The old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” couldn’t be truer when it comes to your furnace. Whether you have an oil, gas, or electric furnace, it’s important for your health, safety, and even your home budget, to perform regular checks and maintenance. Join the At Home channel’s host, Jeff Wilson, for a review of some simple tips and tricks to keep your furnace operating safely at its highest efficiency.

A furnace is an enclosure through which air is either drawn or pushed, and it contains, at minimum, a method for filtering and heating the air. A furnace may also have a method of cooling the air (or removing heat from the air, thus leaving it cooler). Furnaces are commonly used heating and cooling devices.

This topic covers information related to heating boilers installed during construction. Boilers are sealed vessels which apply heat to water or other fluids in order to create steam or vapors. The energy used to produce heat can be from either electric, gas, oil or solid-fuels. Boiler configurations include pot, fire-tube, water-tube, flash or sectional.

This topic covers information related to electric resistance furnaces installed during construction. Electric resistance furnaces convert electricity into heat through an electrical resistor. Electrical resistance heaters can be either radiative, convection, forced convection or radiant.

This topic covers information related to fuel fired furnaces installed during construction. Fuel fired furnaces heat air moving past combustion created by an ignition and fuel source. The major components of a fuel fired furnace include burners, a heat exchanger, draft inducer, vent, blower, control and safety devices. Fuel sources for fuel fired furnaces include; natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, oil, coal or wood.

This topic covers information related to fuel fired heaters installed during construction. Fuel fired heaters are self contained, automated heaters that serve areas where a central furnace does not exist.

This topic covers information related to solar energy heating equipment installed during construction. Solar energy heating utilizes equipment to collect and convert radiant light and heat from the sun into usable heat and energy. Solar heating equipment is powered by solar energy and consists of solar collectors, pumps, fans and ducts for distribution of warmed air.

This topic covers information related to heat exchangers installed as part of HVAC systems during construction. Heat exchangers are used to transfer heat from one medium to another. Media may include steam, air, water or other liquid.