How Dust And Age Can Cause Your Furnace Blower To Stop Working

One important reason to have an HVAC technician clean and service your furnace before winter is so the blower can be checked. If your blower goes bad, then your furnace won't blow air, and your house won't stay warm. Here is some information about a furnace blower and how to keep it working.

The Blower Is Like A Fan

The blower in your furnace is similar to any other type of fan in that it has a motor and blades that push out air. The blades of the furnace blower may be housed in a cage that looks different from a traditional fan, but it works on the same principle. If you've ever had a window fan stop working due to a build-up of grime on the blades and motor, then you have an idea of how a dirty blower will affect your furnace.

The Blower Should Be Cleaned Annually

By having your furnace serviced before each winter, the blower can be cleaned off by the technician to remove all the dust and grime. This prolongs the life of the motor. When it's gummed up with dust, the motor has to strain to operate, and that can wear it out or cause it to overheat. You can do your part to protect the blower by changing the furnace filter each month or on the schedule recommended by the manufacturer. The filter keeps a lot of dust out of your furnace and away from the blower.

Blower Parts May Need To Be Replaced Due To Age

Even if you keep your furnace as clean as you can, the blower may still fail at some point when your furnace gets old. You might have some warning if the bearings go bad and the blower makes unusual noises when the furnace kicks on. A number of parts can malfunction or wear out in a furnace blower such as the motor or the fan blades. An HVAC technician can repair or replace the necessary parts to get your furnace operational again. This may require taking the blower apart and testing the electrical components to trace down the problem.

In some instances, worn out parts can be detected during an annual service call so they can be replaced before the blower stops working and leaves you in the cold. Regular maintenance is important for keeping the blower operational, and it keeps other parts of your furnace in good shape too.

You should have annual maintenance from the time you have your furnace installed, but if you've been lax, it's never too late to start. Once your furnace gets old, it will develop more problems; catching them early so they can be repaired will help prevent complete breakdowns when you need to depend on your furnace to stay safe and warm.

For more information, contact your local furnace repairs service.