What Exactly Does A Heat Exchanger Do?

Have you ever been in a position where your furnace wasn't producing enough heat? Like most people, you have called a technician to diagnose the problem.

After waiting on (cold) pins and needles to find out what is wrong with your furnace, the technician comes back to inform you that the heat exchanger in your furnace is cracked and your furnace needs to be replaced.

Why would your furnace need to be replaced if the heat exchanger is cracked? Couldn't it simply be repaired? What happens if a crack heat exchanger goes without attention? What exactly does this heat exchanger do, how does it work when it is not damaged? 

These are all common questions that are asked when a homeowner is given the news that a simple service call has turned into an expensive replacement. 

In this blog, we will answer all of these common questions previous mentioned.

Let's start with the basics, shall we?

1. What does a heat exchanger do? How does it work?


When your furnace turns on, burners send hot combustible gases to your heat exchanger. From there, heat from the combustion gases gets transferred to the metal walls within the heat exchanger, which causes those metal walls to heat up. 

Now that the walls are heated up, cold air from your house goes over those hot metal walls on the outside of the heat exchanger. This allows air from your home to heat up without picking up those dangerous combustible gases within the heat exchanger. Warm air is then distributed through out your home using your duct work.

However, those dangerous combustible gases need a place to go, or vent to. 

With standard furnaces, those gases are blown out of the heat exchanger and vented outside of your home. If you have a high efficiency furnace, those gases are cycled through a second heat exchanger, where even more heat is pulled from those gases and used to further heat your home. 

Severely cracked heat exchanger

2. What does it mean when your heat exchanger is cracked? Can it simply be repaired?

Cracks in a heat exchanger can’t be fixed long-term, and repeated short-term repairs can cost more than a new heating unit. The metal of the heat exchanger is generally too thin to weld shut and nearly impossible to access without removing it completely. Often even more cracks are found along the way to attempting the repair of the original.

3. What happens if a cracked heat exchanger goes without attention?

These gases contain the products of combustion. If they get into your air supply circulating through your house, gases like carbon monoxide (CO) can have dangerous health consequences. Heat exchanger cracks cause interior pressure changes, affecting how well the furnace burns.

Small crack in heat exchanger

Poor combustion, when the furnace flame burns incompletely‚ produces higher carbon monoxide levels. Soot can block the venting of these lethal gases, sending it into the house, thus your family breathes them in. We've all heard the unfortunate news stories about family tragedy brought on by carbon monoxide exposure, especially in the winter heating season. The worst cases of odorless, colorless carbon monoxide accumulation cause death. The main reasons carbon monoxide poisoning can happen are:

• Inadequate or blocked gas vents
• Heat exchanger problems
• Incomplete combustion, resulting in high CO production
• Lack of fresh, clean air and proper ventilation in the home
• CO detectors missing or non-functional

Please be sure you have working CO monitors/detectors, right outside each sleeping area. Don’t forget smoke alarms and radon detectors.

There you have it! Those are the basics of a heat exchanger and why they are so important to your heating system. If you have been given a diagnosis of a cracked heat exchanger and would like a second opinion, feel free to give us a call. We offer $49 furnace inspections so you may have piece of mind to make an educated decision for you and your family's safety and comfort, give us a call and we will be more than happy to come take a look! (616) 205-5522.

Have a heating or cooling topic you would like to know more or have questions about? Feel free to email us at DSBComfortZone@gmail.com and we will answer you or cover your interests!

As always, thank you for reading!

  DSB Comfort Zone

  Heating, Cooling and Ventilation

  201 E. Division St.

  Suite A

  Sparta, MI 49345

  P: (616) 205-5522

  F: (616) 205-5533

  W: www.dsbcomfort.com

Do We Fix It or Do We Replace It??

As a homeowner and keeping up with your household maintenance, this question must pop into your head from time to time...

"Do we fix it? Or would it be better to replace it?"

Our technicians are asked that frequently in these hot summer months. While we can make recommendations, the decision is ultimately yours. With that is said here are somethings to consider while contemplating your decision.

