What does it realy involve when a Tech comes to house & pulls Winterize on Gas Furnace? I just got charged $86.00 for a vacuum job and dusting inside and he checked my CO and it read OO leak but, told me the flames shouldn't be jumping around like they were when lit. Could mean heat exchanger is going bad.I saw a few orange lines in the tubes but no breaks and no CO.Am I being ripped off because I'm a woman???? :-( ????
How do you know if you are being ripped off by Furnace Tech.?? Just ben told my flames had orange cause of Heat Exchange getting bad, there are some visible orange seams starting.My furance is a Heil just put in June of 1995. Could the heat exchanger really be going bad so soon. He said, the flames were dancing around too much.(Our air supply is vented from the outside..) Thanks for any & all in-put.. I am a woman could he be takening me for aride, so to say??
It was not "just put in". It was put in 11+ years ago.
Well that depends. How much is he charging you?
Probably. I would replace the air filter first though, should be replaced at least once/year. Are all the jets lit on the burner?
Call someone with a good reputation to inspect your system. Ask your neighbors if you do not know of one. DO NOT tell them another tech diagnosed the bad heat exchanger. A flame dancing while burning COULD be a cracked heat exchanger, but the cost is high to replace it. Modern heat techs have optical devices they can insert into the heat exchanger to inspect for a cracked heat exchanger.
Most furnace makers warranty the heat exchanger for 5 years because they normally last even longer.
And yes, some HVAC people will take the last dollar from a person on Social Security without blinking an eye. Sorry to say.
Lemme see ... 11 yr-old Heil ...
You don't happen to be living on the North Pole, do ya? Not Santy Claus wife?? :-)
You called the wrong tech. He shoulda been able to do at least a visual inspection of the HE (using little mirrors).
If he failed to properly clean the burners etc, that could cause some degree of orange flame.
If you wanna be certain re HE, I guess you need a reliable conny-tractor. Ask neighbors and/or check BBB. Then request inspection (giving no add'l info).
Luck, Puddin'
Pease pudding hot, Pease pudding cold, Pease pudding in the pot Nine days old ...
My previous Heil gas furnace was replaced after 21 years with no heat exchanger issues of any type of its' life time. I replaced it mostly because I spend time away during the winter and did not want to think about furnace issues. The furnace was running like brand new when it was removed and only required a couple repairs in 21 years. Needless to say I bought another Heil.
I seriously doubt you have a bad heat exchanger but anything is possible,
Smarty
I think the tips of the flames _should_ flicker orange.
Getting a tech to your house these days to use the bathroom costs about that, so you have gotten a normal service. Clean and inspect the burners, inspect the heat exchanger, check the furnace to see if it's operating in spec'd temp rise, CO levels, and all that happy horse pucky are the usuals for this important service.
I'm not sure what you mean by "checked my CO and it read OO leak" but I'll assume he found no CO.
It's true that flames should be blue, however, you are right to be very suspicious of anyone telling you you need a new furnace who works for a furnace company. If your furnace is under 10 years old, and they can't show you a crack in teh heat exchanger, or can't demonstrate something more compelling, I'd buy CO detectors for your sleeping areas and soldier on.
If your furnace is older than 10 years, you might consider what a higher efficiency furnace might do for you depending on where you live.
Having another person inspect your furnace might be worthwhile, but I'm not entirely sure how you get hhold of one who might not try to sell you a new furnace somehow.
-- Todd H.
Thank You for your timely in-put...Greatly appreciated!
Dumbfounded
Orange flames are caused by an improper air/fuel mixture. Make him show you the crack in the heat exchanger or tell him to take a walk.
Furnace tune up consists of:
What do you consider acceptable ranges for these parameters?
The temperature rise is different from furnace to furnace, it will be posted on the data plate of the furnace. The static pressure should never exceed .5 inches of water column. The gas pressure for natural gas should never exceed 3.5 inches of water column on the manifold side for natural gas and 11 inches of water column for propane, also on the manifold side. These values are also posted on the furnace data plate.
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