If you are looking into a furnace upgrade, it may be tempting to base your decision on the cost of the equipment. However, there are a few other items to consider, not the least of which is calculating the lifetime costs that include repairs, maintenance and monthly operation for your new furnace.
The typical lifespan for a furnace is 15 years, on average, so these extra expenses can add up. In fact, the upfront cost of purchasing and installing your new furnace could represent as little as 5 percent of the actual lifetime costs that you will spend for it. This is why spending a bit more on your furnace up front could save you big in the long run.
Furnaces that are more energy efficient tend to be a bit more expensive, but most of the fuel that they use gets converted to heat. Additionally, over the course of 15 years, savings between two different furnace options can be substantial, often enough to offset the difference in cost within a few years.
How Do You Know Which Furnace To Select?
To take the guesswork out of how much you can save with one furnace versus another, your local HVAC experts can provide you with lifetime cost analyses. These compare all expenses related to owing a new furnace over a certain amount of time, which provides you with a look at the big picture, including how much you should expect to spend and what exactly you will be spending it on.
Some homeowners try to give an energy-efficiency boost to their old furnaces by replacing key components with more energy-efficient parts. While there are parts designed just for this use, known as retrofitting, they often are meant to last only two years at most. And because these parts often are not cheap, it's typically more cost-effective to go with a total upgrade sooner rather than later.
For more information about furnace upgrades and why you need to carefully consider the furnace's lifetime costs when making your decision, contact the professionals at Joe Behr Plumbing and Heating today. We have proudly served the Mid-Ohio area since 1965.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information, visit our website.
Joe Behr Plumbing and Heating, Inc. services the Mid-Ohio area.
