Replacing a furnace is no small feat. You want to make sure you do your research and get it right the first time, instead of wasting time and money on an inefficient system.
Choosing the right company is key, and making a good hiring decision can ease a lot of worry and stress. A good company will be one that trains their technicians and keeps them up-to-date with any new technology in heating systems, and they’ll know the codes for climate and the construction of your home. And while there are hundreds of contractors that you can call, keep this one bit of advice in mind: the day of installation is the most important day of your furnace’s life, so make sure that you are certain that the installing technician knows what they are doing. Otherwise, you could be losing money from day one.
When choosing a company, make sure you consider the following six points:
1. Make sure a permit is pulled.
This keeps you safe as a consumer. A company that is able to pull permits in your city or county has to provide insurance and workman’s compensation and has a current license in the city they are working in . If a technician hurts themselves in your home and the contractor doesn’t have insurance, you could be financially responsible.
2. What are your home’s heating requirements?
Knowing what you need to do to heat your home is vitally important. The size and layout of your home plays a role in how to best heat it, as does the family’s activities. Most homes are as unique as their owners. So when we are deciding how to set up the furnace, we weigh all the variables. For example: Do you have 5 kids who run in and out of the home all day and forget to close the doors? Does one of the kids have allergies, hay fever or bloody noses? Do you have wood furniture or wood floors that need to be conditioned so they don’t dry out and crack? These are all key components to look at when choosing and installing a new furnace.
3. Look for a warranty.
Having a warranty is important, but always remember that the warranty is only as the good as the contractor standing behind it. We offer a 5 year warranty on parts and 5 years on labor on equipment installations.
4. Check for efficiency.
The minimum efficiency for furnaces that can be purchased today is 78%, while the most efficient are 98%. This is a difference of 30%. While there is an initial cost difference between the lower end and higher end furnace, choosing one that operates at a higher efficiency can save money in the long run. After only a few years of use, the appliance will soon pay the difference back to you because it won’t be using so much gas to heat your home. Think about it like this: you pay $100.00 to heat your home if you use the less efficient unit – $78 dollars to heat your home and the other $32 dollars goes outside to heat the neighborhood. If you use the same $100.00 to heat you home using a 98% percent efficient furnace you are only losing 2% out of the house and the other 98% is left in the home to make you comfortable.
5. Look for the two stage function.
We don’t sell anything less. Pretend you are driving down the road in your car and it’s really cold, so you turn the heat up all the way to warm it quickly. Once it’s warm in your car, you turn the heat down instead of turning it off so that it stays at a comfortable temperature. This is how a furnace works.
6. Opt for Variable speed options.
Do you need filtration in your home? What about humidification or UV light system to kill germs? Well, if you do or if you think someone may want it in the future, you need to be picky about buying the right furnace. Variable speed motors is direct driven and they cost very little to operate. For example: you can purchase different light bulbs that will give you 60 watts of light but only use 15 watts to do it, as opposed to one that is a standard light bulb that gives 60 watts and uses 60 watts of light. With a furnace, a DC motor will use 60 watts instead of 600 watts on the standard motor, so you can see that this motor is 10 times more efficient. It also helps overcome duct work issues you may have in the home, like a room over the garage that is always too hot or too cold. This different type of motor is not a cure all, but it will help dramatically. It’s also capable of delivering more air than the traditional motor, which means that we can put the hot or cold air directly where it is needed, and save it where it’s not needed.
These helpful tips will assist you in choosing the right furnace and the right company to help with installation. And while purchasing a new furnace may have a higher up-front cost, choosing the right one and completing a thorough installation will lower your heating bills in the winter and make your home more comfortable while running more efficiently.
