Are you thrilled that summer is finally over? Have you turned on your furnace to test it, only to discover that it's not heating anything at all? There are few things more frustrating than dealing with a heater that isn't heating. Unfortunately, since other people are also discovering that their furnaces and heaters aren't working, it could be a few weeks until a heating repair technician is able to come out and rectify the issue. But there are some things that you can try that may help at least temporarily until you're able to get a professional to check out the system. These things include:

Change thermostat batteries: Many modern thermostats do not send the commands directly over wire but are instead wireless. Even if they are hooked up to your home's electricity, they may still use batteries at least to be able to save settings if the power should go out. When these batteries start to die, even if the thermostat is powered by your home's electricity, one of the ways that it may try to get your attention is by no longer being able to send the correct signals to your heater or furnace. What you currently think is a need for heating repairs could be nothing more than a need to replace thermostat batteries.

Change filters: If you haven't changed your furnace filters in a while, there's a good chance that they're dirty and at least partially clogged. If your filters are clogged and your furnace is unable to pull air through them, you're not going to get much in the way of heat. Continuing to run your furnace with a dirty filter could eventually result in the need for potentially expensive heating repairs. Although some filters may say that they're good for up to three months, the fine print notes that this can change depending on your home's air quality. Changing your air filter too frequently is much better for your furnace than not changing it often enough.

"Reboot" the system: Sometimes, for a temporary fix, shutting the power off to your furnace and then turning it back on may be sufficient to cause it to reset and to start working again. You should definitely have a professional check it out to see if any actual heating repairs are needed, but resetting everything may be enough to tide you over until the professional is able to take a look.