Too Hot, Too Cold: Why Your Home Is Never The Right Temperature

Do you turn on your thermostat, set the temp, but later find that your home feels too hot? If you turn the furnace off, does your home feel too cold after just one hour? Why is there such a yo-yo in comfort levels in your home? Could it be your furnace? Well, yes, it could be your furnace, but there are other factors at play, too. To verify if your furnace really needs repair, here is what you need to check.

Set the Thermostat One or Two Degrees Cooler

Sometimes a furnace works overtime to get the house up to the temperature you set on the thermostat. The result is excess heat pumped out into the rooms, making the whole house feel hotter than you want it to feel. Try setting the thermostat for one to two degrees cooler than what you normally set it for. The idea is that if you set it a little cooler, the house still has to work hard to bring the temperature up to the new setting, yet it will not feel as hot because the setting is lower. If you feel more comfortable at this lower temperature, then that is the only problem (and the solution for it) that you need to worry about. 

If It Is Still Too Hot, Check the Furnace

If the house still feels too hot when the furnace is running, check the furnace. If there is something burning in the furnace, there is a lot of dirt and lint trapped in the ventilation system, and/or the furnace filter needs changing, that could be why the furnace is working overtime to keep your house toasty. Cleaning out all of the above, and stopping or preventing small furnace fires, will help make it less hot in the house. The HVAC technician that addresses these problems will provide you with all of these services. 

When the House Gets Too Cold

If you turn off the furnace to stop it from becoming too warm inside, but then the house becomes too chilly in less than an hour, the problem may be drafts and/or insulation. Have the HVAC technician check your insulation and have a window/door installation company check for sizable drafts around your windows and doors. Drafts and insulation problems are easy fixes, and fixing these issues will help your furnace be more efficient and run less often than it does now. Your home will be warmer without being too warm, and not as cold if you decide to turn off the furnace.

For more information, contact your local furnace repair service.