During the winter heating season, the health and operation of your home’s furnace is obviously critical to your comfort. If you’re experiencing furnace problems, you might be wondering whether it makes sense to repair or replace your furnace. There are multiple factors that will determine which option is best for you. Your Fort Myers area HVAC service advisor can help you judge your needs and your struggling HVAC system to determine whether furnace repair or replacement is the ideal short- and long-term answer for your Fort Myers home.
When Repair Is Best
In most cases, furnace issues can be easily sourced and repaired by a ACE-certified, HVAC professional. If your furnace is new—i.e., less than 10 years of system life — chances are very good that any issues it experiences can be solved through repair. Additionally, if your furnace is still heating your Fort Myers area home efficiently (your HVAC professional can help you confirm this), then it is still probable that you will repair it. Commonly, as long as you are not seeing a continuous increase in your heating bills with constant usage and your home is not having issues with uneven heating, your furnace is considered in good shape. Our recommendation about furnace repairs is that as long as the repairs you require are less than one-third of the expense of a new heating system and your furnace is in the first half of its anticipated lifetime, repair is likely your best choice. Keep in mind that even if you are experiencing a drop in heating efficiency, there are other paths you can explore before considering replacing your furnace. Talk to your HVAC technician about upgrading your thermostat or checking the integrity of your Fort Myers home’s ductwork to see if he thinks these enhancement could boost the efficiency of your furnace. Talk to Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning about scheduling regular furnace maintenance, which will add years of quality service from your furnace and help you avoid further repairs or drops in efficiency.
When Replacement Is Best
In some cases, repair cannot restore your heating system to a minimally effective level. The anticipated lifetime of most furnaces is 15-20 years; after which, the heating system will begin to fail more and more often. Therefore, if your furnace is approaching or past 15 years old, it is time to consider replacement. Irregardless of equipment age, if you’ve been calling your HVAC service provider for repairs too often, this could also be a sign that your heating system is failing and needs to be replaced. Although repairs may seem like a simple fix, if they aren’t keeping your furnace running for years at a time, these frequent smaller charges ultimately cost you more money. There are many things that may determine whether replacement is ideal 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 according to specs for your Fort Myers home size or heating needs. If your furnace isn’t sized or installed properly, you will probably need to consider a new unit instead of dealing with a heating system that lacks the capacity to properly heat your home.
If you have questions about whether repair or replacement of your Fort Myers home’s heating system is right for you, contact Service Experts Heating & Air Conditioning today.