“How Often Should I Replace My Air Filter?”

There’s a relatively common misconception among homeowners that the air filter that comes standard with their HVAC system is there to protect their indoor air quality. Therefore, if you don’t seem to have any strong air quality issues, you don’t have to change your air filter that often, right? Well… not quite.

The air filter is actually there to protect your Denver, CO air conditioning system, not necessarily your indoor air quality. It keeps dirt and debris from building up on the inside components, causing your air conditioner to work harder than it should have to. As such, we recommend you replace (or clean, if you have a permanent filter) your air filter every 1-3 months. What happens if you don’t? We’ve answered that below.

You’ll experience reduced airflow, since a clogged air filter will act as a block to the airflow that naturally goes throughout your system and into your home.

You’ll have reduced indoor air quality, as even though this air filter isn’t designed specifically to improve your indoor air quality, it still can cause increased amounts of dust and dirt in your home if it becomes too clogged. A clogged air filter is simply incapable of trapping contaminants, and therefore these contaminants enter your home’s air freely with no way out.

You may notice warm air blowing instead of cool air. If the airflow of your cooling system is restricted enough, this restriction can negatively impact the heat release and cooling process of your system so that heat doesn’t release properly.

You may have a sudden malfunction or breakdown since your air conditioning system needs a certain amount of airflow to work property. If it runs for too long with restricted airflow, the system experiences too much stress.

Changing your air filter is one of those tasks that goes towards effectively maintaining your air conditioner, and is a task you can do on your own. If you have any questions about how to change yours, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team.

Get peace of mind by calling Bell Plumbing and Heating, the company metro area homeowners have been trusting for over 90 years!