If you want to cut heating costs, maintain furnace

The temperature is falling and the leaves are turning, and soon it will be cool enough to turn on the heater again. But this year the cost to heat your home is a real concern. Rising fuel prices mean that oil- and gas-fired furnaces will be fairly expensive to run, and even electric furnaces may cost more than usual as power generation and delivery prices rise in response to fuel costs.

So now it’s more important than ever to make sure the furnace is in good working order and is heating efficiently as you prepare your house for winter. If your furnace hasn’t had a professional checkup in a couple of years, now would be a good time to schedule an inspection and cleaning.

Between professional visits, you can do some of the maintenance yourself on warm-air systems.

•Turn off the furnace completely before starting the work.Warm-air furnaces use either a blower or fan to move heated air into the ducts.

•Open the blower or fan compartment and clean the exposed areas (or fan blades) with a bottle brush and a vacuum (using the attachments to reach as far in as possible).

•Next, lubricate the system’s motor (if you have the manual, check it first — the motor may be self-lubricating). Look for oil ports — small openings at one or both ends of the motor — and squirt each port with about five drops of SAE 10W30 oil.

•Check the motor’s fan belt — a worn belt should be replaced. Press down on the middle of the belt; it should give about 1/3 of an inch. If it depresses more than that, tighten the bolt at one end of the pulley; if it doesn’t depress to that level, loosen the bolt slightly. Close the blower and motor compartment, and change the air filter.

•To increase the furnace’s efficiency further, its delivery system needs to be in top shape as well. Inspect the air ducts for damage; repair loose ducts and seal seams with aluminized tape. Ducts located in unheated areas of the house (like the basement, attic or crawlspaces) should be insulated. Wrap them in R-8 or R-11 spiral insulation, held in place with aluminized tape.

•To maximize savings this winter, weatherstrip windows and doors, and if you haven’t invested in a programmable thermostat, consider doing so. This handy piece of technology can be programmed to turn down the heat when people are less likely to be in the house, and turn it back up before they get home.

HOME TIP: Warm-air heating systems can make the inside air very dry in winter. Combat this with a portable humidifier that can be taken from room to room as needed.