Furnace maintenance

[bigjcw1023]

I need detailed instructions for cleaning and maintaining my furnace. It is a 25 year old giesel and still runs good, and I want to keep it that way.

[Zyp]

If you really want to have a *safe* well operating furance, call you local HVAC expert. It won't be expensive. Probalby less than $100 including the filter.

In some area's you can call your local Gas Supplier who will perform a cursive inspection and check to be sure it is safe to operate for free.

What all needs to be specifically done to *your* furance, I don't know. [Depends how old it is and the type.]

[<kjpro]

You must like high utility bills.

[Telstra]

[OLDHVACDUDE]

A. You are in way over your head.

B. If it&#39;s 25 years old you are giving the utility company free money every time you run it.

[The Freon Cowboy]

"You must like high utility bills."

yeah like what ? 55- 60 % efficiency ?

new 90 plus would pay for itself in five years

wrote:

[CJT]

I see statements like that here all the time. Without context, they&#39;re misleading or false. Where I live, we use the furnace a couple of dozen days a year. Almost no matter how inefficient, it is uneconomical to replace a furnace before it breaks or becomes unsafe. There are (cooler) places where similar analysis can be performed on replacing air conditioners.

[CJT]

That analysis can only be done based on facts like the number of degree days involved and the local price of furnaces.

[<kjpro]

However, his statement *is* still correct. :-)

[ds549]

vacume any dirt/dust off the burners , vacume dust off pilot light area. change air filter , clean blower fins if dirty . dont let a hvac guy charge you 100.00 for doing that. its easy. they will say you need a whole new furnace regarless of what you want done. see, hvac guys dont want to fix anything anymore,just replace the whole furnace.

[<kjpro]

Do you feel the crap you&#39;re suggesting is the only things that get done during a routine clean/inspection? If so, that&#39;s really sad!

[Moe Jones]

Just pay to have a HVAC technician come out to check the furnace to make sure it is in good working condition and it&#39;s safe then have him tell you what you as the home owner can do to maintain the furnace.

[CJT]

... but misleading, in that it implies there&#39;s a better alternative.

[bigjcw1023]

Thanks for the helpful advice, for the two that gave it. For the others, perhaps you don&#39;t like to see how long you can keep something going. Not to mention dropping 3000 $ is not something I want to do until I gave to. And the gas company will get that money regardless if I get a new unit or not, just a little slower with the new unit, but they would know that I got a new furnace and jack up the rates anyway.

[Christopher Young]

Do you mean "diesel"?

What&#39;s the fuel source? Any more details other than that?

[Christopher Young]

What is vacume?

[willshak]

on 9/8/2007 5:48 PM Christopher Young said the following:

Geisel is a brand name of furnace.

[Clark]

CJT wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Thanks for pointing that out. The problem is that the alt.hvac bois just want to attack people when they get tired of blowing each other in their usual newsgroup.

[bigjcw1023]

Tis a giesel,110000btu, about 30000 overkill, nat gas forced air, with spacegar 2200 and humidifier. Installed by local Geisel dealer in

1982.

[trader4]

quoted text -

Actually the statement that he&#39;s giving the utility company free money because he has a 25 year old furnace isn&#39;t correct. Smitty Two already pointed that out. Sure, he&#39;s using more fuel than if he had a new 90+% furnace, but that doesn&#39;t equate to giving the utiltiy company free money. He&#39;s getting gas in return.

Here&#39;s a classic web example as far as wrong headed thinking on the cost effectiveness of energy savings:

"Here&#39;s an example: If your refrigerator is 15 years old or older, replacing it with a new one could reduce your energy bill by five dollars or more every month: 60 dollars a year. If that new refrigerator costs $600, you&#39;re getting a 10 percent return on your money -- much more than banks are paying on savings, checking accounts, or even certificates of deposit. And the extra bonus is that money "earned" on energy savings isn&#39;t subject to state or federal income tax. A 10 percent, tax-free return on a moderate investment? That beats leaving potentially savings-producing money like this in a bank account (where returns are low -- and also taxed)."

Now what&#39;s wrong with that analysis? While factoring in alternative investment rates and even tax issues, It completely ignores the fact that money in the bank, while earning interest, IS STILL THERE. The money spent on a new refrigerator is gone. To figure the cost effectiveness, you obviously have to factor in not only the energy savings, but also the depreciated cost over time of the new refrigerator. And last time I checked, you don&#39;t get much of a refrigerator for $600.

So, I agree with those saying you have to factor in a lot before you say a 25 year old furnace should be replaced for economic reasons. If it&#39;s gas, I don&#39;t buy that a 1982 furnace is only 55% efficient. I would bet if it&#39;s been maintained and adjusted correctly, it&#39;s closer to 80%. And if you live in an area with modest heating usage, it&#39;s still working OK, etc, it&#39;s not clear to me that you come out ahead by replacing it.