Hidden Dangers in Your Home Due to Broken Furnace and AC System

There are hidden risks in your home that could potentially endanger your family. This can be brought about by a damaged HVAC that needs to be addressed by a qualified plumbing and heating service right away. The alternative, of course, is a potential health and safety issue for the home residents. Not to mention the prospective costs if the damage will spread to the other parts of your house. 

It’s not your fault. After all, it’s human nature to overlook what is not conspicuous. A classic case of “out of sight, out of mind.” Here we discuss the concealed risks in our AC and gas furnace systems that we regularly overlook.

Ill-effects of Badly Maintained AC

AC use has its benefits because it foils pollutants from the air, especially if you live in a densely populated area, from entering your home.

Now, we don’t want to alarm you, but the reality is if you don’t properly maintain your air-conditioner, it can cause some significant damage to your health. ACs have not gone mainstream until after the ’60; although it does seem like we couldn’t live without them now. Today, people who have prolonged exposure to ACs are complaining about muscle aches, chronic fatigue, and headaches.

But when you disregard the manual in your AC, which states when you should have it checked, then you are exposing your family and employees to unnecessary health risks. For instance, studies have shown that contaminants that can seep through the air-conditioner can aggravate asthma and allergies. The same goes for a badly installed AC, which can seriously mess up the ventilation in your home or office space.

The ‘Sick Building’ Disorder

This is not a new term as it has been around in the ‘80s. It was coined because more and more people have been complaining about getting sick at work or at home. The common denominator is a contaminated AC.

The symptoms include nausea, irritated and dry skin, chronic fatigue, breathing problems, and congestion in the nasal cavity. Medical research points to the microorganisms that thrive in the moist conditions inside the AC. The children, because of their low immune system, are most vulnerable to this.

Checklist for Your AC:

Again, we reiterate the need to call a professional for any issue on your HVAC system. There’s just a lot of components that go into your AC—such as insulation, fans, condensers, fan belts, etc.—and any of them can soar up your electricity bill due to inefficient use of energy. But there are things you can check on your own before calling in the experts.

• Inspect the air filter for accumulated dust
• Check the drain line to see the water flow (this can damage the paint and wooden materials in your house)
• Check for any foreign materials in your AC’s condenser, especially if the unit is placed at ground level

Of course, there are limits to what you can do, especially if you don’t know what you are doing. call a local service for expert maintenance, cleaning, and repair of your AC.

Killer Furnace

Next, we go to your harmless-looking furnace. As if you didn’t know, it’s a huge fire hazard with danger levels equal to your LPG. That’s the reason why you need to have it religiously checked by a competent plumbing and heating service. If there’s an issue, you will have to move around your budget and spend on furnace repair immediately.  

The problem starts during the installation itself. This is not something that you do on your own by following any of those DIY videos on YouTube. That’s because a gas furnace needs sufficient ventilation for the air to flow. There’s a science to the space between the wall, furnace, ceiling, and floor.

Checklist for Your Furnace:

We reiterate the need to call a professional to check the integrity and safety of your furnace. But there are things you can do at home to see if your furnace is still running properly.

• Check the soot around your furnace
• Turn on and off the thermostat
• Turn on and off the power
• Clean for debris, grime, and dirt
• Does your furnace has a fan belt then check for the tension
• Clear off any flammable material (paper, cloth, plastic, etc.) near the furnace

If you see any crack or any kind of anomaly anywhere, call a furnace repair company immediately. When you contact a professional heating and plumbing service, you get that peace of mind.