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Is it time to replace the furnace?
Older, less efficient furnaces cost you more to heat your home each month. Typically, around 44 percent of your utility bill goes toward heating & cooling. So if you're looking to save money on energy costs, the first place to find savings is with your HVAC system.
A new energy-efficient furnace or heat pump is a smart way to invest in your home and plays a big part in keeping your utility bills down. While the upfront cost of a new system is sometimes a difficult pill to swallow, you might be surprised how much money your older, inefficient unit is wasting each month as it tries to keep your home warm.
How much money could you save each month with an upgrade? Ask one of our expert comfort advisors if the time is right for you to invest in a new energy efficient furnace or heat pump.
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What factors should I consider when deciding whether to repair or replace my furnace?
Sometimes a little service is all you need to stay up and running. But how do you know when it's time to bite the bullet and invest in a new system rather than put money into an old one? To be able to determine if it's time to invest in a new furnace, you really need to look at three factors:
- Your Furnace Efficiency - How old is your furnace? Has it received regular annual maintenance or has it been ignored as long as it seems to be working OK?
- The Costs of Fuel - Are you currently using gas, electric or oil to heat your home? Is the cost of that fuel trending upward? What do you project fuel costs to be 5, 10, or 15 years from now?
- The "Heating Load" of your home - How much energy is required to keep the inside of your home a steady 65-degrees (or whatever temperature is comfortable to you)?
Sound overwhelming? We can help - contact us and one of our experts will be more than happy to answer your questions and help you make an informed decision.
Efficiency Standards: SEER, HSPF and AFUE
When comparing equipment, it helps to have a standard of efficiency with which to measure performance. Here are some of the common standards you'll hear about and what they mean:
- SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) - Similar to miles per gallon in a car, SEER is a measure of the overall efficiency of a complete heating and cooling system on a seasonal basis. The higher the SEER, the greater the system's energy efficiency, and the lower the overall carbon footprint of your household.
- HSPF (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor) - This standard measures how efficient a heat pump is during the heating season... which in our northwest climate is quite possibly more important than SEER rating.
- AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency) - Measures how efficiently a furnace converts fuel into usable heat over the course of the entire heating season. The higher the AFUE, the less fuel you'll need to keep your home comfortable, the less you'll spend on energy, and the lower your carbon footprint will be.
Ready to find out how an upgrade can save you
money each month on your utility bills? Contact us!
Brands
We are proud to be a dealer of quality brands including the following:
All winter long, you depend on your furnace to meet your heating needs. That’s why they build Trane furnaces to perform again and again, year after year. Beyond performance, they also provide you with options for energy-efficient operation. In fact, some of their furnaces operate at over 90% efficiency, which means that 90% of the fuel you pay for is actually converted into heat.
Goodman brand gas furnaces deliver warm, money-saving indoor comfort year after year. Variable and multi-speed furnaces can provide enhanced indoor comfort by slowly ramping-up to your thermostat setting rather that simply turning-on at full speed. This alleviates the ‘cold air blow’ often associated with single speed furnaces.
WaterFurnace is a pioneer and industry leader in the development and manufacture of geothermal heating and cooling systems.