Annual maintenance?


  #1  
Old 04-11-18, 07:06 AM
Z
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Annual maintenance?

Hello,

Have had gas furnaces my whole life and have now moved to a home with a HP and electric aux backup.

Does a HP or electric furnace require annual inspections or maintenance as a gas furnace does?

What’s required and performed during on these units to maintain them? I’m fairly handy.
 
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Old 04-11-18, 09:50 AM
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Just clean the outside coil 2 times a year.
 
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Old 04-11-18, 01:37 PM
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I only clean my outside unit once a year ... not saying twice a year isn't a good idea. I also clean the inside of my air handler every few yrs, I'd do it more often but it's in the crawlspace and hard to get to the way the duct work is run.
 
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Old 04-11-18, 03:17 PM
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You should get it serviced once to establish a baseline.

The indoor coil and blower should be checked for dirt buildup.

Need to get airflow checked (most won't check), the charge checked (properly - not just checking pressures), temperature splits.

Once established that it's running properly and is clean, just stay on top of filter maintenance, keep the outdoor coil clean.

It's a good idea measure the temperature difference in heating mode (without aux heat on) between supply and return every few months the same outdoor temp each time; if it changes, you know there's a problem.

The heatpump could develop a problem in the winter and you won't notice, the aux heat will still keep your place warm and you can get hit with a very high bill.
 
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Old 04-12-18, 08:26 AM
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It depends ...
If your environment offers clean air, the outside unit won't need periodic attention, and just an annual inside filter change;
On the other hand if you live where there's smog and dust and less fastidious house cleaning, you need to check for grunge more often as suggested above.
As for maintenance , follow user10 advice above until a failure occurs ....
 
 

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