Furnace Check

It is a good time to check the furnace. Mine would not start again, exhaust vent had a nest in it. Why wait until it gets cold and find out you are having a problem.

Excellent post..

A furnace clean and check is recommended every year. Even on new furnaces. But beware. Some technicians will spend 5 minutes to check for CO and they are out the door. A good technician will :

Check for CO.

Check the gas pressure to the burner orifices and adjust as needed.

Remove burner assembly and clean it in your laundry tub.

Test voltage on the thermocouple and replace if needed.

Check the amperage draw on the blower motor.

Oil blower motor bearings if non-sealed blower.

Vacuum the fins on the blower if needed.

Check anticipator on T-stat and adjust if needed.

Check high limit for proper setting.

Check for gas leaks at shut off valve and other gas line joints.

Make sure all piping/venting is up to code.

And check for CO/ gas leaks on the water heater.

If your going to hire a contractor, try to make the appointment when your going to be home and watch them perform the job. Some of the newer furnaces will not reguire the above testing.

Lastly, watch out for the $59 specials. A good clean and check will run $80-$90..

A good reminder for all. Also dont forget about the furnaces in your hunting shacks or camper trailers.

CO Detecter would be advisable

have three of them in different places in the house

Yep, good post, good timing! When I woke up this morning it was 60 degrees in the house, brrrr. I went through mine today, checked for gas leaks, changed the filter, oiled the blower shaft, just made sure it was all on the up N up. Fired right up and blew good heat, good to go! Don’t put it off, cool weather looks like it’s here to stay.

BIRDDOG

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CO Detector would be advisable

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I believe the new law goes into effect in 2008. All homes are required to have them.

Not sure on how many are required but industry standards are one unit for the basement, 10-12 feet from the furnace. And one unit for each bedroom in the house.

Battery operated units are great for fish shacks.

i belive that is just for new homes right

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i believe that is just for new homes right

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Nope.. ALL homes > but a law shouldn’t make people get them. They truly are a life saver.. When I was tech for the gas company for 4 years, I walked into many homes, apartments and condos with dead people with CO poisoning. Worse case I saw was a 70 some year old man from a nice apartment complex in Minnetonka that died from his gas oven. His apartment complex didn’t turn the heat on until Oct. He turned his oven on and lowered the oven door during sept on a cold night for heat and they didnt find him for 8 days. I found him in a fetal position in his bedroom. The first signs of CO poisoning is delusion, dizziness and tiredness. It was obvious from his T.V. being on that he probably was watching T.V, got tired(from the CO) and felt sick(from the CO) and went into the bedroom to lay down, probably thinking that he was getting the flu or was just tired.(thats how most people die from CO) Needless to say, he killed himself, but not on purpose.

The smell of a dead body does not justify the $69 for a CO detector.

This is a good point that renters should also take safety into thier own hands and get CO detectors..

I would rec them for a hunting shack or cabin also, to many crappy htrs out there

Just a little safety note on cleaning burners..

If it is a “ribbon burner” which are the long tube like burners that actually go into the heat exhanger DO NOT CLEAN THEM WITH WATER!

A while back I was working with a guy doing furnace inspections and he cleaned them with water and we went to fire it up without blowing the water out with air and it had delayed ignition….flames actually came out the front of the furnace.

I was lucky enough to be standing to the side of it…always a good habit…when this happened.

The best way is take a wire brush and scrub them gently and than blow them out with air. Water will make a film on them just like blowing a bubble and will not allow the gas to go through the burner. it will go out the back of it by the orifices and as sson as the ignitor comes on it will ignite all that gas OUTSIDE of the burner compartment.

If you have ANY doubt about if you are doing things right it’s better to call in an expert.

BE SAFE

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Excellent post.. Lastly, watch out for the $59 specials. A good clean and check will run $80-$90..

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Seems like a very reasonable fee for the peace of mind, not to mention avoiding the possible outcome that could be the result!

Tim

It seems that most co detectors will not alarm until co concentrations are 30ppm. CO Experts has some models that will alarm at concentrations of 10ppm

Talking about CO detectors…………the fire department was at the neighbors ladies house last week I went out ask if everything was allright. She said yeah other than feeling like a dumb her CO detectors was going off with the code of “LB” the firefighters told her that meant low battery………

So needless to say she briefed our block on CO codes

Does anybody else go through a lot of CO detectors?? I get those nice expensive ones at Home Depot at it seems like they break kind of easy?? Just this summer I had two die. I would put two next to each other and one would keep going off and the other wouldn’t?? And no it wasn’t a dead battery and nothing would be on in the house giving off CO?? It gets a little expensive and when it does go off it makes you wonder if it is malfunctioning or there really is a problem??

Thanks going to have my furnace checked

Already done

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Just a little safety note on cleaning burners..

If it is a “ribbon burner” which are the long tube like burners that actually go into the heat exhanger DO NOT CLEAN THEM WITH WATER!

A while back I was working with a guy doing furnace inspections and he cleaned them with water and we went to fire it up without blowing the water out with air and it had delayed ignition….flames actually came out the front of the furnace.

I was lucky enough to be standing to the side of it…always a good habit…when this happened.

The best way is take a wire brush and scrub them gently and than blow them out with air. Water will make a film on them just like blowing a bubble and will not allow the gas to go through the burner. it will go out the back of it by the orifices and as sson as the ignitor comes on it will ignite all that gas OUTSIDE of the burner compartment.

If you have ANY doubt about if you are doing things right it’s better to call in an expert.

BE SAFE

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So that is what happened to the rest of your beard and eyebrows yesterday

In less than a month from now, I’m not going to worry at all about CO because then the only source will be cooking appliances when I start the outdoor wood burner and this old house is a little drafty at times, not sealed tight like newer houses

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But beware. Some technicians will spend 5 minutes to check for CO and they are out the door.

Lastly, watch out for the $59 specials. A good clean and check will run $80-$90.

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I worked a company where some of the technicians like to get done quickly and skip most of the stuff they were supposed to do. We charged $130 for a checkup. With that in mind, just because it is expensive, doesn’t mean its done right.

Feel free to ask the technician what they did, or better yet, act interested in what they do and watch them work on it. I don’t mind customers watch me work on their equipment, I have nothing to hide, and they know what they are paying for.

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Does anybody else go through a lot of CO detectors??

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They should be replaced every 5-7 years. If you are having issues, it may be due to the attached garage and carbon monixide entering. Even though the garage door is up and the rear of the car is just outside, carbon monoxide will still enter the home. If you are going to warm up the car, put it outside and shut the overhead door. High concentration out of the car exhaust will cause the carbon monoxide detector to fail.