When and How to Change Your Furnace Filter

Maintaining your furnace can help more than you’d think in the period in between furnace service appointments. One of the easiest, and essential, ways to take care of your furnace is in switching out your furnace filter. Having a dirty air filter could contribute to a number of adverse problems for your heating and cooling system, its efficiency, and ultimately, how much your energy expenses are each month.

So what goes in to deciding 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 typically need to be switched out every month and 3 inch filters need to be swapped out every three months, dependent on the recommendations of the filter company.
• Home habits: if you have pets in your home, it could make sense to switch out your filter more often as a result of pet dander. If a family member has allergies or asthma, think about replacing your home’s air filter more often to help with their symptoms.

Now you’re probably wondering how to change your furnace filter. Obviously this will vary depending on what furnace you have, but normally: 

• Open or remove 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 brackets.
• There will be a bit of space to move your filter back and forth that allows you to bring down one end of the filter and remove it from the compartment.
• When adding the new filter, check the perimeter of the filter for an arrow that indicates the air flow direction, to make sure you’re installing the filter in the right direction. In most cases, the arrow should point towards the main part (or top) of the furnace.