Getting Your Heat Ready for a Tucson Winter

Run it before you need it

Pick a mild day in October, set the thermostat about five degrees above room temperature, and let the heat run for fifteen minutes. That's the whole test.

You're checking three things: that it fires at all, that the air coming out is genuinely warm, and that it keeps running rather than lighting and quitting. Any of those failing in October is a scheduled repair. The same failure in January is an emergency call at whatever hour it happens.

The burning smell is expected, once

Dust settles on a heat exchanger over months of not running, and the first firing burns it off. That smell is normal and should clear within an hour or two.

Doing the test run in October means that happens on a mild afternoon with the windows open, rather than at bedtime on the first cold night with the house shut up.

What to check yourself

Replace the filter before heating season starts. A restricted filter on a furnace doesn't just cut airflow — it can overheat the heat exchanger and trip the limit switch, which shuts the burners down while the blower keeps running.

Clear anything stored against the furnace or the air handler. Things accumulate around equipment that hasn't run in months, and a gas appliance needs clearance.

Test your carbon monoxide alarm and replace its batteries. If you don't have one and you heat with gas, that's the cheapest safety purchase available.

What means call somebody

Burners that light then shut off after a few seconds usually means a dirty flame sensor — a common, inexpensive repair, but not a DIY one, because it means opening a gas appliance.

A yellow burner flame rather than blue, soot around the unit, a persistent burning smell after the first day, or a CO alarm all mean stop using it and get someone out.

And if you smell gas: leave the house and call the gas company from outside, before calling any HVAC company including us.

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