With winter fully setting in, the reliability of your home’s heating system is more important than ever. We sat down with Kameron Spickert, Lead Service Technician for John Henry’s Plumbing, Heating, Air, and Electrical, to gain insights for keeping your HVAC system and your family healthy this winter and beyond.
What are the benefits to having a healthy HVAC System?
“Keeping your HVAC system healthy is the best way to prolong the life of the parts inside of the system and the life of the system in general,” says Kameron. It also reduces the likelihood of needing emergency service and improves indoor air quality, with regular filter changes and proper airflow being key contributors to maintaining a healthy system.
What advice would you give homeowners wanting their furnace to run properly all winter?
“Get your seasonal maintenance,” says Kameron. This is the single most effective way to prevent unexpected heating failures. It also helps technicians catch issues before they escalate into expensive repairs.
Kameron finds that dirty flame sensors and bad capacitors are some of the most common issues that cause failure. “Keeping flame sensors clean and changing capacitors when needed are important and those are items included in your seasonal maintenance,” he says.
Are there early warning signs homeowners should watch for?
“Taking longer to heat the home” Kameron says is one of the most reliable indicators that a system needs attention. Another sign is “an extremely dusty or burning kind of smell.”
Can an HVAC system affect the health and well-being of people living in the home?
“Yes,” Kameron says, referencing humidity imbalance as one of the biggest hidden contributors to this. “Too little humidity in the home can make dust and allergens more likely to become airborne or lead to discomfort like dry skin, dry eyes, or irritated sinuses,” he says. “Too much humidity can create microbial growth and bacteria inside your ductwork, which can then end up in the air you are breathing.”
What’s the best way to prevent humidity-related issues?
“A whole home humidifier and dehumidifier can help,” says Kameron. If using these, he suggests monitoring indoor humidity with a hygrometer or thermostat to maintain a relative humidity level between 30-50%.
Do you have any advice for homeowners trying to save money on their utility bills?
Along with regular maintenance to make sure your system is running efficiently and making sure you are changing air filters, Kameron says humidity control plays a role here as well. “Proper humidity levels increase the comfortability inside your home and when you are more comfortable you don’t run your system as much, which can help lower your energy bills,” he says.
What is most meaningful for you in your work?
“Seeing customer satisfaction,” says Kameron. “Seeing the smile on customers’ faces when you’re able to help them out of a hard situation, especially when it’s at a less costly rate.”
What stays with him most is how quickly a customer’s stress can turn to relief. “Being able to see their moods change from, ‘Oh, can you please help us?’ to, ‘Oh, thank God you’re here.’ That’s always the best feeling.”
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"When you are more comfortable you don’t run your system as much, which can help lower your energy bills." - Kameron Spickert