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

One of the most basic issues that we encounter at Air Engineers Service Experts in Jacksonville is dusty air filters. They might seem like a very insignificant piece of the big home comfort puzzle, but the role they play in helping us control comfort is a lot bigger than most homeowners realize. Regardless if it is cooling season or heating season, having a dirty air filter can cause a host of concerns for your heating and AC system.

So what exactly happens when you neglect to swap out your air filter? Here are a just a few of the side effects you could encounter:

• Diminished airflow. This is easily the biggest issue you’ll note when your home’s air filter is badly clogged. The longer the air filter goes without being switched, 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 a lot harder to provide you with the same amount of air.
• Frozen coil. If your system is operating harder due to a clogged 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 probability if your air filter goes unchanged for months and months on end. In essence, you will have worked your system so hard that something quits working 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, potentially causing damage to your system.

In addition to these, you can also expect:

• A shortened equipment lifecycle
• Reduced energy efficiency
• Lower air quality
• Increase in dust and debris
• Lack of comfort