What size furnace do I need for my home?
It’s inevitable that if you own a home long enough, you will need to replace your furnace at some point, perhaps even multiple times if you stay in your home for many decades. That said, when your aging furnace needs to be replaced, one of the first things you need to do is to determine the appropriate size for your home. A furnace that is not sized properly for your home can be detrimental in three primary ways. The first is that it may not provide an adequate level of comfort in your home. The second is that it can end up reducing the lifespan of your furnace. And the third is that you may have higher energy costs.
What happens if my furnace is too large?
If you select a furnace that is too large for your home, it will end up short cycling. This is because an oversized furnace heats your home too quickly such that it shuts off prior to reaching the optimal operating temperature.
What happens if my furnace is too small?
If you choose a furnace that is undersized for your home, it will continue to run for much longer than it is designed to do because it is struggling to properly heat your home. What this means is that your undersized furnace is under greater stress.
With both and undersized or oversized furnace, you can end up with a reduced lifespan and higher energy bills.
Factors that affect Furnace Size
Square Footage of Your Home
The size of livable area in your home is an important factor in determining the appropriate size of furnace needed to heat your home. One of our HVAC technicians can carefully measure your home’s square footage that needs to be heated (livable area).
Your Home’s Insulation
Your home’s insulation prevents warm air from escaping during Phoenix, Arizona’s colder winter months. This in turn can help to determine the appropriate size of furnace you may need.
Your Home’s Windows
The type of window (frame type, glaze type, gas filled, etc.) is also a consideration when evaluating the size of furnace you need for your home.
So, how do I determine the correct size of furnace for my home?
In order to make an educated decision as to the proper size of furnace for your home, a load calculation performed by an experienced HVAC professional is highly recommended. A load calculation is based upon certain facts about your home which then is used to calculate the Btu (a value that represents the heating capacity of a furnace) required to heat your home.
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