Introduction
Winter’s tough enough without your furnace dying or not putting out enough heat. And when it comes to furnaces, an ounce of prevention truly is worth a pound of cure. So here are some basic maintenance tasks that you can do to ensure that your natural gas or propane-fueled furnace stays running in peak condition all winter. Together, these tasks will take you less than three hours to do, cost only a few dollars, and require a few basic hand tools. That’s pretty cheap insurance for a worry-free winter of cozy, cost-effective warmth.

Remove the combustion chamber door
Make sure the power is off

Flip the electrical power switch to “Off.” Remove the combustion chamber door by lifting up and pulling it out, and remove the burner cover (if you have one). It’s usually held in place by two screws.

Inspect the burner flames
Flames should be even and blue

Turn the power switch on and activate the burners by turning up your thermostat. Inspect the burner flames. The flames should be fairly even and blue. Yellow flames indicate dirty burners. (Don’t breathe on the flames because the extra oxygen will also make them turn yellow.) Don’t adjust the burners yourself.

Vacuum out the burner and blower cavities
Vacuum the burners

Turn off the power switch again and shut off the gas by giving the valve one-quarter turn. Vacuum the furnace burners and the furnace base. To get at the back of the burners, tape a 20-in. length of 1/2-in. drain line to your vacuum hose. Vacuum everywhere you see dust. While everything is open, use a flashlight to look for signs of soot (fine black powder), which often indicates poor combustion. Lift off the lower door (blower door) and vacuum the blower compartment.

Remove the blower to clean it
Remove the bolts that secure the blower

Remove the blower (also called a squirrel cage) in order to clean it. If you have a control panel in front of the blower, two screws will loosen it and you can let it hang. Next, using a 7/16-in. socket and ratchet, remove the two bolts that hold the blower in place, then gently lift it out.

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