• When it becomes too much to repair - If you are having frequent service calls on your system, it might be time to replace your air conditioning system. By purchasing and installing a high efficiency central air conditioning system, it will ultimately pay you back by your energy savings, and not needing to pay for service calls. You might want to also consider replacing your system when your repair bills are over $500. Financing is more for replacement, and not for servicing. So when your air conditioning system breaks, you usually are on your own in covering the cost of the repairs.
• Hot spot and cold spots - Have you ever walked into a room and it was cold, but the next room is too hot? This is called the "Goldilocks Syndrome". If you find yourself in this situation, it could be a sign of improperly sized equipment. Just because you bought the biggest unit there was available, does not mean it will work better for your home. The same goes for your duct work. When purchasing your system, it is important that the equipment you are buying is properly sized for your home. If it is not, you are likely to have the "Goldilocks Syndrome" or frequent service calls.
• The age of your system - Equipment that is over 10 years old, should be under consideration for replacement, even if it is still functioning properly. Ten year old equipment is less efficient by current standards.
• Rebates, tax credits and financing - When it comes to rebates on your new system, often your local utility companies offer rebates for updating your system (here in West Michigan, Consumers Energy and DTE Energy BOTH offer rebates) and by utilizing those rebates, your system can become less expensive for you when you replace it for a newer energy efficient system. The federal government also offers a tax credit for updating to a higher efficiency system. Like we already started talking about, financing only covers replacements, so it is not likely you will be financed to repair your system.

Of course there are some other things you might want to factor into your decision. However, these are the more common reasons we see in the field. When hiring your contractor to replace your equipment, make sure they are doing a thorough job inspecting your home. Insulation, windows, ducts, and square footage (to name a few) should all be considered when purchasing your replacement. 

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to ask us!

If you need repairs done or interested in a free quote for replacement, give us a call. We would be more than happy to put you back in your comfort zone!

Stay cool!

DSB Comfort Zone Heating and Cooling

201 E. Division St. 

Suite A

Sparta, MI 49345

Phone: (616) 205-5522

Website: www.DSBComfort.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/DSB-Comfort-Zone/293025420811077

YouTube: http://youtu.be/jNPR2EeFK8M

Why is Central Air Conditioning in Michigan is so important?

It's strange to think Central Air Conditioning would really matter while living in a state with only three, almost guaranteed, months of summer but it's true.  Central AC is a big money saver for Michigan home owners.

The average summer humidity in Michigan is 88%.  Wow!  That's crazy.  If you have lived through the radical changes of the Michigan weather you may have an idea of how much reliance a home owner can have on Central Air Conditioning just for personal comfort.  But what does that humidity do structurally to the home you're investing in?

For starters, running your central ac during these extra hot months helps control the build up of condensation on water pipers and toilets.  When condensation builds up on pipes, under sinks, and behind toilets the risk of mold and mildew increases. By having a consistent temperature and humidity controlled environment you dramatically decrease the ability for these toxic environmental hazards to grow.

Next flooring and dry wall are preserved.  Have you noticed the cracks in dry wall from houses that have settled over time?  They are not just from the foundation settling.  These dry wall cracks occur in new construction homes too. Having an efficient central air conditioning unit installed at the time of construction could save you thousands next summer repairing cracked dry wall.  The same is true when it comes to hard wood floors.  If the swelling of the wood during super humid months is too much the flooring will buckle causing tons of money spent on repairs.

Many homeowners in Michigan think Central AC Installation is just not worth it because of the short summer season.  The truth is, that's reason it makes sense.  Michigan homes go through so many climate changes from the outside elements we need to maintain the integrity of homes climate from the inside.  Using central air to achieve optimum personal comfort levels and squelch damaging humidity is the best way for us to protect our investment.

Dan Berndtson is the owner of DSB Comfort Zone, Heating and Cooling.  Comfort Zone serves the comfort needs of West Michigan homeowners in any season.  As an authorized Trane Dealer, Comfort Zone offers repair, upgrade, and installation of some of the most efficient and technologically advanced HVAC equipment in the industry.

DSB Comfort Zone
Heating, Cooling, and Home Efficiency
Comfort for any Season
info@dsbcomfort@gmail.com
616-205-5522