{"id":2923,"date":"2019-12-30T19:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-12-31T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/?p=2923"},"modified":"2019-12-23T15:10:46","modified_gmt":"2019-12-23T20:10:46","slug":"clogged-air-filter-problem-big-consequences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/heating-service\/clogged-air-filter-problem-big-consequences\/","title":{"rendered":"Clogged Air Filter: A Simple Problem With Big Consequences"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/pleated-air-filter.jpg\" alt=\"pleated-air-filter\" class=\"wp-image-2925\" width=\"323\" height=\"215\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/pleated-air-filter.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/pleated-air-filter-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/pleated-air-filter-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 323px) 100vw, 323px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>No matter what climate you live in, the clogged air filter\nin the HVAC system is a major problem. Here in Orange County, our heating\nsystems don\u2019t put in a huge amount of work, but you\u2019ve probably had yours\nrunning regularly over the last few weeks when night and morning temperatures\ndropped into the high 40s. You\u2019ll likely have reason to turn the AC on again\nbefore the winter is over\u2014that\u2019s just how our climate works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No matter if you have the air conditioner, the heater, or just the central fan of the HVAC system running, you\u2019ll need to pay attention to the HVAC filter and have it changed routinely to avoid having it become clogged. This is a basic part of <a href=\"\/service-areas\/irvine-ac-heating-plumbing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">HVAC maintenance in Irvine, CA<\/a>\u2014one of the few parts of maintenance you can do on your own. We recommend checking on the filter once a month. You\u2019ll know it\u2019s too clogged if you hold it up to the light and the filter blocks out the light. Expect to change the filter every one to three months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Consequences of a Clogged Filter<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Changing the filter is a simple job\u2014and maybe that\u2019s why\npeople often forget to do it. The negative effects of leaving a clogged filter\nin place, however, are anything but simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Wasted power and higher bills: <\/strong>The filter\nis placed where the blower fan of the HVAC system (which works for both the\nheater and AC) draws air from the return ducts to use for heating and cooling.\nA blocked filter will force the motor of the blower fan to strain to draw\nenough air, and this means energy waste. You\u2019ll see this reflected on your\nutility bills.<\/li><li><strong>Reduced airflow:<\/strong> The less air the fan can\ndraw through the filter, the lower the airflow through the ventilation system.\nThe main result of this is a drop in comfort that will be most noticeable in\nthe rooms most distant from the HVAC system. If you notice cold spots in rooms\nthis winter, it may be a warning of a clogged filter.<\/li><li><strong>Overheated furnace:<\/strong> The blocked filter\ncan trap too much heat inside the furnace, and this will often trip the limit\nswitch and cause the furnace to shut down.<\/li><li><strong>Tripped circuit breakers:<\/strong> When the strain\non the blower motor because of the clogged filter becomes too much, the\noverload on the motor can cause its circuit breaker to trip and depower the\nentire HVAC system.<\/li><li><strong>Contamination:<\/strong> The filter is supposed to\nprevent dust and lint and other debris from getting into the HVAC cabinet. Just\nthe opposite will occur if the filter is clogged, however, because the filter will\nbegin to bend under pressure and allow contaminants to slip around the edges.<\/li><li><strong>Filter collapse:<\/strong> In extreme cases, a pleated\nfilter may fold because of the strain and fall into the blower fan, possibly\ncausing extreme damage to the fan.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>When you stay current with filter changes, you\u2019ll enjoy much\nbetter HVAC performance. If you do need repairs because of filter problems, never\nhesitate to call our team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Saddleback Plumbing Heating &amp; Air has served Orange County since 1981. <a href=\"\/contact\/service\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">Schedule HVAC services with our experts.<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You\u2019ll need to pay attention to the HVAC filter and have it changed routinely to avoid having it become clogged. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[253],"tags":[49,120],"class_list":["post-2923","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-heating-service","tag-heating-system-maintenance","tag-irvine"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2923","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2923"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2923\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2926,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2923\/revisions\/2926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2923"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2923"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saddlebackplumbing.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2923"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}