subject: Furnace Repairs in Lafayette, IN [print this page] Furnace Repairs in Lafayette, IN Furnace Repairs in Lafayette, IN
Most residents in Lafayette, Indiana don't think about heating repairs You're probably sitting in your easy chair relaxing after a hard day at work. In the background is the hum of the furnace working to keep the air heated in your home. Everything seems to be just fine until your spouse informs you of the exceptionally high heating bill. So much higher, in fact, that you can no longer relax anymore, because you have to get up and turn the thermostat down so the wonderful heat quits coming on so often.
Instead of enjoying a perfectly enjoyable temperature at your home, you're now wondering if it it's time to bite the bullet and replacing the furnace. A furnace is one of the household appliances that are out of sight and out of mind until it doesn't work right. Then it suddenly seems like the most important piece of equipment ever made!
Deciding to replace a furnace is a big decision anyway you look at it. Furnaces are expensive so getting the right one for your home is important. You will live with the same furnace for a many years since many of them will most likely last for over twenty, when properly maintained. There are a variety of furnaces available so picking the best one to suit your situation can be extremely confusing. Do you go gas or oil? What kind of forced air furnace should you buy? How do you know the right efficiency rating and is it worth the expense to get the highest rating?
Before we go any farther, we need to figure out if we need heating repair or furnace replacement. Answering that question means looking at a number of things.
One of the first things to consider is the age of your furnace. Though older units may still be working, they are not working as energy efficiently as newer ones. This is one of the biggest reasons that you don't like to open the utility bill each month. Your bill is probably much higher than it should be due to the furnace working much less efficient than a newer model. Today's new furnace units have efficiency ratings as high as 97% while your older unit is probably only operating at 65% or less.
Safety is another factor to consider. Completing regular safety checks is important and any sign there is carbon monoxide or corrosion in the heat-exchanger means the unit needs to be replaced. Older oil furnaces are safer in terms of not leaking carbon monoxide, but they are not as energy efficient.
The price of fuels is another factor which will influence your decision to replace a furnace. For example, oil is not as easy to get as it used to be. If your area has dwindling supplies, and you also have a unit that is older than 15 years, it's time to get out of that easy chair and start figuring out if you need a new unit.
How can you figure your utility bill savings if you get a new furnace? Figuring up your potential cost savings is not difficult. You can get a total of one year's worth of heating bills. Then multiply that total by the difference between the old and new efficiency ratings. Take the cost of the new unit and divide by the number you got for your utility cost savings. The answer is how long it will take you to recoup the cost of the new furnace in terms of years.
Another factor to keep in mind when deciding to replace a furnace is if the size or configuration of your house has changed. If you have added square footage through a room addition, it might be necessary to install a larger furnace to handle the work load.
Maybe now you are thinking of heating repair in Lafayette, IN versus furnace installation. There is no formula for deciding when it's time to replace a furnace with one exception - your furnace quits working and it's over 20 years old. Even if you decide to repair your furnace, there's a good chance it will break again when you are needing it the most.
