The warning signs of a faulty furnace are listed here.
If your furnace is going to break down, this is a cheap and easy repair that you can do yourself.
On a cold February morning, no heat can be a shock.We use both of the steps to diagnose a bad furnace ignitor.Search engines, after all.
1.The thermostat should be above the home's temperature.If it is 65F in the house, set the thermostat to 70F.
2.The inducer motor is the motor that starts the furnace.The purpose is to get the air out of the chimney.The vacuum created by this will allow harmful exhaust fumes to be properly vented.
3.The draft motor will run for a few minutes and then shut off.
Once a draft vacuum is established, the hot surface ignitor (aka furnace glow plug) is turned on.The burner ports are filled with gas.Your furnace is firing up when the gas hits the hot surface ignitor.
It is definitely not the ignitor if all that happens and then the furnace quits.
It is reasonable to suspect and inspect the ignitor if the 3 steps above happen.It is easy to do if you have an electrical multimeter.
1.There is an electrical switch on the side of the furnace.The switch is similar to a light switch.The top furnace panel needs to be removed.
The igniter is in the upper right.There is a white base and a black stick in the furnace port.The wires are visible in the picture below.
4.If from the wiring harness, pull out the ignitor.The plug is still attached to the furnace when you hold the part.
Touch the base, not the igniter stick.Why?The ignitor will get oil from your hand.If it isn't broken, the oil will burn on the ignitor and cause it to break.
5.It is bad if the ignitor is cracked.Move on to step 6 if you don't see a crack.Sometimes the cracks are too small to see.
6.If the ignitor is getting power, you should check it.The inducer motor should start when the power switch is turned on.
7.Place the meter leads into the plug inside the furnace.The leads should not be stuck so far into the plug that the connections are damaged.You should check your meter.The igniter was getting power if it showed less than 120 volts.The ignitor is bad.
There are 8.Check the resistance on the ignitor.The meter should be turned to the ohms setting.The Greek Omega symbol is similar to this:
Touch the side of the ignitor plug that is disconnected from the wiring in the furnace, using the meter leads again.Your meter should read between 40 and 200 if electricity is flowing through the ignitor.You have confirmed that the ignitor is bad if your reader doesn't register any ohms.
Your ignitor might be wearing out if the ohms are 200 or higher.Think about pre-emptively replacing it.
Something to consider is a pro tip.They should replace the ignitor when the technician arrives.If the furnace is more than 7 years old, this is a good idea.10?What is your risk tolerance?
$30 or $50 will be added to your bill if you ask the technician about cost.It will prevent the old ignitor from breaking on you during the cold weather.The technician coming to your home at a later date to replace the ignitor will set you back at least $75 and probably more, as we discuss next.
You can do it yourself.If you want to use it in the future, get a new ignitor and keep it by the furnace.There are places to buy a furnace ignitor.
The bill for a furnace company will range from $75 to $200.The part costs$15 to $60 and takes 10 minutes to replace, but mostHVAC companies have a minimum service fee of $75 to more than $100 for coming to your home.
If the furnace fails during non-business hours and you want it fixed immediately, you should call a company that offers 24 hour service and be prepared to pay twice the price.If the temperature in your home drops below freezing, there is a risk of pipes freezing and bursting, so make the call no matter what time or day it is.The bill for repairing pipes and possibly dealing with water damage will make between $250 and $300 for an emergency call for furnace repair.
Home Depot, Lowes, Menards should have them.Hardware stores will too.
You can make sure the one you buy is similar by taking the part with you.The package may say it's a Universal replacement part.That will likely work.
Universal hot surface ignitors are sold by these stores.You can search by your furnace brand.
If the ignitor isn't bad and you want to replace it before you need it, buying online is an option.
If you get the part and it's different from the one on the old igniter, you can cut it off and use the new one.The ignitors come with wire nuts.