{"id":4668,"date":"2024-12-02T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-02T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/?p=4668"},"modified":"2024-11-30T09:03:08","modified_gmt":"2024-11-30T14:03:08","slug":"whats-wrong-with-a-short-cycling-furnace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/heating-service\/whats-wrong-with-a-short-cycling-furnace\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s Wrong With a Short Cycling Furnace?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"HVAC-expert-providing-an-explanation\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The most important thing you can do for your furnace\u2014other than making sure to schedule annual maintenance with a qualified technician\u2014is to get repairs done as promptly as possible when something goes wrong. This will help prevent small problems from turning into anything more serious, so the repairs will be quicker and less costly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key to this is noticing the clues that a problem is occurring. Sometimes, a furnace problem results in an unusual noise, odd smell, or your home just not being warm enough. But sometimes, the first symptom of furnace trouble is that the heating cycles are too short. Why is this a problem? We\u2019ll explain. If the short cycling continues, it\u2019s time for professional furnace repair in Okemos, MI<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What Causes Short Cycling?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your heating system is meant to run in fairly long cycles. This keeps the heat properly circulated through your home, so all areas stay evenly warm. But in order to protect your furnace, as well as your home and your personal safety, there are mechanisms that will trigger a shutdown under certain circumstances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The limit switch keeps track of the temperature inside the furnace. If it gets too hot in there, the limit switch will shut the furnace down entirely to give it a chance to cool off. This prevents it from reaching truly dangerous temperatures. Once it\u2019s cool enough, the furnace will start back up. But if the problem that led to overheating is still there, it will just shut right down again!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So what is triggering the limit switch? It could be a lack of airflow so that the heat generated by the furnace isn\u2019t moving along the way it should. That might mean there\u2019s a problem with the blower fan or motor, or just that the air filter is badly clogged. It could be that a component is seriously overheating and needs repair. Or, occasionally, it\u2019s the result of a faulty limit switch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Happens Next?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are three unpleasant consequences of a furnace short cycling<\/a>. This rapid cycling uses much more energy than the usual longer cycles, so your energy bills will rise. The short cycles don\u2019t allow enough time for heat to be evenly distributed, so some spots in your home will get chilly. And all that strain is not good for the furnace, and can quickly lead to bigger problems, like expensive repairs or total breakdowns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Should I Do About a Short-Cycling Furnace?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your first step is quick and easy. Change the air filter. It\u2019s possible that your only problem is a clog there and a lack of air circulation. The filter should be changed monthly anyway. If it\u2019s disposable, just pop a new one in. If it\u2019s reusable, wash it and allow it to dry completely before replacing it. Your problem might be resolved just like that!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t try to disassemble or repair your furnace yourself, or you\u2019ll void your warranty and risk injury to yourself and damage to your HVAC system! A qualified technician will be able to quickly determine the exact cause of your short cycling and get it repaired before it causes any more serious issues.
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Contact A-1 Mechanical Heating & Cooling<\/strong><\/a> for furnace services in Lansing, MI. Comfort and Character You Can Depend On.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

But sometimes, the first symptom of furnace trouble is that the heating cycles are too short. Why is this a problem? What does it mean? We\u2019ll explain.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[76],"tags":[124,137],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4668"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4668"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4671,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4668\/revisions\/4671"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.a1mechanical.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}