When and How to Change Your Furnace Filter

Taking care of your furnace can help more than you’d think in the time in between furnace service appointments. One of the easiest, and critical, ways to care for your furnace is by replacing your furnace filter. Having a filthy air filter can contribute to a variety of adverse issues for your heating and cooling system, its efficiency, and ultimately, how much your energy expenses are every month.

So what goes in to determining when you should replace your furnace filter?

• Type of filter: the two most common filter sizes are 1 inch and 3 inch filters. 1 inch filters usually need to be replaced every month and 3 inch filters need to be changed every three months, depending on the recommendations of the filter company.
• Home habits: if you have pets in your home, it could make sense to change your filter more often because of pet dander. If a family member suffers from allergies or asthma, contemplate changing your home’s air filter more frequently to help potentially decrease their symptoms.

Now you’re probably wondering how to change your furnace filter. More than likely, this will vary depending on what furnace you have, but typically: 

• Open or pull off the air filter panel around the bottom of your furnace to reveal an open compartment.
• On the top of that open compartment is where you will find your furnace filter resting on two metal lips.
• There will be a small amount of space to move your filter back and forth that allows you to remove one end of the filter and take it out of the compartment.
• When putting in the new filter, check the perimeter of the filter for an arrow that shows you the air flow direction, to make sure you’re installing the filter in the proper direction. In most cases, the arrow should point at the main part (or top) of the furnace.