Pictured above: Dirty 1 inch furnace filter taken from a Los Gatos home having air circulation issues.

The pictures in this blog are from real homes in the Silicon Valley Area.  These homes are neat and tidy but have a larger than normal amount of dust.  Since their filtering system is clogged their lungs are actually filtering more air than the furnace filter.

Every day we find dirty filters and dirty cooling coils (the part that is attached to the furnace for air conditioning) and it surprises me when the customer is amazed at how dirty it is and then, it clicks, they ask “Is this why my house is so dusty?”  The residents in these homes often complain about allergies, bad smells and stuffiness in the home, mainly because of a lack of filtration and/or circulation.

The average heating only home needs the filter changed at least 1 time a year if they have a thick filter system (merv 10 – merv 16) more often for a standard 1-2 inch filter or homes with heating and air conditioning or where the furnace is used for circulating the air in the non-heating mode.

Pictured above: Clogged home cooling coil – Can you see the section of dust that was peeled off of the coils? This dust makes the air conditioning ineffective, the air flow poor and it does very little to aid in filtering your home’s air.

Attention Landlords and Apartment Managers: Pictured above is an apartment complex filter – the tenant complained of no air flow.  The fuzziness on the filter is cat hair and a lot of it.  The furnace was being choked off and heating up – luckily the furnace was about 5 years old (the filter may be that old too) and it had a safety mechanism to shut off because of excessive heat.  The furnace shutting down sure is a great alternative to a house or apartment fire.

 

If you need help with temperature, contact Cold Craft, Inc.

408.374.7292 or [email protected]