Quality Control Items Missed  During Repair Visits.It's winter and you may be experiencing an increase on your home heating bill or furnace may not be working correctly. What do you do? What to do before taking calling heating & cooling contractors.

1) Is your furnace clean? The area and dust around your furnace may be preventing it from working correctly.

2) Are you appliances free from dust and dirt?

3) Is air slipping through the cracks? Your basement or crawl space may be letting air escape. The first step is to find the holes and get them taken care of first!

4) Is your duct work in tact? Too often HVAC Contractors want to replace equipment prior to noticing duct work has come apart. Ducts should be plastered with mastic instead of duct tape.

5) Are you vents clean? Stop breathing dirty air. Clean vents that bring air flow to the home.

6) Do you have the proper insulation for the house you live in?

7) Upgrade to a digital thermostat. Are your settings correct for each time during the day? If it is warm outside, turn off the furnace and open the doors/windows to let the warm air in.

Our biggest home heating and cooling tip. Work with experts. Heating and cooling for the home is important and your equipment should be well-maintained. Asheville non-profit Go Green Opportunities (Ask for Marcus) will do an assessment of energy-efficiency for your home for approximately $300. Wouldn't you want to spend $300 versus $3000 on replacing your equipment?