Oil Furnace Maintenance

Machines being mechanical devices are quite prone to problems, faults and defects. Therefore regular maintenance and repair is necessary, so that we enjoy their service and performance for a long time. Oil furnace is not an exception to it! Oil furnace is actually a heating device, which is used to heat up oil. It is believed that, oil furnace are difficult to maintain, due to their complex mechanism and working. However, this is not the complete truth. Agreed that, oil furnaces are a complex structure, but maintaining them is not that difficult. You just need to be well versed with all the parts of the oil furnace and the techniques of handling them. We are now going to discuss a bit of oil furnace maintenance.

Tips on Oil Furnace Maintenance

The simplest technique is preparing a checklist, which comprises inspection of components such as, the blower, thermostat levels, stack control and chimney. You can look on for the condition of all these things, before starting the furnace or can inspect their working on a regular basis.

• Blower: The blower plays an important part in the oil furnace. Clogging or inadequate lubrication to the blower might result in frequent 'turn off' or 'turn on' of the oil furnace, or else the burner might not work properly, due to insufficient heat. It is therefore necessary to clean and regularly lubricate the blower, before starting the heating process and once again, when the heating process is half way through. The blower motor also needs to be lubricated in the fitting, when the heating process is half complete.
• Thermostat Settings: Thermostat settings are also significant from the point of view of the heating process. Sometimes, improper settings might result into the generation of inadequate amount of heat. It is therefore recommended to adjust the thermostat settings, as per the requirements.
• Stack Control: Once the heating process has reached its mid point, you need to clean the dust particles and soot material from the stack control, so that the process is not disrupted.
• Chimney: It is necessary that you clean the smoke from the chimney regularly. This is because, excess generation of black colored smoke from the chimney, would indicate that, oil is not getting completely burnt and this in turn would signify that, a lot of fuel is being wasted.

Oil Furnace Troubleshooting

Oil furnace troubleshooting would help you fix some of the common and basic problems, all by yourself. The most common problems pertaining to the oil furnace are:

• Frequent turn on and turn off, which can be fixed by cleaning and lubricating the blower.
• Furnace stops working suddenly. This can be solved by checking the circuit breakers and cleaning the oil pump strainer.
• Sometimes burner might not work. So you can repair this fault by, correcting the thermostat settings and cleaning the blower.
• Another common problem is that of the noise of oil furnace. This can be reduced by, motor lubrication, cleaning off the burner, changing the damaged belts and tightening the access panels.
• On a few occasions, the blower gets out of control. This problem can be solved by setting the limit switch and correcting the blower settings.

Following all the above mentioned tips for oil furnace maintenance would help you save the cost and also the cost incurred in oil furnace repair. However, you need to call a professional to fix the problem if the above given tips do not work.