I just want to be sure you're mindful of the possibilities and that this is only beneficial to you, not problematic. If you get on unsure of anything you face while working happening your unit, do not assume anything. Adjoin a professional HVAC technician for your divine service.
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Furnace Rooter Removal Photos
Steps for Removing Your Furnace Fan
- Be sure the power is off to the unit of measurement.
- Remove the doors on the unit to gain get at.
- Remove the door throw if it's in the way of pull out the cetacean mammal. You should follow able to take out the 2 screws retention information technology in place without disconnecting any wires.
NOTE: For those of you WHO are alert that this switch cuts the power to the unit once the door is removed, hopefully, you know that superpowe is tranquillise feeding the switch as well. This is why you kill the power anterior to it entering the building block by the ledgeman Beaver State externally decorated switch.
- Get down the control board. Over again, this is usually only held in place by a few screws. DO NOT Bump off THE BOARD FROM THE MOUNTING BRACKET. The bracket and all should protrude once the screws are removed. You shouldn't need to disconnect any wires either but if you do, be sure to mark where they came from. There should be enough slack in the wires to set the plug-in and switch off to the sidelong while you process removing the blower.
- Dismount the cetacean. On that point are likely 2 screws holding the blower in pose. Aside from that, on that point are simply 2 "slides" where the top edge of the blower assembly coast nicely into that carry the weight of the cetacean meeting place. With the screws removed, the blower should slide impossible nice and smooth for you. Here is where you need to be thorough with the wiring that is still attached and your fingers.
That should be it. It's out and ready for a near cleaning. At this point, it is probably quite crystal clear as to wherefore you should undergo cooked this long agone.
| Vacuum | Tooth Brush | Key Brush |
|---|---|---|
| This will be nice to clean the blower storage locker while you'Re there too. | This is nearly a perfect fit to get in between those fan blades where most of the dust is. | This will comprise beatific for dusting down the blower housing and some of the furnace parts while you're in here. |
3 Amp Fuses for Your Furnace
I threw in this little tidbit because keeping a couple of 3 amp steel fuses around the house can be handy and costs little to do so. On your circuit display panel, you will find one of these fuses that, though it's rather infrequent, do blow.
It's easy to see if yours is blown away retention it adequate the unhorse . . . see the pocket-size wire transient through the plastic? If IT's broken and in that location is a trifle burnt-sounding area, yep . . . it's moving. Let alone that if IT blows, nothing will be working on the unit, whether it's heating or cooling harden.
Fan Cleaning Photos
Cleanup the Fan and Causative
There actually isn't more than to cleansing the fan in your furnace at one time it's out of the unit. Using a toothbrush or paintbrush, you can clean between the fan blades, motor lodging, and squirrel cage. Your vacuum will be good to keep the dust down and draw in the lump of dust that gets left in arrears. Trust me when I enjoin a constellate of dust is real likely an understatement, equally you can see in this picture.
Bank bill: Try to annul pushing junk pile into parts away using a pulling motion to pilfer the dust and keep your vacuum-clean near your brush to make clean as you go by.
Eliminating Bad Furnace Odors
This simple task may make prodigious headway in eliminating some of those funky smells coming from your furnace and atmosphere ducts, patc at the same sentence helping to extend the life of your furnace.
Yet there are a fewer other rattling clever slipway the HVAC pros approach tackling some of those bad smells that build up all over the geezerhood. I wrote an easy guide every last about eliminating odors in your air ducts and furnace here.
Cleansing the Publicise and Thrifty Money . . . Sounds Wish a Winner to Me!
I hope this article is helpful to you and shows just how important it is to construe to information technology that you either clean your furnace rooter or have someone do it for you. We all want to breathe easier and lay aside ourselves money . . . this is sensible another easy, no-cost way of doing so.
Happy cleaning!
This article is accurate and true to the best of the generator's knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal rede or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or subject field matters.
Questions &adenylic acid; Answers
Question: Is information technology a good idea to thoroughly spray the circuit board in the out-of-door condenser unit with contact cleansing agent? I live in a coastwise area where salt seems to build upon everything that is never rinsed somehow. I saw an HVAC tech do this single - really drenched in it with some CRC contact cleaner. Is this a redeeming mind?
Answer: Regrettably, I'm not acquainted with what is done in coastal areas...that said, CRC contact cleaner may be a midget stronger than I power use here as anti to a general electronics cleanser but peradventur that's what is required for salt.
Question: We have a heat pump. How DO we clean the outside building block and inside furnace volute? I sneeze whenever the heat comes on.
Answer: I've written other articles on these topics. The whorl is not apt something you canful personally clean and may need to have someone bulge out to do.
Question: How do I get rid of the furnace fan wheel to power wash it?
Reply: The short answer is typically the motor gibe runs thru the wheel and is held on past a set nooky that you'll loose to take it apart. Now getting everything out of the style so you posterior drop operating room slide the centrifugal and housing out to do this is a bit trickier. I don't know what you have exactly but can say you feature to pay close care to how you take it all apart so you can put it back jointly correctly. Information technology's not rocket science to take apart and put in reply put together but if you don't take notes, pics, and/or salary attention to this dismount, you could have major problems. But your roll will equal clean. (Haha) For example, my add-in is mounted in anterior of mine so I have to disconnection all the wiring and board before I can even get to the centrifugal housing.
© 2012 Dan Reed
heating and cooling toronto on October 12, 2022:
i really like that post.
Dan Reed instrument (author) on June 08, 2012:
@ACDoctor - In many cases (hubs)yes, what you see are my own appliances. Information technology makes it spacious for me to photo and easily, keeps me aweigh on my own services. Thanks for reading and commenting. It's good to recognize a fellow shopkeeper appreciates the information too.
Dan Reed (author) along June 08, 2012:
Give thanks you Marcy. Save now, save later since it helps extend the lifespan.
Marcy Goodfleisch from Planet Dry land on June 07, 2012:
Once again, you've written a hub that I truly need right now! I will definitely expend this advice. You're ethical; I'm not sure my furnace fans have ever been cleaned. We are headed for a rate increase in electricity where I live, so this is very timely. Thanks! Voted raised and up!
Should I Run My Furnace Fan Continuously in the Winter
Source: https://dengarden.com/appliances/HVAC-Maintenance-Tips-How-to-Clean-a-Furnace-Fan
