How Does My Furnace Work?

Have you ever looked at your furnace and wondered how it works and heats your home? Your furnace is an important part of your home, it is used to keep you and your family warm all winter long. Bartlett Heating and Air will take you through the process of heating your home. When you set your thermostat to a certain temperature, the furnace kicks on to start the heating process until that temperature is met. In order to create heat, you need a fuel of some sorts. Long ago people would use coal or fire to heat their homes. Now a days most furnaces use propane or natural gas to heat your home. The propane or natural gas is pumped to your heater from either a tank or lines running to the natural gas company. The fuel is ignited by a pilot. The pilot is typically an electric glow bar or spark ignition system depending on your furnace. The older furnaces would have a standing pilot that would be on at all times. When the fuel runs over the igniter you get an open flame that runs inside the furnace. There are two systems circulating air in your furnace for two different reasons. The first has an inducer fan that pulls air past the open flame, into the furnace and through a series of pipes where it is heated then into the chimney to be pushed out of the home. This happens because during combustion carbon monoxide and other toxins are created and need to be removed from the home. The other system is made of a larger blower fan that sucks cool air from the home into the furnace. As it moves past the hot pipes in the furnace it picks up some of the heat. It is then pushed through your duct work and vents into your home to heat it. This cycle continues throughout the day. This was a quick explanation to how your furnace works. Of course the actual process that goes on inside the furnace is far more detailed but that was a quick run down. Call Bartlett Heating and Air today with any questions or repairs you may need!