Video · Furnaces and Heating
Dirty Furnace Filter or Tired Furnace? Why Heating Bills Climb
A dirty furnace filter chokes the air a furnace needs, so it runs longer, gets hotter and burns more gas for the same warmth. When the filter's clean and bills still climb, age is usually the next suspect.
Job footageSwiftPro
- Topic
- Furnaces and Heating
- Length
- 0:34
- Posted
- October 16, 2026
- Shot by
- The SwiftPro crew, Northern Virginia
What you’re seeing in this video
This one skips the easy fix and goes straight to where restricted airflow and age can end up. Two techs pull an old furnace out of a basement, one in a black hoodie and cap with a headlamp, the other in a black SwiftPro polo, backwards cap and red gloves, hauling the cabinet.
Text on screen runs through the usual suspects behind a rising heating bill: poor airflow, a dirty filter, worn parts and a furnace that's simply old. The last shot is the replacement, a new Rheem furnace set on a tiled floor.
Why it matters in your house
- Pull your filter and hold it up to a light. If you can't see light through it, change it. One-inch filters usually need it every one to three months during heating season.
- A choked filter can make the furnace overheat and trip its high limit switch, so it shuts off early and restarts. Lots of short runs cost more and wear parts faster.
- If bills keep rising with a clean filter, have a tech check blower speed, duct leaks, the thermostat and the furnace itself. An older unit with rising bills and more repairs is telling you something.
Why is my heating bill so high all of a sudden?
Start with the cheap stuff: a dirty filter, a thermostat schedule that got changed, or closed supply registers. Then think about weather and your gas rate, since a cold snap or a rate change shows up fast. If none of that explains it, have the furnace checked for airflow problems, a failing part or a system near the end.
Want it done at your place? See Furnaces and Heating at SwiftPro or call (703) 997-9757.
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