Getting the Most Value Out of Your Furnace

Here at AC World, we’re committed to serving all of your air conditioning needs, from the smallest questions about maintenance to the largest projects involving complex and detailed system installs.

Because many homeowners who have central air conditioning connect it to a furnace to take advantage of a single blower and duct system, we feel it’s only right to remind our customers of how to help both systems work as well as possible. Especially when those homeowners are considering a replacement for an existing machine.

As we head into the cooler winter months in many parts of the country, here are a few suggestions for getting the most value out of your furnace, courtesy of one organization that ought to know a thing or two about keeping warm in the cold, Minnesota Power:

Before considering the purchase of a new furnace, it’s wise to take a good look around your home to see how well it is insulated. By sealing air leaks and adding insulation where needed, your home will become that much more comfortable to begin with, which could permit you to opt for a smaller or less expensive furnace.

When shopping for a new furnace, choose one with an AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency) rating of 90% or greater. The higher the percentage number, the greater the value you will get for what you spend to heat your home.

Choose a furnace that will provide enough capacity to heat your home on the coldest day of the year. This will also mean, however, that your furnace will provide more heat than you need on some other days. To avoid wasting heating fuel, consider a multi-stage furnace that can fire up only some of the machine’s burners on those days when you don’t need the heat on full blast.

One veteran HVAC installer we know says that it won’t help much to buy the best equipment if it happens to be incorrectly installed. For this reason, make sure that your HVAC professionals have a solid track record of successful installs for the make and model of furnace you are considering for your home.

For more information on matching heating and cooling components, give AC World a call today!