How often should a furnace be serviced?
Once a year for a gas furnace, ideally before the heating season. Here's what a proper service actually involves.
A gas furnace should be inspected and serviced once a year — ideally before the heating season, so any issues turn up before you actually need the heat. In Ontario, that usually means late summer or early fall.
A proper service is more than swapping a filter. It includes checking the burners and ignition, inspecting the heat exchanger for cracks, checking the venting and combustion air path, verifying the safety controls, and measuring airflow and static pressure so the equipment is actually delivering what it should.
Skipping a year won't break your furnace. But small problems — a cracked igniter, a partially blocked vent, a heat exchanger starting to fail — are much cheaper and safer to catch early than to discover in the middle of a cold snap.
This article is general education, not a diagnosis of your home. For a proper assessment of your specific situation, talk to us.