How Often Do You Change Your Furnace Filter

Without a clean air filter, your HVAC unit works harder and is decumbent to more breakdowns. Compared to other DIY dwelling house improvement projects, changing air filters is a quick and painless process that can be done in less than an 60 minutes. Nonetheless, many homeowners are unaware of how oft air filters need to be replaced, leaving their system vulnerable to damage. Keep reading to learn when and how to change your air filter.

Why Changing Your Filter Is Important

Air filters trap pet hair, dust, and other irritating particles so that your air conditioning organization delivers fresh, clean air back into your home. Eventually, the filter traps so much dust and debris that air tin can't properly filter or travel to the HVAC unit, leading to:

Loftier energy bills—When an HVAC filter is clogged, your system has to work harder to pull air through to cool or rut the room. This causes it to run for longer periods of time, increasing the energy your home uses.
Health concerns—If a filter isn't working properly, dust and allergens can circulate throughout your habitation and cause allergies and respiratory illnesses.
Organization failure—An HVAC system has to work hard to pull air through a chock-full filter. This continuous strain on the unit can cause it to break, causing you lot to pay for expensive repairs or replacements.

How to Change Your Air Filter

You should ideally change your air filter every iii months, notwithstanding, there are sure factors to consider when determining when to change out an old filter.

Type of air filter—Some air filters are more constructive than others. Lower quality fiberglass filters are more affordable, but they don't last long and need to exist inverse every month. Pleated air filters are loftier-quality filters that are very effective in trapping particles and last up to xc days.
Pets—If you ain pets, alter your filters every two months to keep your air make clean.
Allergies—If you suffer from allergies, even the smallest amount of dust or droppings in the air can trigger a reaction. To ensure your system is pumping just make clean air, change your filters nearly every 50 days.
Children—If you have young children in the home, go on the indoor air quality high by replacing your air filters every ii months.
Home use—Homes that use their HVAC system daily need more frequent air filter replacements than a holiday home that doesn't filter air regularly. If your domicile'due south heating and cooling system simply run a few times a twelvemonth, supersede the air filters every vi to 12 months.

While these factors touch the frequency of air filter replacement, you lot should visually inspect your filter every month to check for excess particle buildup. If the dirty air filter is completely layered with dust and debris, it's a good idea to change the filter even if it hasn't reached the end of its recommended lifespan.

How to Change Your Filter

Here'southward how to change your air filter when it's time for a replacement.

Purchase the right size filter—To find the size of your filter, check the sometime filter, which should have the size printed on one of its sides. If you can't locate the size of the old filter, use a measuring tape to check its length, width, and depth.
Turn off your unit—Flip the switch on your thermostat to turn off the unit of measurement, or plough your system completely off at the circuit breaker.
Locate the filter—Your air filter is located in i of 2 places: a return duct or the air handler located in an attic, basement, or utility cupboard.
Remove the grille or embrace to the air filter—If your air filter is located in the system's air handler, open the access panel. This may crave a screwdriver to remove the modest screws securing it. If your filter is in the return duct, flip the latches that concur the grille and remove it.
Remove the one-time filter and insert the new one—Take the old filter from its place, carefully inspecting how it was situated within the comprehend or grille. Have the new filter and identify it inside, making certain the airflow arrows are pointed into the unit.
Replace the cover and plow your organisation on—After replacing the filter, turn your system back on to ensure the filter is situated correctly and the air conditioner is running smoothly.