Do I Need to Clean My Furnace Blower? Maintenance Tips for Homeowners

Every homeowner has chores they should do to keep their home in good condition. Keeping up with these chores can prevent costly repairs and improve your home’s longevity.

Whether you’re planning on selling your home soon or simply want it to last as long as possible, these maintenance tasks will help you do just that.

Furnace Filter

There are daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly maintenance tasks that need to be done to keep your home in top shape. One of these tasks is cleaning your furnace filter. Changing your filter regularly ensures that airborne dust stays out of your furnace, and also keeps it from getting too dirty.

When the blower gets too dirty, it becomes difficult to push air through the front of your furnace, which can cause your heater to overheat and possibly break down. Cleaning the blower can help keep it working properly and save you money on electricity bills.

It is important to shut off the power to your furnace before you begin cleaning it. You may need to remove an access panel from the front of your furnace to get to the blower. Once you are able to access the blower, you can slide it out and clean the fan wheel with a brush, vacuum, or damp cloth.

Furnace Vents

Dirty clogged fan blades force the motor to work in overdrive and cause it to wear down faster than it should. This increases the risk of a motor malfunction and raises your electricity bill. It also inhibits heat flow by insulating the ductwork.

Shut off the fan and power down your furnace at the service switch or breaker panel. This will prevent potential injury and damage to sensitive parts like safety sensors, switches, or high-limit fuses. Using non-toxic cleaner, wipe down the blower compartment and return air boot. You’ll probably have to remove the front panel and the fan unit to access these areas. Clean the fan blades and motor with a toothbrush, and make sure to clean any crevices that accumulate dirt. Also, use a toothbrush to loosen up dirt clogs in your supply registers. Finally, vacuum or wipe down the ducts and registers to remove any dust that has been pushed out. Afterward, clean the paper towels you used and dispose of them.

Furnace Fan

Like any motor, the blower requires regular cleaning to keep it running at optimum efficiency. If it becomes clogged with dust and dirt, the motor has to work harder to push air through the system, which consumes more energy and may even overheat.

In addition, the openings in a squirrel cage fan can become clogged with dirt that has blown into them from the filter. This can lead to the loss of up to twenty percent of the motor’s efficiency and increase your energy bills.

It is important to make sure the furnace is shut off before you start cleaning. You will likely need to remove the access door or a panel on the front of your furnace in order to gain access to the blower. Once the cover is removed, you can usually slide out the blower motor unit that is held on a track with a series of hooks or screws. Then, you can clean the blower motor and fan.

Furnace Heat Exchanger

The blower motor that circulates air through your furnace may get dirty and clogged over time, which reduces efficiency. You can try to clean it if you’re confident enough in your abilities, but it’s usually a job that is better left for a professional technician. To do this, you’ll need to turn off the power to your furnace and remove the access panel that leads to the fan unit.

Once you have this open, you can usually remove the blower assembly by sliding it out of the front of your furnace. It may be held in place on a track or by a set of wire connections, so you’ll want to make sure you have a good idea of where each one connects before removing it. Use non-toxic soap and water to clean every nook and cranny, including the fan blades and small spaces between them. Finish by putting the fan back into place and reconnecting any wires you had removed.