1. Furnace Filter Slot Door Cover Panels
2. Allergy Zone Azfl-100 Filterlock Furnace Filter Slot Seal Door Cover

Three Things To Try If Your Furnace's Air Filter Is Stuck In Its Slot

FilterLock - Filter Slot Cover: Media Air Cleaners: Rheem/Ruud RXIA-A01A Digital Control. OEM Furnace Door Handle and Insert/Thumbscrew Kits: Duct, Wire & Cable Ties. The US Stove Universal Filter Box covers the blowers on your USSC furnace and allows for easy connection to the existing HVAC return duct work or to newly installed ducting. This universal filter box is constructed from galvanized steel for durability and includes an integrated slot for a 16 in. FilterLock® is a patented two-piece system designed for use with 1-inch air filters that eliminates air leakage at the filter slot/door to improve indoor air quality (IAQ) and reduce energy consumption. Energy Star lists air leakage at the filter slot as one of four major issues with duct work in the home.

Many air duct sections leading into furnaces have slots on them that allow you to quickly change an air filter by opening a slot's cover and pulling the filter out by its edge. While this is convenient, it can be difficult to deal with an air filter in this situation that's stuck to a floor or wall without tearing the filter into little pieces. So if your old air filter won't budge at all from its slot in your furnace's connecting air duct, make sure to try these three things.

FilterLOCK seals furnace and A/C air filter slots up to 25' Overlapping magnetic 2-piece design holds FilterLOCK securely in place on top or side of metal duct Blocks allergens and pollutants for year-round protection and savings Reduces utility bills and improves indoor air quality.

Run The Furnace To Heat The Filter Area Up

If you haven't had to run your furnace for a long time and you're just changing out the filter now to save on energy and maintenance costs in the coming months, your old filter has had plenty of time to get stuck to the metal around it. This process has been helped along because the temperature around the filter has been mostly constant and without any heat spikes that come from you turning on the furnace.

Giving your furnace a short test run for the season before you change out your filter will give the filter's cardboard border time to expand a little and shake off any chemical or physical bonds holding it down on its own. Even if the initial air stream itself won't be heated until it actually goes through the furnace, it'll get warmer and warmer as it cycles through your home and back into the air duct section holding the filter.

Gently Rock The Visible Cardboard Line From Side To Side

To avoid a huge tear when you finally dislodge a stuck air filter from your air duct's wall, it's a good idea to rock the visible cardboard line from side to side before you pull on it with all your might. First, put one hand on the cardboard near the top and the other hand on the cardboard near the bottom. Then, move your topmost hand left while you move your other hand right. Switch out the directions a few times until you can feel the air filter getting noticeably looser.

Furnace Filter Slot Door Cover Panels

Pull On The Top Of The Filter A Little Harder Than The Bottom

Allergy Zone Azfl-100 Filterlock Furnace Filter Slot Seal Door Cover

Since moisture and gunk tends to collect on the bottom of an air duct more often than it does on the top, the top of a stuck air filter is often significantly easier to pull on than its bottom. Therefore, when you're pulling on the filter in earnest, focus most of your effort on the top of the cardboard. Only make a change if the top feels incredibly loose while the bottom is still as stuck as ever. Of course, if you cannot remove the air filter at all, then contact a furnace repair specialist.