During the winter heating season, the health and function of your home’s furnace is obviously vital to your comfort. If you’re experiencing furnace difficulties, you probably are wondering whether it is ultimately more sensible to repair or replace your furnace. There are multiple factors that will decide upon which option is best for you. Your Indianapolis area HVAC technician can help you evaluate your needs and your current HVAC system to determine whether furnace repair or replacement is the best short- and long-term answer for your Indianapolis home.
When Repair Is Best
More often than not, furnace troubles can be easily diagnosed and repaired by a ACE-certified, HVAC professional. If your furnace is new—i.e., under ten years — it stands a very good chance that any issues it experiences can be solved through repair. Furthermore, if your furnace is still heating your Indianapolis area home efficiently (your HVAC professional can help you determine this), then it is still in your best interest to repair it. Commonly, as long as you are not seeing a trending increase in your heating bills with regular usage and your home is not having issues with uneven heating, your furnace is considered in good shape. A good general rule of thumb relating to furnace repairs is that if the repairs you must get are less than one-third of the cost of a new heating system and your furnace is in the first half of its anticipated lifetime, repair is likely your best option. Don’t forget that even if you are experiencing a drop in heating efficiency, there are other avenues you can explore before considering replacing your furnace. Talk to your HVAC technician about upgrading your thermostat or checking the integrity of your Indianapolis home’s ductwork to see if he thinks these solutions could boost the efficiency of your furnace. Talk to Broad Ripple Service Experts about scheduling regular furnace maintenance, which will ensure your furnace is in top condition and help you avoid further repairs or drops in efficiency.
When Replacement Is Best
Eventually, repair will not be able to affordably resolve your issues. The anticipated lifetime of most furnaces is 15-20 years; after which, the heating system will start to fail more and more often. Thus, if your furnace is already at least 15 years old, it is time to think about replacement. Regardless of the age of your furnace, if you need your HVAC service provider for repairs too often, this could also be a sign that your furnace is beyond help and requires a replacement. Although repairs may seem like a basic fix, if they aren’t keeping your furnace running for years at a time, these frequent smaller charges can add up quickly and cost you more in the long run. There are a variety of things that may determine whether replacement is best for you including the quality of your original furnace installation and the capacity of your furnace. Installation means everything in terms of furnace effectiveness. In addition, your furnace may be struggling if it’s not sized correctly for your Indianapolis home size or heating needs. If your furnace isn’t sized or installed properly, you should consider replacing the system and starting anew, rather than continually addressing breakdowns and poor function.
If you have questions about whether repair or replacement of your Indianapolis home’s heating system is right for you, contact Broad Ripple Service Experts today.