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6. The Firebox. If the firebox is cracked it can not be repaired. You still should diagnose the problem with the furnace in order to secure the minimum service call and ensure that the new furnace will not suffer the same problems as the old one. Many times we have changed out a furnace only to have to change out the thermostat wire or thermostat because they were defective in the first place. If we had diagnosed the entire system then the job would have been priced correctly for the work that needs to be performed.(See finding cracks in fireboxes).

7. Gas Leak Testing. When you open the door to the furnace closet, or when you remove the door to the area of the furnace that contains the controls you may smell a little bit of gas leakage. If this happens then inform your customer of the problem and use your TIFF 8800 gas leak detector to find out where the problem lies. See (Gas Leak Testing at the Furnace).

8. Observing Electrical Connections. Once you have removed the control door you should also remove the blower door. Now take a good look around. Try and answer the following questions:

Is the pigtail wired in properly. Exposed wire nuts hanging from electrical outlets are fairly common. Sometimes the cord has been cut and the wires are only taped together. If you do not have the proper wiring connections the furnace can work intermittently or not all.

Is the Furnace Grounded? The newer furnaces with electronic ignition use the ground to detect the presence of the flames during flame rectification. If the furnace does not have a proper and secure ground then the furnace will only work intermittently or not at all.

Is the Pigtail a #14 gauge or a smaller #16? The newer furnaces require the larger pigtail for the larger blower motors. A #16 pigtail is only rated at 14 amps. If the circuit breaker is a 20 amp breaker and the cord is only rated at 14 amps then if the cord shorts out it may not trip the breaker and it could cause a fire. Use the correct cord.

Is the Cord Running in the Front of the Firebox? The heat from the firebox will degrade the amount of electricity the cord can handle. This is turn can cause a short and add to the heat causing enough heat to melt the cord and cause a fire. Move the control box in the furnace to accommodate the electrical outlet. Safety is a key issue.

9. Look at and feel the motor and blower wheel. Are they dirty indicating a need for duct cleaning? While duct cleaning does not seem like a big deal it does make a considerable amount difference in the performance of the furnace. If the blower wheel is dirty the blower will not move any where near enough air across the firebox. This will cause elevated firebox temperatures and could cause cracking and fires. If the motor is dirty, then the motor can not properly cool down. It is always an air over air cooled motor. The dirt and lint on it will cause it to overheat and cause a premature failure. If the blower and motor are dirty then almost certainly the evaporator coil and duct work are dirty as well. The evaporator coil can restrict the airflow completely in a system and cause a fire. Cleaning duct work is no big deal, but cleaning the furnace is a big deal. The furnace must be clean or it becomes a safety hazard.

10. Are the wires leading to the blower motor installed properly? Are there wires nuts on the wires indicating the motor has been changed out before? If the motor was previously changed out did the service technician properly secure the wire connections? Many times I have seen short circuited motors and furnaces because the technician either did not install wire nuts or they did not tape them on. If there are wire nuts in the blower compartment they must be taped on and properly secured out of the way. If this is not done then the furnace is an electrical hazard. This can cause fire and death. Take an amperage draw on the motor. Is it within specifications? The motor may not be the correct size. If the motor is too large or too small then the motor will tend to overheat. The furnace may work perfectly fine while you are there only to stop functioning 2 hours later after the motor suffers thermal overload.

11. If there is a capacitor is it installed correctly? Are the terminals protected against shorting out and against shock hazards? Virtually every single time a service technician installs an after market motor that contains a capacitor when the original motor did not contain a capacitor the capacitor is not installed correctly. The terminals must be taped over and the capacitor must be strapped securely and out of the way. The voltage coming off of the capacitor is usually 370 volts. The capacitor will tend to short out against a grounding source if it is not properly wrapped.

If you are looking for a free estimate for just about any type of repair to your plumbing system, your electrical system or your heatign and air conditioining system simply click on one of the links below.