Gas Furnace Red Flags: Why You Need Immediate Furnace Repair Before Spring

This was a pretty brutal winter in some parts of the country, and those extreme temperatures reached all the way to South Texas. Winter is short in Texas, and it is easy to assume that the worst of the cold weather is in the rearview mirror. If you discovered a problem with our gas furnace, you might ask, “Can I wait until warm weather to make this needed repair?” Putting off repairs can be quite dangerous, and here are some reasons to make the repairs immediately.

 Gas furnaces have been precisely designed for warmth, efficiency, and safety. This is necessary since they bring a flammable and explosive fuel under pressure inside the home, burn a limited amount of gas, in a very small location, and collect the heat generated by the flame. The products of combustion include a lot of water, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and a little bit of carbon soot. Of course, the products of combustion MUST be exhausted outdoors, since most are toxic to humans. Bringing natural gas into the home, collecting the heat energy from it, and directing the fumes outdoors: what could go wrong? Right?

Soot, Rust, and Carbon Monoxide: Navigating High-Stakes Furnace Repair

Make sure to repair the ignition system.

• Older gas furnaces used a pilot light, a small flame that always stayed lit to ignite the gas during heating cycles. In the 1980’s, pilot lights were replaced by electronic ignition systems. The thermostat calls for heat, and a heating cycle begins. The gas valve releases gas while simultaneously triggering a series of electrical sparks to ignite the gas. If the gas does not spark immediately, the valve closes. The process will start again in a few minutes.
  
  Soot is a fine black powder that results from the combustion of natural gas. It can coat the sensors that make up the ignition system, delaying or preventing a heating cycle from beginning. The sensor calibration is very sensitive. Delaying this furnace repair can lead to loss of heat, and it can come at a very inconvenient time.

• The burner assembly is engineered to release (under pressure) a precise measure of gas, mix the gas with the proper amount of oxygen, and confine the flame to a specific location. Remember that one of the products of combustion is water, specifically hot water vapor, and burners are often made of cast iron, which is very susceptible to rust. If the rust is allowed to corrode the burner, the flame will not receive the proper mixture of gas and oxygen. The resulting flame does not burn completely, and the incomplete combustion waste gas is sent up the exhaust pipe.

• The heat generated by the flame runs through a series of baffles before being exhausted to the outdoors. Furnaces are engineered to squeeze all of the heat energy out of the flame as possible; they extract 85-98% of the energy available in natural gas. Air from the home is pushed around the baffles to collect the heat and disperse it throughout the home. This whole assembly is called the heat exchanger.

Remember that hot water vapor that is responsible for creating rust? It flows through the heat exchanger and as it cools, it pools inside the baffles. Rust is a real possibility in the heat exchanger. If rust corrodes through the baffle walls, it can release deadly carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide into the home. This furnace repair needs to be done immediately.

Any of these problems can endanger a home, even with infrequent use. Waiting for warmer weather is not an option. If you experience these problems, give Northwind AC Repair a call immediately to schedule your furnace repair appointment.

Don’t Wait for Spring—Protect Your Home Today with Quality Furnace Repair

Your family’s safety is too important to leave to chance with a cracked heat exchanger or a failing ignition system. Even if the Texas weather is warming up, neglecting these critical issues now can lead to dangerous carbon monoxide leaks or more expensive damage later. Call Northwind Air Conditioning and Heating right away to schedule your professional furnace repair appointment and ensure your system is safe and reliable.