Friday, December 21, 2012

Condensing Gas Furnaces


                                                   

Condensing Gas Furnaces





                                                          


Condensing gas furnaces are the highest efficiency furnaces presently on the market. If you are building a new home or replacing the old furnace in your present house these high efficiency natural gas furnaces are your wisest choice. They are simply the best  furnace to use in all homes with natural gas heating.

The reason for choosing a condensing gas furnace is mainly because of  the extremely high AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilisation Efficiency) which runs  from 90 to as much as 97 percent (in some cases a little higher). Old furnaces made in past decades will be found to have AFUEs of 60 percent or even less and medium efficiency  gas furnaces made at present have AFUEs of 78 to 84 percent.

It is easy to see that a high efficiency natural gas furnace will consume as much as 20% less fuel in normal operation. This results in a substantial saving in fuel costs which over a relatively short period of time will pay for the somewhat higher initial price of the more efficient furnace. On average a medium efficiency gas furnace costs about $1000 less than a high efficiency model.

Modern condensing gas furnaces use, approximately 33 to 40 percent less fuel than old furnaces and 10 to 20 percent less than medium efficiency units made at present. This not only reduces fuel bills substantially but as a bonus also cuts down drastically on  toxic environmental emissions which are thought to be at least partially responsible for environmental pollution and climate change.

The somewhat higher cost of purchasing a new condensing gas furnace will easily be recovered, in a relatively short period of time, through fuel savings.The savings will then go directly into the pocket of the consumer throughout the life of the appliance. An average homeowner with an old model furnace might save $300 a year, or even more, by installing a 97% efficiency condensing gas furnace.

Condensing gas furnaces are made in a variety of sizes to suit any type of home. They new furnace can usually be placed in the same spot as the old furnace it is replacing, and will typically use the same heat  duct-work. All furnaces must of course be installed by licensed gas installation technicians. It is very unwise to have an unlicensed do it your-selfer install your furnace. In many places it is illegal to do so, and could also result in your insurance company refusing to pay claims if there is a fire. For more information about condensing gas furnaces click here