October in Worthington is beautiful. The trees along High Street are in full color. Old Worthington looks like a postcard. It’s perfect sweater weather.
It’s also “my furnace won’t turn on” season. Every year, right on schedule.
The annual furnace situation
First cold night of fall, everyone turns on their heat for the first time. About 20% discover it doesn’t work. Our phone starts ringing.
Some of these are real problems. Some are just thermostats set incorrectly or filters that need changing. Either way, October keeps us busy.
Advice for tenants
Test your heat before it’s actually cold. Like, this weekend. Turn it on, make sure warm air comes out, then turn it back off. If there’s a problem, it’s much better to discover it now than at 10pm when it’s 35 degrees outside.
Advice for landlords
If you haven’t had your HVAC serviced this year, now is the time. A $100 maintenance visit is far better than a $2,000 emergency repair in January.
But also
Take time to enjoy the fall colors. Take a walk through Old Worthington. Get a coffee at Stauf’s or Luck Bros. It’s a beautiful time of year here.
Just maybe check your furnace first.