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

One of the most routine issues that we encounter at Climate Control Service Experts in Mobile is dirty air filters. They can seem like a very insignificant piece of the big home comfort puzzle, but the role they play in helping us create comfort is a lot larger than most homeowners recognize. Regardless if it is cooling season or heating season, having a filthy air filter can cause a number of problems for your heating and AC system.

So what exactly happens when you forget to swap out your air filter? Here are a just a handful of the side effects you may encounter:

• Decreased airflow. This is easily the largest issue you’ll notice when your home’s air filter is very clogged. The longer the air filter goes without being swapped out, the more dirt, dust and other particles build up. Of course, this inhibits air from passing through the filter as it should, meaning your system is working quite a bit harder to provide you with the same amount of air.
• Frozen coil. If your system is running harder because of a dirty air filter, you also run the chance of having the cooling coil freeze inside of the system, because it’s working 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 gives out or wears out and needs to be replaced or serviced.
• Short cycling. Short cycling means the heating and cooling system turns on and off all the time. When your system short cycles, it could 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
• Decreased energy efficiency
• Diminished air quality
• More dust and debris
• Lack of comfort