Homeowners are looking to spend and use less without giving up the comfort they cherish. If your old furnace has stopped working entirely, it’s time for a new, high-efficiency furnace. Even if your old furnace works, it might be time to consider replacing it with a more efficient model to save money over the long run and enjoy more comfort now. The efficiency of your furnace makes a major difference in your energy bills. Heating and cooling account for approximately 56 percent of the energy used in a typical U.S. home. If you can squeeze more efficiency out of your heating and cooling equipment, you can make a major dent in your monthly energy bills. If you intend to stay in your home for a few years, upgrading from an old, inefficient furnace to a new, efficient model can pay for itself and add to your quality of life.
A standard efficiency furnace provides 80 percent annual fuel utilization efficiency. In this type of furnace, 20 percent of the energy produced by natural gas is expelled as exhaust. An 80 percent furnace uses open combustion to generate energy from natural gas. In other words, it sucks air from the surrounding area. This is important to know when deciding what type of furnace to get.
Standard furnaces have one heat exchanger. During the combustion process, a certain amount of the heat is lost up the chimney in the form of water vapor. Condensing furnaces have a second heat exchanger that is able to extract heat from that water vapor that would normally be vented outside. This allows them to make more use of the energy that they consume and significantly reduce costs.
The modulating furnace operates with finesse to reduce temperature fluctuations, providing consistent indoor temperature, and an annual fuel utilization efficiency up to 98 percent. That means fuel is used more efficiently, reducing your energy cost. It adjusts between 35 and 100 percent of total capacity, regulating the amount of fuel burned according to the thermostat setting.