As a responsible homeowner, you routinely examine your monthly bills and take note of unusual changes to ensure that you will be on track with your budget. It's particularly beneficial to monitor your power utility bills since you and your family can take steps to adjust your usage patterns when costs become astronomical.

While going over your utility bills during the colder months, you may have noticed that they were climbing more than you'd expect them to during that time of the year. Savvy homeowners would be right to wonder whether a faulty furnace is causing their heating bills to spike.

If you have the same number of people living in the home as you did during the previous winter and no major changes have occurred in how you consume power, the furnace may indeed be a culprit in the heating bill spike.

Regular Inspections

As with any other equipment that you use in your home, the furnace must be inspected on a regular basis. Doing so will help you make sure that it is always in tip-top condition as well as being safe for your family.

A variety of things can go wrong with the furnace, which is why it's best to work with a heating, ventilation and air conditioning company that's been in business for many years and has a track record of providing excellent service to customers in the greater Jacksonville, Florida area.

The furnace may be old and just not working as well as it used to. It could be a simple matter of your thermostat not being set properly or actually being inaccurate. The heat pump might be switching to backup or auxiliary heat unnecessarily, depending on your setup.

Lack of insulation in the home, leaking ducts and seals (doors and windows) around the house can also lead to higher than usual heating bills, so it's a good idea to take a walk around the premises and inspect everything.

Cleaning and Maintenance

When a technician comes to your home, he will go over the equipment, inspecting it visually and performing tests to see whether it is working at its highest possible capability. Now is the time to also change your furnace's air filter (generally, you should check and change your furnace filter once a month during the winter).

A dirty filter will cause the furnace to work harder than it really needs to, just to keep the house warm and cozy.

Every year when you have the furnace inspected, you should check and replace the batteries in your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors. These detectors ideally will be place in locations all around your home. They will alert you and your family in case something causes a blockage or leak in the furnace that would cause carbon monoxide to get into your home.

Replacing a Furnace

Homeowners who have a furnace that is several years old may want to consider replacing it instead of going through more inspections and repairs. Your HVAC technician can assist you in determining if it's better to repair now and wait to make a purchase later, or just buy a new furnace now.

One benefit of getting a brand new furnace is that it will be more energy efficient and therefore environmentally friendlier than older models. This means you can use less fuel to keep your home nice and cozy, which saves the environment as well as your pocketbook.

At David Gray Heating & Air, our professional team knows the particular furnace and air conditioning needs of homeowners residing in the greater Jacksonville, Florida area and beyond. If you have been experience unusually high power bills and think that your furnace is the main cause of the spike, you will want have a knowledgeable member of our staff come to your home and check out the system. For details on our furnace inspection, maintenance, repair and replacement services or to make an appointment, please call the experts at David Gray Heating & Air today.