High-efficiency Furnaces

High-efficiency furnaces will treat you right if you remember to check their drains once or twice each season.

Got a new high-performance furnace? With 90 percent efficiency or better? If so, you should know, that besides producing heat, they produce water. They achieve their high-heat output by condensing gasses in the flue and extracting resulting heat from these gasses. A by-product of this process is water, and as with air conditioning, this condensate must be removed from the house. If you already have central air conditioning, it probably shares the condensate line with your high-efficiency furnace. If so, be sure this line goes to a drain. And periodically check to be sure it's not blocked. If the drain line goes to a condensate pump, first make sure it cycles properly and that the condensate line makes it to a drain. Check to be sure it drains freely. High-efficiency furnaces are can be quite nice if you remember to check their drains once or twice each season. And that's the On The House tip for today.

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