Do I Need Furnace Maintenance If My Furnace Is New?
Quick answer: Yes. Most furnace manufacturers require yearly maintenance to keep your warranty valid, and a yearly tune-up keeps your furnace running safely and efficiently.
Many new furnaces & air conditioners come with a 10 year parts warranty for consumer peace of mind. Some people believe that if they have new equipment and are protected by a good warranty, there is no need for them to pay for annual maintenance.
All manufacturers require regular maintenance for the furnace or air conditioning system before they will honour the warranty. When you buy a new furnace or air conditioner from Salmon Plumbing and Heating, we add an enhanced warranty that includes labour for 10 years. All it takes is annual maintenance to keep your parts and labour warranty in effect. We contact these customers every year to remind them to book their maintenance, because we know how important it is.
Please note: our 10-year labour warranty covers new equipment purchased from Salmon. When we service a furnace or air conditioner bought somewhere else, yearly maintenance still helps keep the manufacturer’s parts warranty valid, but it doesn’t add a labour warranty from Salmon.
One of Our Customers Recently Avoided a $600 Repair
Recently we serviced a customer that had purchased a brand new furnace and air conditioner 4 years ago. Our technician discovered that the evaporator coil for their central air was faulty and needed to be replaced.
This is a costly job. It’s not something the technician can repair while he’s there. We needed to order parts and make another service call to do the job. The evaporator coil is an expensive part and because it is located within the plenum above your furnace, it’s a big job to replace it.
Once the faulty part has been replaced, we also have to re-charge the cooling system with new refrigerant. The total bill for labour and refrigerant was over $600. This does not even include the cost of the evaporator coil itself.
We take pride in the equipment we sell. We take great pains to supply our customers with the best quality equipment on the market. Unfortunately even good equipment can fail. Fortunately this customer had scheduled annual maintenance and saved themselves a $600 surprise.
Other Reasons for Yearly Furnace Maintenance
Well maintained equipment is more efficient. Your furnace and air conditioner will use less gas and hydro when they have been serviced by a trained technician. Manufacturers estimate that you can reduce your annual utility bills up to 10% with proper maintenance.
Annual maintenance is also important for your family’s safety. Our technicians check that no carbon monoxide is making its way into your home’s atmosphere. We sometimes find very dangerous situations like a cracked heat exchanger, which can let carbon monoxide into your home.
If your furnace stops working between visits, try our furnace not working checklist before you call. It covers a few simple things you can check yourself.
What's Included in a Furnace Tune-Up?
When a Salmon technician services your furnace, the visit includes:
- an inspection of the airflow system
- lubrication and cleaning
- inspecting and adjusting the combustion and venting system
- a safety and efficiency check
- a carbon monoxide test
If you have central air, we can service your air conditioner on the same visit. Our Maintenance Plan covers both, with regularly scheduled appointments and priority emergency service.
How Often Should a Furnace Be Serviced?
Once a year, by a licensed technician. Fall is the best time, before the first cold day, so any problems are found while it’s still easy to get an appointment. Here’s how to get your furnace ready for fall. Between visits, change your furnace filter regularly. It’s the one maintenance job you can do yourself.
Bill Salmon explains how to keep your warranty valid with annual maintenance:
Read the transcript
Host: Bill, what about warranty coverage and routine maintenance? Do they go hand in hand?
Bill Salmon: Oh, absolutely. People always ask, "Well, it's only two years old. It's only three years old." A lot of people have 10-year parts and labour coverage, and if you read those extended warranties, you'll see that they tell you that you need to maintain your equipment, and if you don't, the coverage is cancelled. What you don't want is for a part to fail and then find out that it isn't covered.
So maintenance has that extra benefit. It not only makes sure your equipment is efficient and gives you the performance, but if something goes wrong, you've kept the coverage that you have. That's really, really important. A lot of people don't understand that. They believe they've got 10-year parts and labour, and that's it. In fact, we had trouble in our own company: we'd have customers three years out who'd say, "No, I don't need maintenance. I've got 10-year parts and labour." So we had to change the way we ran that program, so that it was very clear to our customers that they had to do maintenance. The worst thing in the world is when, in year four or year six, a customer has a major failure and finds out it's not covered. That's not a nice experience.
Host: Not at all.
Bill Salmon: So do the maintenance and look after your equipment. Remember, you're also maintaining your investment. I think most people can understand that equipment is going to last longer if you look after it.
Furnace Maintenance FAQ
Is annual furnace maintenance really necessary?
Yes. Most manufacturers require yearly maintenance to keep the warranty valid, and it keeps your furnace running safely and efficiently.
Will skipping maintenance void my furnace warranty?
It can. If a part fails and there’s no record of regular maintenance, the manufacturer may refuse the warranty claim.
How often should a furnace be serviced?
Once a year, ideally in the fall before the heating season.
What does a furnace tune-up include?
An airflow inspection, cleaning and lubrication, a combustion and venting check, a safety and efficiency check, and a carbon monoxide test.
Do you service furnaces Salmon didn't install?
Yes. We service every make and brand in London and the immediate surrounding area. Yearly maintenance helps keep the manufacturer’s warranty valid, but our 10-year labour warranty only applies to new equipment purchased from Salmon.
Salmon Plumbing & Heating has looked after furnaces in London, Ontario since 1955. We service every make and brand, no matter who installed it. Learn more about our furnace repair and maintenance in London, or call (519) 451-8910 to book your yearly tune-up.
