If you have programmable thermostats in your house, take advantage of their convenience and savings potential by setting them properly.

If you have a forced-air distribution system with a furnace or heat pump, replace the primary air filter at the start of the heating season and then every month or two throughout the heating season, depending on how dirty it gets. Replacement filters cost a few dollars apiece and help your system operate efficiently.

Efficient heating depends on warm air rising into your rooms from hot-air registers or baseboard radiators (convectors). Make sure these aren’t blocked by carpets or furniture, and vacuum them at the start of the heating season to improve heat transfer.

Proper operation requires well-functioning heat exchangers in a furnace or boiler; soot deposits should be cleaned off. The burner nozzle needs to be cleaned to ensure proper firing. And the flue pipe may need cleaning, as deposits may reduce the draft, causing problems.

Heating & Cooling Two experts can determine the combustion efficiency of your heating system through a combination of measurements that can include flue temperature, percent of carbon dioxide or oxygen in the flue gases, smoke, carbon monoxide, and draft (the pressure differential that exhausts flue gases). Combustion efficiency can be tested before and after your cleaning and tune-up.

Combustion-based heating systems consume oxygen and produce heat along with two primary combustion products — carbon dioxide and water vapor. There are also unwanted combustion byproducts, including carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and smoke. Our professionals will inspect your heating system for cracks and failed seals that may be allowing flue gases to escape into your home. Our heating technicians will be able to identify these “backdrafting” problems which can arise if changes are made in your house that affect air pressure. Backdrafting is a dangerous condition that should be corrected.

If you have a forced-air system, we recommend that you have your duct system tested for air tightness and, if necessary, sealed with duct mastic. This is particularly important if the ducts run through unconditioned space, such as an unheated attic, crawl space, or basement. Ducts in unheated spaces should be well insulated.

During the annual heating system tune-up, our experts will look for modifications that would improve the performance and efficiency of your systems.