When its cold outside, the health and operation of your home’s furnace is obviously critical to your comfort. If you’re experiencing furnace difficulties, you probably are wondering whether it makes sense to repair or replace your furnace. There are many factors that will decide upon which option is best for you. Your Concord area HVAC service advisor can help you assess your needs and your struggling HVAC system to determine whether furnace repair or replacement is the ideal short- and long-term answer for your Concord home.
When Repair Is Best
In most cases, furnace problems can be easily diagnosed and repaired by a ACE-certified, HVAC professional. If your furnace is new—i.e., less than ten years old — chances are very good that any issues it has can be solved through repair. Furthermore, if your furnace is still heating your Concord area home efficiently (your HVAC professional can help you confirm this), then it is still in your best interest to repair it. Typically, as long as you are not seeing a continuous increase in your heating bills with constant usage and your home is not having issues with uneven heating, your furnace is deemed operationally sound. Conventional wisdom about furnace repairs is that if the repairs you need are less than one-third of the cost of a new heating system and your furnace is in the first half of its anticipated lifetime, repair is likely your best decision. Remember that even if you are experiencing a drop in heating efficiency, there are other paths you can explore before considering replacing your furnace. Talk to your HVAC professional about upgrading your thermostat or checking the integrity of your Concord home’s ductwork to see if he thinks these enhancement could advance the efficiency of your furnace. Talk to Freschi Service Experts about scheduling regular furnace maintenance, which will add years of quality service from your furnace and help you prevent further repairs or drops in efficiency.
When Replacement Is Best
Eventually, repair will not be able to affordably resolve your issues. The expected lifetime of most furnaces is 15-20 years; after this point, the heating system will deteriorate and fail more and more often. Therefore, if your furnace is nearing or passed the 15 year mark, it is time to think about replacement. Regardless of the age of your furnace, if you require your HVAC service provider for repairs too often, this could also be a sign that your furnace is beyond help and requires a replacement. Although repairs may seem like a simple fix, if they aren’t keeping your furnace functioning for years at a time, these frequent smaller charges will add up and cost you way more than buying new. There are a variety of things that may determine whether replacement is ideal for you including the quality of your original furnace installation and the capacity of your furnace. A furnace is only as good as its installation, making proper installation essential. In addition, your furnace may be struggling if it’s not sized correctly for your Concord 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 Concord home’s heating system is right for you, contact Freschi Service Experts today.