The return of cooler temperatures increases your dependency on home heating equipment every fall. If your furnace isn’t working correctly, it could grow to be a fire hazard and endanger your family’s safety.
As stated by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), heating systems like furnaces are a major cause of home fires, contributing to almost 50,000 blazes, 500 civilian deaths and more than $1 billion in significant property damage every year. Space heaters and fireplaces start the majority of fires concerning heating equipment, but central heaters, including furnaces, are responsible for around 12% of these blazes. Learn the leading causes of furnace fires and how to minimize them.
Aging furnaces are more exposed to safety concerns since they might be configured differently and settle into disrepair through the years. That being said, whether your furnace is more than a decade old or brand new, you should be familiar with these causes of furnace fires.
A furnace motor can overheat in various ways. Here are the main risks:
Yard waste, animal nests and other obstructions can block the furnace flue, restricting oxygen. This causes soot buildup and improper ventilation, limiting efficiency and increasing the risk of flame rollout. Flame rollout is when fire escapes the heat exchanger and burns the parts within your furnace. If this problem continues, your heating equipment may be severely damaged, and the fire may even spread to areas outside the furnace.
The heat exchanger is a closed combustion chamber where the heat generated by your furnace is moved to the air circulating through your home. A heat exchanger clogged up with soot or corrosion has the same result as a blocked furnace flue—reduced performance and an increased risk of flame rollout.
Numerous problems can take place if corrosion cracks the heat exchanger. First, it reduces suction within this chamber, triggering less airflow and increased flame rollout. Second, it releases fumes, such as carbon monoxide, into your home. Breathing CO gas can be deadly, so never dismiss your carbon monoxide alarms. CO gas can also flash back to the source of the leak and ignite if a flame is present.
Furnaces need a precise mixture of natural gas and air to produce safe and efficient combustion. Too little pressure is often the result of clogged burner orifices. This problem makes the burner flames more likely to roll out. It also produces unwanted condensation inside the heat exchanger, accelerating the rate of corrosion.
Conversely, high gas pressure can lead to excessive heat within the furnace, which can cause the soot inside the heat exchanger to burn. Such fires can readily spread to other areas.
Based on the different ways a furnace can combust, here are the steps you can take to avoid furnace fires:
Is it time for your yearly tune-up? Do you need help fixing a problem with your furnace? Whatever is happening, Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing is here for you. Our HVAC experts can inspect, clean and test the system to provide safe operation. If anything looks out of place, we’ll suggest a repair or a modification, offering you peace of mind that your furnace is unlikely to catch fire. For more information or to schedule furnace maintenance, please contact your local Service Experts Heating, Air Conditioning & Plumbing office today.
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