Technology in general has come a long way in the last fifty years. Furnaces and their efficiency are definitely a part of that trend. In older homes especially, people experience outrageous heating prices throughout the winter months without giving it a second thought. The majority of households use their furnace until it completely breaks down. A furnace isn’t cheap, so putting off buying a new one might seem like the better financial decision. In reality, it may be costing you more. Furnaces last a long time. Once you buy a new one, you can enjoy the heat without having to worry about replacing it for years.Not many people know when to buy a new furnace. A lot of people will pay for furnace repairs in Lenexa repeatedly every year, and still won’t think about getting a new one. One time may not be a big deal, but there comes a time when the money you’re paying to keep an old furnace running costs more than it does to have a brand new one put in. A new appliance also helps you save money in other ways. Modern furnaces work much better. Their efficiency is far beyond those that are found in older homes. The less efficient a furnace is, the more money it costs to run it. It is also much harder on the earth. The better a furnace runs, the better off the environment is due to lower emissions, and the more money you have in your pocket every winter.
To give governments and consumers an idea of how well a furnace operates, there is a special rating known as an AFUE, or Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency rating. Essentially, this rating is based on how much fuel a furnace eats up while it’s on, and compares it to the amount of fuel that is wasted in exhaust. Older furnaces from the 1970s usually get rated at right around 65%. That translates to 45% of the fuel you pay for getting wasted as exhaust. Older furnaces are wasteful. A high efficiency furnace does the same job without needing to use as much fuel.
As the years progressed, the requirements placed on furnace and heating units became more stringent. To help keep emissions lower, the government requires that furnaces have a minimum rating of 78%. The good news for consumers is that you can have far better than that. Today, there are models on the market that are rated at 98.2%. That number ensures that there is only 1.8% of fuel exiting as emissions.
Those numbers are impressive, but what homeowners really want to know is how that translates to monetary savings. If you switch to a high efficiency furnace with ratings in the 90s, you can expect your bills to drop by between 25%-30%. If you find yourself paying for a Lenexa HVAC company to come out and work on your furnace every year, then it may be time to compare how much you would spend with a new furnace in your home. You’ll enjoy a warmer home, cheaper bills, and be able to live without the stress of having it constantly repaired for years to come.
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