Furnace Efficiency Ratings and What They Mean

January 21, 2017

There are a lot of factors to think about when you purchase a new replacement furnace:

What type of budget do you have for a new furnace?
How much can you afford each month in heating bills?
Do any of the residents living in the home suffer from respiratory ailments?
What size system will you need to heat your size of home?

But have you ever considered your furnace efficiency rating? Are you sure what it means?

Norrell Service Experts is here to help clear up any confusion with what the furnace efficiency rating is and how it can affect your home and your budget.

The furnace efficiency rating helps establish how much energy will be needed to heat your home and, ultimately, how much it will cost you. Basically, the higher your furnace efficiency rating the less energy your heating equipment uses to heat your home.

The AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency) rating is the number that tells you how much heat the furnace will produce compared to the amount of energy needed to produce the heat. For instance, if your heating system has a AFUE rating of 90%, this means 10% of energy used is lost and 90% actually becomes heat for your home.

Note that this rating does not take into account the potential heat lost through leaking or poorly installed duct work or attic insulation. The duct work in each home is different – some good quality, some poorer, so the AFUE rating does not include this in their rating. If you are concerned that your heating equipment or duct system is not energy efficient, give your Birmingham installation experts a call today and we will provide you with a free in-home analysis and help you discover how much more energy and money you could be saving each month.

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