The thermostat of your heating system is probably the only piece of equipment you come into contact with. While it may seem small, this portion of your heating system is vital to heating operation as it communicates with the heating unit when the temperature has dropped too low. Your heating system relies on this small piece to know when to start up and shut off, so a malfunctioning thermostat is quite a big deal to your unit. There are a few ways a broken thermostat may affect your heater.
No Heating at All or Reduced Heating
Now, a lack of heating or a heating system that won’t turn on at all can be symptomatic of a number of problems. But most often, a technician will start by checking the thermostat. Initially, this is to make sure that you haven’t simply neglected to change the programming, switch over into heating mode, or set the thermostat for the day. However, examining the thermostat can help the technician to learn quite a bit.
If the thermostat displays a temperature that is different from the temperature in the air, it is most likely the culprit of the heating trouble. Of course, this is also true if the thermostat displays nothing at all. While it’s a bit trickier to diagnose this issue with a manual thermostat, the technician can perform further tests to make sure it’s calibrated properly. If the thermostat is, however, displaying the proper temperature but it’s not the temperature you need, then the problem is more likely elsewhere in the system.
Short Cycling
A malfunctioning thermostat may cause your heating system to short cycle. Short cycling is the term professionals use to describe what happens when your heating or air conditioning system shuts off too soon, before the heating cycle is complete, and runs frequently. This may be due to a thermostat that is struggling to sense the heat in the room, detecting frequent temperature changes and sending faulty signals to the main unit. Short cycling can take a huge toll on the parts of your heater, causing components to become overworked. Usually, a broken thermostat will simply be replaced.
Call Comfort Flow Heating to schedule your heating service in Eugene and learn more about thermostats and your heating.
