When its cold outside, the condition of your home’s furnace is obviously fundamental to your comfort. If you’re experiencing furnace difficulties, you may be wondering whether it is ultimately more sensible to repair or replace your furnace. There are multiple factors that will determine which option is best for you. Your Calgary area HVAC technician can help you evaluate your needs and your broken HVAC system to determine whether furnace repair or replacement is the ideal short- and long-term answer for your Calgary home.
When Repair Is Best
Oftentimes, furnace problems can be easily diagnosed and repaired by a ACE-certified, HVAC professional. If your furnace is new—i.e., less than 10 years of system life — it stands a very good chance that any issues it exhibits can be solved through repair. On top of that, if your furnace is still heating your Calgary area home efficiently (your HVAC professional can help you determine this), then it is still likely and more affordable to repair it. Usually, as long as you are not seeing a steady increase in your heating bills with regular usage and your home is not having issues with uneven heating, your furnace is deemed operationally sound. Our recommendation relating to furnace repairs is that as long as the repairs you require are less than one-third of the cost of a new heating system and your furnace is in the first half of its predicted lifetime, repair is likely your best choice. Don’t forget that even if you are experiencing a decrease in heating efficiency, there are other routes you can explore before considering replacing your furnace. Talk to your HVAC service advisor about upgrading your thermostat or checking the integrity of your Calgary home’s ductwork to see if he thinks these HVAC products could advance the efficiency of your furnace. Talk to A1 Chesney Service Experts about scheduling regular furnace maintenance, which will add years of quality service from your furnace and help you avoid further repairs or drops in efficiency.
When Replacement Is Best
In some cases, repair will not be able to affordably resolve your issues. The estimated lifetime of most furnaces is 15-20 years; after this point, the heating system will start to fail more and more often. Therefore, if your furnace is already at least 15 years old, it is time to discuss replacement. Irregardless of equipment age, if you need your HVAC service provider for repairs frequently, this could also be a sign that it’s time to consider replacement. Although repairs may seem like a simple fix, if they aren’t keeping your furnace operating for years at a time, these frequent smaller charges ultimately cost you more money. There are many things that may determine whether replacement is appropriate for you including the quality of your original furnace installation and the capacity of your furnace. Installation means everything in terms of furnace effectiveness. Furthermore, your furnace may be struggling if it’s not sized correctly for your Calgary home size or heating needs. If your furnace isn’t sized or installed properly, you will probably need to consider a new unit instead of dealing with a heating system that lacks the capacity to properly heat your home.
If you have questions about whether repair or replacement of your Calgary home’s heating system is right for you, contact A1 Chesney Service Experts today.