A furnace with a cracked heat exchanger will definitely produce carbon monoxide and poses an. If you have been told your furnaces heat exchanger is cracked, ask the tech to show you the exhausts oxygen readings when. These two words are nomenclature meaning the thin layer of metal that separates the good air that you breathe and the bad air comes from burning natural gas in a forced air heater or burning propane in a forced air heater. Home warranties and cracks in your furnaces heat exchanger. A furnace heat exchanger works by literally exchanging or transferring the heat created in the combustion chamber to the exterior of the unit, where it is then blown through the ductwork throughout the house. A cracked heat exchanger allows air from the furnace blower to.
The air passes over absorbing heat off the surface conditioning it to warm air. A cracked heat exchanger allows air from the furnace blower to interfere with the flame causing it to flutter or even roll out. Press this onto the furnace heat exchanger, and allow it to dry. A heat exchanger is made of thin metal, and as it heats up from the combustion of the furnace, it transfers the heat to the air being distributed through the house by the blower 3. In most cases, the flue gases in your furnace will not contain carbon monoxideits not a typical byproduct of gas combustion in the furnace. A damaged heat exchanger in a gas furnace is potentially dangerous to a homes occupants and should not be ignored. This component cycles heat out of the combustion chamber and into the plenum. By reuben saltzman in carbon monoxide alarms, cracked heat exchanger, hvac, new on december 2, 2014. Gas furnace heat exchanger cracked forced air furnace.
Forced air furnace with a cracked heat exchanger questions. The present furnace has a cracked heat exchanger, according to the service guy who came out to clean and inspect it. A cracked heat exchanger if the heat rise on a forced air furnace is higher than manufacturers specifications, month for oil systems and every three months for heat pumps and gas systems. The furnace heat exchanger is the one of the main components inside the gas furnace and its used to transfer the heat from the gas burner to the warm air thats blown into your home. If a heat exchanger is cracked, air forced into the combustionchamber will cause the oxygen reading in the furnace s exhaust to rise to abnormal levels. Should i replace my heat exchanger or buy a new furnace. Cracked heat exchangers, causes and solutions what is a heat exchanger. However, the repairman stated that there was a crack in the combustion chamber, and the furnace needed to be replaced. Signs and symptoms of a cracked gas furnace heat exchanger basic parts of a boiler.
The shape of the coils depends on the type or model of your furnace. Furnace crack heat exchanger, cracked firebox, furnace repair. Signs and symptoms of a cracked gas furnace heat exchanger. The heat of the combustion gas raises the temperature of the metal, and as the air from the blower passes around it, heat transfers to it. Pour a little bit of the chemical on the hole, and leave it to dry until it seals around the exchanger. Broke down and had a tech come look since, a natural gas and b 20 degrees fahrenheit outside. Its the most common cause of excess carbon monoxide in a home. Its comprised of a set of tubes or coils that repeatedly loops. Heres why your furnace heat exchanger cracked heating. Were you recently told that your furnace heat exchanger is cracked and needs to be replaced.
If you have an iron heat exchanger, then you need to find an iron repair liquid, which uses chemical reactions to seal holes in iron. If we discover that a customers furnace has a cracked heat exchanger, we shut the furnace off at the electrical switch and gas. For example, look at a gaspowered forced air hvac system. This trips a safety switch and shuts down the furnace.
Cracked heat exchanger deciding to repair or replace depending on the age of your furnace, a cracked heat exchange probably means you need a new system. Danger of a furnace with a cracked heat exchanger servicemax. Thick soot deposits can interfere with the heat exchange between the furnace an the air circulation system. Have you heard this one recently, you have a cracked heat exchanger and your furnace has to be replaced, today. Since fixing a cracked heat exchanger is a major repair, we recommend getting a second opinion to make sure there is in fact a crack in your heat exchanger. Heat exchanger cracks are a serious furnace repair issue. Depending on where the crack is, the supply fan creates a positive pressure on the outside of the heat exchanger that can blow air inside the heat exchanger and on to the flame. Because the metal of the heat exchanger expands and then contracts as it heats and cools, the stress may eventually cause a crack to form on the. Bobs answer to whether or not a cracked heat exchanger can be dangerous is unambiguous.
A furnace s heat exchanger uses some type of fuel air mix to burn inside of it, creating heat and getting very hot. This effect will get worst as the furnace heats up from expansion and the crack gets bigger. Unless you are one of the top 3% of people who have all the money, replacing the furnace is going to hurt the pocket book if you have not planed for it, but it has to be done. Basically, the heat exchanger is where the furnace heats the air. One of the most common reasons a gas furnace can be taken out of service, is when the repair technician finds to a cracked heat exchanger. A warning about cracked heat exchangers in gas furnace. Broken and leaking heat exchangers are responsible for about 1,500 deaths per year in the united states, and many more people are poisoned by exposure to toxic gasses that go unfiltered by defective heat exchangers.
But the decision to repair or replace a heating unit can be difficult. As the draft motor brings air into the furnace, the blower motor begins to force air past the extremely hot metal tubes of the heat exchangers. A furnaces heat exchanger uses some type of fuelair mix to burn inside of it, creating heat and getting very hot. Furnace heatexchanger crack signs your furnace has one. Before you can do any repairs, you should make sure that you check over your furnace heat exchanger thoroughly. If you have a cracked heat exchanger, you need to replace it or replace the entire furnace. It can be difficult and expensive to find a matching heat exchanger for an older furnace. Not only is furnace performance an issue, but heat exchanger malfunctions can pose serious health and fire risks. If a heatexchanger is cracked, air forced into the combustionchamber will cause the oxygen reading in the furnaces exhaust to rise to abnormal levels. A furnace cracked heat exchanger has been used over the years to entice the consumer in purchasing a new furnace. Cracked heat exchanger deciding to repair or replace. Furnace cracked heat exchanger around the town hvac. Theres something wrong with how the system is combusting gas.
