When doing some maintenance
work for your home's heating system, one of the things you shouldn't
forget to do is to check if your thermostat is still calibrated.
Although an uncalibrated thermostat may seem like a small problem,
faulty controls can affect your furnace's performance.
Uncalibrated thermostats
could give you wrong temperature readings as well as incorrect
temperature controls. For example, when you turn the knob to 73
degrees Fahrenheit, a faulty control could read that incorrectly as
75 degrees, which would heat up the house more than you want to.
To check its calibration,
simply place a paper towel on the wall, then tape a thermometer to
it. The paper towel should act as a shield to keep the thermometer
from touching the wall directly. Once the mercury in the thermometer
settles, compare the reading with the thermostat. If there are
differences between their temperature readings, then it's time to pry
open that thermostat and check inside.
Dust is the archenemy of
your thermostat. Pull on the faceplate and it should snap off, or
unscrew it if necessary. You can use a soft brush for cleaning the
inside, as well as rubbing a new dollar bill onto the contact points.
Blow off dust that the brush can't reach; also check if the
thermometer inside the thermostat is in a straight position.
If problems still persist,
then it could be time to repair your thermostat, or check your
heating.
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