Even in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, sometimes your furnace or air conditioner just decides to stop working. Can there be any event more stressful?

There is a reason heating and air conditioning have each been deemed essential services now, during the COVID-19 emergency.

Having trustworthy indoor temperature control is a vital part of keeping your immune system healthy, your stress levels down and your family safe.

We are aware that many of our valued customers are facing financial challenges due to the stay at home order we have been under here in Ontario. So, we have put in place a suite of special offers for customers who need extra options right now.

Common HVAC Emergencies & Key Warning Signs

Furnaces and air conditioners have their own ways of letting us know when they are not able to do their best work, but so often we are too busy to notice, or we simply do not realize what is happening.

Here are some tips to keep on hand that can help you catch those early warning signs of an impending outage.

Furnace outage warning signs.

• Strange bangs, clangs, rattles, squeals or anything that sounds like you may have a baby elephant trapped in your ductwork.
• Some rooms in your home are warmer than others and try as you might, you can't figure out why.
• Your burner flame or pilot light is persistently yellow instead of blue or you see black residue around it.
• Your power bills are increasing as your usage stays the same (or decreases) and there hasn't been any noticeable uptick in energy costs in your area.
• You have been having to call your Gravenhurst service technician out more frequently for small issues or tune-ups.
• You see dust, mould or mildew around the air registers or exhaust vents.
• Your furnace seems to blow lukewarm or even cold air no matter what you do to adjust the thermostat.
• Your furnace is approaching its 15th birthday.

Air conditioner outage warning signs.

• Your air conditioner is making odd sounds - wheezing, humming, loud on/off cycling or anything that sounds like SpaceX is preparing for takeoff in your attic.
• Your home smells...odd...and nothing you have tried seems to be able to address the odour for very long before it comes back again.
• Some rooms are colder than others regardless of adjustments made to the thermostat or air duct repairs.
• Your utility bill for cooling suddenly starts inching up even if your power costs or usage levels don't change.
• Your air registers don't seem to be producing as high airflow through-put as they have done in previous years.
• Your A/C cycle is on, but the air coming out of your registers feels room temperature or only mildly cool.
• Your A/C unit is approaching its 10th birthday.
• You have been having to call your Gravenhurst repair technician more frequently to provide tune-ups or maintenance service.

As you can see, some of the warning signs that a furnace or air conditioning unit may produce can be quite similar.

As long as you have been attentive to basic annual preventative maintenance and monthly furnace filter changes, changes in furnace or A/C performance can most likely be traced back to simply old age.

If you inherited an HVAC system from your home's previous owner, you may also have little information about its prior maintenance and service history and how that may be impacting performance now.

What to Do If You Suspect Your Furnace or A/C May Be Headed for a Breakdown

We understand many of our customers are concerned about having service technicians in the home right now.

Here is what we are advising for concerned customers who may be facing an HVAC outage:

1. Take photos and/or videos of strange sounds or pilot light/air register discolouration and send those to us via email.

2. We can then schedule an initial phone call to talk through options.

Special COVID-19 Financing and Rebate Offers from Gravenhurst

Waking up to discover your furnace or air conditioner has suddenly decided to stop working will never not be stressful, mentally, emotionally or financially, but if it is stressful in normal times, it is doubly so right now.

During this unprecedented time of financial hardship for so many, your friends here at Gravenhurst want to make it as simple and low-stress as possible for you to stay safe and healthy.

We have partnered with FinanceIt to create special financing options for our customers who are facing emergency outages.

Here are the general terms:

• Loan financing is available for any service or product purchase of $2,000 or greater.
• Zero payment and zero interest applies to all service quotes.
• Interest rates on loan terms range from 8.99 percent to 10.99 percent.
• Get a lower loan payment by choosing a longer repayment period (up to 180 months).
• You are free to make additional payments as you desire without penalty.
• Payment portals are encrypted with AES-256 bit SSL bank-level security.
• Clear and transparent terms and fees: Gravenhurst adds a small fee to cover our administrative costs and there are absolutely no additional fees.

You can learn more and get started by visiting our customized, secure FinanceIt loan quote portal to apply for financing of up to $100,000.

Get in Touch

Heating, air conditioning, plumbing and electricity have all been deemed essential services during the current pandemic crisis. Our staff is working remotely but is always available to serve you.

Read our updated COVID-19 operating guidelines to learn more about how to reach us and options for contactless service and payment. Gravenhurst Plumbing, Heating and Electric has been providing guaranteed service in plumbing, heat, electrical and air conditioning in and around Muskoka, Ontario since 1945. We specialize in keeping our customers comfortable, which means that we do everything from regular heating, cooling, plumbing and electrical equipment check-ups to emergency service, to recommending and installing new equipment for you! 

Contact us online or give us a call at 877-885-3403.

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