Speaking of home furnaces.

[Hangfire]

Our current Armstrong (by Lennox) mdl. G1N80AT gas furnace was installed 10-31-03 so it's a little over 19 yrs. old and (knock on wood) seems to be working fine and is keeping our 1400 sf house warm......other than changing the filter religiously every four months it's never had any sort of preventive maintenance / service preformed on it.

If what I just read by Googling is true the life expectancy on a furnace is 15-20 years.......is it time to be thinking about going ahead and getting a new furnace installed after it warms up this year or just have a good top to bottom service done ?

Either for a service or to install a new furnace any recommendations on who to use ?

If it's time to replace it is Armstrong / Lennox still making a pretty decent furnace ?

 

[Mr.Glock]

Wouldn’t hurt to have a trusted A/C Company check it out and at minimum change out the burners, igniter.

 

[swampratt]

Life expectancy of my stuff is when it dies and I am not going to change something that is working fine.
Especially today with inferior made stuff all around us.

I had a fridge from 1947 that still worked and a buddy has it now and uses it for eggs.
Electric furnace is just a big toaster not much has changed.
That picture that was posted of the heat strips and which wire to pull looks just like the late 1970's model in my rent house next door which is still working just fine.

Now I have a gas furnace in a rent house in Moore and the ignitor died.
This was a 3 year old unit when it died.
HVAC friend Changed it with one he had on his truck and it lasted a week.
I told him it failed and he said yea that was a cheappy one.

WTF why would you have that on your truck!

I ordered a good one and it is running fine for now.

If it ain't broke.

My gas water heater has been in the house since before we bought the house in 1998.
How long do gas water heaters last?
Google states 8-12 years with maintenance and flushing.

I do not flush mine.

 

[rickm]

As far as flushing it really depends on your water city water is a big killer of hotwater heaters well water not so much unless you have high alkaline in your water. My parents used the same hot water heater for 40 years til the tore the house down and built a new on in its place. I had to change mine out 3 years ago and it was installed when the house was built 25 years ago and only cause it started to leak.

 

[Bocephus123]

they last a dang long time 20-30-40 yrs .if they say the heatexchanger is cracked make them show you . itsa famous we got to replace your heater money maker.

 

[wawazat]

I use the ballpark life expectancy to drive when I start budgeting for a replacement and mentally preparing for the expense, but I dont proactively replace something because of it.

I also keep milk in the fridge until it smells funny regardless of the date and have been known to rinse the juice off deli meat and still make a sandwich if it smelled ok. Other people have different philosophies.

 

[HoLeChit]

I suggest just getting it looked at, or doing it yourself if you're comfortable. Its pretty simple, just look at your wiring, and ductwork, make sure that you don't have any damage, you have good seals, and nothing looks funny or burnt. Check your heat exchanger areas and burners for improper flame colors or weird looking flames. If you have a belt driving your fan, give it a look, check the bearings and shaft play on your fan. grease/oil any points that you're supposed to lube, replace the filters, and call it good. I would suggest investing that money you're saving into a gas sniffer and CO2 tester, you can get a klein et110 and et120 for lass than what I would expect to pay for a "furnace tune up" or whatever most companies are marketing it as.

https://www.amazon.com/Carbon-Monoxide-Klein-Tools-ET110/dp/B071GGL75N
https://www.amazon.com/Combustible-...b9-bebb-a6781cb73a9d&pd_rd_i=B074NBJ8XP&psc=1
We currently have the same furnace and blower that the house came with, back when it was built in 1968 or so. They can last a long time, especially if you take care of them.

I don't have any experience with HVAC companies honestly, but I do know to stay away from those AIr Comfort Solutions guys. Biggest crooks in the business.

 

[TinkerTanker]

If it's one of the new high-efficiency heaters the first thing to go out on them is the igniters, followed by the exhaust fan. You can replace both of those yourself for about $80.

If someone tells you the heat exchanger is cracked, open the cover on the burner area and turn it on. If the flames blow back out of the holes they're supposed to shoot up into then yes, it's cracked. If not, they lied.

 

[1shott]

I replaced a aging system in 2018 with a 95% effecient nat gas furnace and 16 seer AC.

system it replaced was installed in 1998. Night and day difference in performance and energy costs. These days thats nothing to walk away from.

 

[kingfish]

One thing that happens with gas furnaces is the heat exchanger goes through tens of thousands of expansion and contraction cycles over its lifetime. The metal can fatigue and a crack starts to develop. This allows carbon monoxide to escape into the house. People have died from just such occurrences, but it is rare. Just depends on the size of the rupture and how the furnace is housed. I recommend you get a couple of CO detectors and put one near the furnace and one in your bedroom. Even new furnaces can have a failure so its a good idea to have these just in case.