STERLING, Illinois -- These temperatures have furnace fixers working overtime. Many homeowners are finding that their furnaces can't keep up in these extreme temperatures.
"I woke up to a cold house," Sterling resident Paul Tichler said. "Furnace wasn't working very well at all."
Dan Wiederin, the owner of D & W Air Solutions, says it because most homes don't have furnaces sized for this kind of weather.
"A lot of the reason they are working harder today is because we do not size it for zero below degree weather," Weiderin said. "They are made for 50 below but we're not sizing them for 50 below in this area."
Weiderin says the furnaces have to work extra hard in these extreme temperatures, but there are things you can do to keep them working.
"The biggest thing is cleanliness," Weiderin said. "Keeping your filter clean, checking your flue pipes, and making sure they are clean with no obstructions in them."
Weiderin said dirty air filters means your house will not heat as quickly. It doesn't matter if the furnace is new, without proper maintenance, it could still fail.
"A dirty filter will really cut down your air flow and make your furnace turn off and on when it shouldn't be," Weiderin said.
Another suggestion was keeping your vents open in every room.
"What your doing is forcing all the heat to stay inside the furnace," Weiderin said. "It can't get rid of it, so it's gonna create an issue somewhere."
Weiderin says making sure your registers are not covered with clothes or furniture will help the furnace work properly.