What causes excess soot buildup in a propane furnace. Guide to furnace heat exchanger inspection, testing, leaks how to inspect and test furnace heat exchangers for leaks photographs show clues indicating leaky, dangerous furnace heat exchangers furnace heat exchanger leak testing, a complete list of methods used to find or test for leaks in a furnace heat exchange what is the allowable amount of gas fired heat exchanger leakage. Because it allows the exhaust fumes inside the exchanger to. See, a heat exchanger is a set of coils or tubes that are looped inside your furnace. Furnace heat exchanger reimer heating and air conditioning.
Its comprised of a set of tubes or coils that repeatedly loops through the airflow inside the furnace to heat the air. Cost to repair furnace estimates and prices at fixr. A well qualified hvac technician will look for a furnace cracked heat exchanger during a maintenance check. Your blower motor aka your fan then blows air over this heat exchanger.
How much does it cost to replace the heat exchanger of a furnace. Gas furnaces heat exchangers cracked forced air furnace. A gas furnaces heat exchanger is the furnace component that actually heats the air. If you have been told your furnace s heat exchanger is cracked, ask the tech to show you the exhausts oxygen readings when. The unit is probably 30 years old and it seemed to be working fine. Dangerous cracked heat exchangers in furnaces carbon monoxide detectors and cracked heat exchangers. So lets get back to basics for a minute here and talk about what a heat exchanger is and what it does. Diagnosis of a heat exchanger crack typically starts with a noheat service call. In order for this to happen, the furnace must be producing high levels of carbon monoxide and the exhaust gas must.
The furnace heat exchanger is the one of the main components inside the gas furnace and its used to transfer the heat from the. Forcedair furnace, heat exchangers and reliable contractors. Im not going to say that every cracked heat exchanger is a life or death. At its simplest level, a heat exchanger allows for the exchange of heat between two fluids without the fluids mixing. The heat exchanger, or heater core, is the most important part of your furnace, as it is hub of all combustion and heatrelated activity. For carbon monoxide to leak from a cracked heat exchanger, two things need to be happening.
To determine if you have a cracked heat exchanger, an hvac contractor should use a combustion analyzer to check for co. These two different words are nomenclature meaning the thin layer of metal that separates the good air that you breathe and the bad air comes from burning natural gas in a forced air heater or burning propane in a forced air heater. The heat exchanger on a furnace is the section that keeps the combustion chamber and the breathing air separate 3. The american gas association has even put this in writing they say any visible crack or hole is reason. In order to prepare for the winter, i had my forced air furnace serviced by a repairman. Goodman repair parts goodman hvac replacement parts. A crack in your heat exchanger is no trivial matter. A furnace cracked heat exchanger has been known to be a scare tactic in the heating and air conditioning business for years. For the price of an inspection, where heat exchangers normally crack most natural gas forced air furnaces in use today will typically have.
In this article we discuss residential forced warm air furnace heat exchanger life in more detail, explaining the factors that impact the life of the heat exchanger, things you should do to maximize the life of the furnace heat exchanger, and similarly, things you should not do because they are likely to destroy your furnace before its time. If the heat exchanger is cracked, air is forced into the combustionchamber where the burners are located when the blower fan turns on. And if the motor cant pull as much cool air over the heat exchanger the part of your furnace that heats the air, the heat exchanger will eventually overheat and crack, leading to thousands of dollars in repairs. If the heat exchanger is cracked, byproducts of the combustion process that takes place within the. Its been known since the invention of forcedair furnaces. In the case of a forced air furnace, which is the common central heating system that uses ductwork and vents, the heat exchanger uses two different air streams. Anyone got a brand recommendation for a highefficiency 90,000 btu forced air gas furnace. Can you repair a cracked heat exchanger on a gas furnace. This will be detected with a combustion gasses tester. Forced air furnace with a cracked heat exchanger questions and concerns i had some issues with my gas line yesterday and after getting it fixed i couldnt get my furnace to ignite. We find some cracked heat exchangers from the pilot lights that are blown out. Choose the right heat exchanger for you from our selection of genuine goodman, amana, and janitrol oem replacement heat exchangers. Contact glendale heating and air conditioning for furnace repair. The most common mishap in a heat exchanger is a crack, which.
Once the heating process is finished, the combustion byproducts in the heat exchanger are vented out of the system through a flue to release the gas harmlessly into the air. Look for signs that the metal has been overheated, or symptoms of longterm metal fatigue. Heat safety is paramount so have your furnaces inspected immediately for a cracked heat exchanger. If theres a possibility of your heat exchanger being cracked, dont ignore it. The concern is that a cracked heat exchanger could allow exhaust gas from the furnace to contaminate the household air with carbon monoxide. The heat exchanger is cracked or otherwise has an air leak. In the case of a forced air furnace, it is two different air streams. If a crack has developed, air from the house will be forced into the combustion chamber when the blower turns on, causing some visible disturbance of the flame, he says. Cracks in furnaces all about homes by john schnedier q. His company sells goodmans, but ive never heard of that brand. Remove it from the furnace, and examine it in the light.