The tires on your car wear from constant grinding and flexing over pavement. It’s easy to know when they’re dangerous and need replacement because they wear from the outside in. Your furnace heat exchanger wears out from the expansions and contraction caused by the burners as they turn on and off. We’ve all taken a soda can at one point or another and flexed it back and forth until it cracks. That’s what happens to your furnace’s heat exchanger after years of expansion and contraction from the heat. But unlike your tires, you have no warning how dangerous your heating system is becoming because it wears from the inside out.
The heat exchanger of your furnace is a series of closed chambers that are heated with gas burners. The burning (combustion) process within the chambers generate carbon monoxide gas, which is vented from the closed chambers out through the flue on your furnace, much the same as the tailpipe in an automobile. Your home receives heat from air that is blown past the hot, heat exchanger. A crack or hole in your system may allow carbon monoxide gas to enter your living environment. Furnaces should be tested every year for signs of wear or damage and carbon monoxide leaks. It is recommended by The American Gas Association that you replace your furnace or heat exchanger when this damage occurs. Operating an older, untested furnace may be as dangerous as taking your family out for a drive in a set of bald tires.
A 15 year-old furnace is like a set of tires with 96,000 miles on them. It’s important to have your furnace inspected EVERY YEAR to help keep your family safe and comfortable.
Make the right call to MCS and get your heater inspected right away! (505) 888-1616
