We’ve reached the time of the year when your home’s furnace will probably shut down for many months. This is good period to consider having the furnace replaced if it is many years old or has shown signs through the heating seasons that it can no longer do the job it’s supposed to. You won’t have to rush with making a decision and can easily schedule the service since you don’t need the furnace working right away to keep the house warm.
As you think about your furnace options, here are some things you should know about the newer sealed combustion furnaces and how they will help improve furnace energy efficiency, home comfort, and safety.
Atmospheric combustion
The conventional furnace uses atmospheric combustion to work. This means that the combustion chamber is open to the air in the rest of the house. If you take off the furnace grill, you can look right into the combustion chamber and see the blue light of the jets. This kind of furnace draws the air used in the combustion process from the rest of the house, which leads to outdoor air being pulled into the home.
Sealed combustion chamber
This newer type of furnace has a combustion chamber that is sealed off from the house. It draws the air for combustion through a plastic pipe that runs from the outside of the house. Using outdoor air allows the furnace to run at higher energy efficiency since the combustion chamber loses less heat to the house. Because it doesn’t draw any air from the house, this furnace doesn’t leave a deficit indoors that causes cold outside air to rush in. It’s also safer than conventional furnaces because there’s no danger of backflow down the exhaust flue leading to toxic combustion gases entering the home.
Contact JW Heating and Air San for professional furnace installation and replacement services in the San Gabriel Valley. We strive to make every replacement and installation the best project our customers have done at their house!