DIY Gas Furnace Repair Help Fast
DIY your Gas Furnace Repair with a Certified Technician
Learn how to repair your gas furnace with instructions from licensed certified technicians to perform the safest most reliable repair. Gas furnaces can be dangerous when installed or maintained incorrectly. Most homes have gas, electricity, or a heat pump to heat the home. Gas furnaces can be a victim of a number of problems. Gas furnaces create carbon monoxide gas that is conveyed through a vent that is piped up to the roof and out to open air. Carbon Monoxide gas is a poisonous gas that can kill you in your sleep. Gas furnaces operate by forcing air over around and through a heat exchanger that is heated by gas flames. A gas control valve fires the burners when the thermostat calls for heat, meaning the desired temp has fallen below the set temp on the thermostat triggering the blower to clear gas fumes and the gas valve to release gas and the igniter to fire the burners. It is important to seek qualified instruction or consultation before attempting to repair your gas furnace. Video Chat a Pro provides access to gas furnace repair technicians or local gas furnace repair contractors via live video chat to teach you how to repair your gas furnace or build trust in a local HVAC contractor that can.
Common gas furnace terminology is listed below
- Gas Furnace
The enclosed chamber for which air is directed to exchange heat from a hot surface that is heated by one or more gas burners and directs the exhaust out to open air.
- Propane/LP Gas
A Heavey flammable gaseous alkane C3H8 found in crude oil, natural gas and is used as fuel and in chemical synthesis. Propane gas is a gas at standard temperature and compressible to a liquid to be transported. Propane gas is also known as LP gas is a by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining and is most commonly used as fuel.
- Natural Gas
Natural gas naturally occurs and is a hydrocarbon gas mixture consisting primarily of methane. Natural gas contains varying amounts of another alkaline along with small percentages of carbon dioxide nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide, or helium. Natural gas is piped below ground to most homes and is metered at the point of entry to the home, gas meter.
- Air Handler Unit
The air handler unit AHU is the manufactured equipment used to regulate and circulate the air in your home. The air handler unit houses the device that forces the air in your home over the condenser coils to cool the air or the heat exchanger and both. The air handler also pulls air through filters to help clean the air.
- Blower Motor
The blower motor is housed inside the air handler and its main purpose is to pull and push air. The blower motor pulls air as it is pushing air. The blower motor pulls the air in your home through air quality products such as filters and UV lights to improve indoor air quality. The blower motor forces air through the condenser coil and through the heat exchanger to supply conditioned air throughout your home.
- Heat Pump Condenser
The heat pump condenser is the equipment that transfers heat from the ambient energy or heat from the environment and transfers that heat to a heat exchanger or condenser housed inside the air handler equipment.
- Combustion Sensor
The combustion sensor creates a small electrical current to confirm there is a pilot before the gas valve opens to release gas into the flame tube.
- Flame Ignighter
Is an electrical component that heats to ignite the flame in the burner tube.
- Efficiency Rating SEER
Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating of the unit is the cooling output divided by the total electricity used through-out one year.
- Flame Sensor
The flame sensor is a safety component on the gas furnace that ensures the gas is ignited. The flame sensor creates a small current that tells the gas valve to open or to close. If the flame sensor does not heat up the gas valve will shut off the gas to prevent gas from leaking into the home.
- Gas Valve
The gas furnace gas valve receives signals from various safety components to properly allow the flow of gas into the burners to be safely fired.
- Heat Exchanger
The heat exchanger is constructed of tubes or coils made of steel that are looped through the path of air movement, inside the air handler to exchange the heat from the gas burner to the air as it is forced through and across the heated metal. Heat exchangers can crack allowing the forced air from the blower motor to push the exhaust from the gas burner into the vent system.
- Carbon Monoxide
Carbon Monoxide gas is an odorless colorless toxic flammable gas formed by incomplete combustion of carbon. Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning dull headache, weakness, dizziness, nausea or vomiting, shortness of breath, confusion, blurred vision, loss of consciousness.
- Capacitor
The capacitor stores electrical energy in an electrical field and is most common on the blower motor of the gas furnace.
- Thermostat
The device that you use in your home regulates temperature and controls the heating or cooling equipment to keep a steady consistent temperature.