Tips to keep your boiler working and your home safe this winter

Winter is right around the corner and you will have to start doing a few things at home to ensure that you and your family have a comfortable wintertime without any possible issue coming up in the last minute. Apart from checking that the outside of your house is in good conditions in case a snowstorm or blizzard takes place, you will also have to check the boiler over. Doing this in advance will help you save money and will let you be warm in a cold winter day. It is also important, as furnace breakowns are one of the largest contributors to fire damage in homes and business. Depending on the type of boiler you have you can do different things to maintain them

Electric boiler
This type of home heating system is a very user friendly one. The good thing about them is that they do not have any lines full of fuel so you can do the maintenance yourself. This is what you should do:

— Prior to getting down to the maintenance task on the boiler make sure that there is no electricity supply to the boiler. Remember that the user’s guide will come in handy when trying to do the maintenance.
— The first thing you need to do is check over the filter. If the filter is full of dirt, dust or hair the boiler will not work properly. In that case the wisest thing to do is to replace it with a new filter. Make sure that you know what kind of filter your boiler uses before purchasing it.
— The next thing to do is check vent-holes and passages. These areas of the boiler get easily dirty so you could use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum the debris and dust in the ducts.
— You will also need to check the motor. Remember to have the user’s guide with you so that you know where to apply some oil. If you do not feel confident enough to do this you can always call a professional.

Gas boiler
If you have a gas boiler at home you will need to follow some steps in order to do the maintenance.

— The first you need to check is that the vent-holes and air passages are clean. When the vent-holes are full of dust and/or hair the boiler has to make use of more electricity and more gas to work properly. However, if you keep the passages clean, the steam will flow more easily and your boiler will not work forcedly.
— Another part of the boiler that should be always clean is the fluke gas vent-hole. When there are leaves and rakes blocking this vent-hole, CO2 might not be released to the outside and may stay inside your house, putting your whole family at risk.
— You will also have to check over the thermoregulator. If the temperature is set higher than needed will make the boiler work a lot more than necessary and you will be wasting money and more gas. If the temperature is set lower than needed your boiler will also be working twice as much.

Maintaining your boiler in good conditions for winter is possible and the best thing about it is that you can do it yourself.

The following service article is complitements of the restoration professionals with fire water damage restoration, who hope you and your family have a safe winter this year.