During Michigan’s colder seasons, most people use furnaces to heat their homes. Furnaces burn fuel or use electric heating elements to warm up the air, which is then distributed through ductwork to heat rooms quickly. They’re a cost-efficient, readily available means of generating powerful, consistent, and reliable heat all winter long.
Here, we’ll discuss how understanding factors like size, efficiency, and fuel type can help you select the right model when you’re replacing a furnace in your home.
Choosing the Right Size Furnace
When the temperature drops, you can heat your home more efficiently and consistently by running the right-sized furnace. An oversized furnace may switch off too soon, short cycle, and create hot spots, while an undersized furnace will run constantly, heat less effectively, increase your energy bills, and wear out faster.
To choose the right furnace, you’ll need to determine how much space you have, the amount of heat you need in BTUs for your climate zone, and the efficiency of the heater you’re considering. This involves making two calculations: one will tell you how much heat you’ll need, and the other will tell you how much heat a given furnace will actually generate. The closer the two numbers match, the better the furnace should be for your house.
Here’s how to make the calculations.
Step 1: Calculate BTUs
First, to find out how many BTUs you’ll need, add up the square footage of the rooms in your home you plan to heat. Then multiply that sum by the number of BTUs you need for your climate zone.
Michigan’s climate zone typically needs 50 to 60 BTUs per square foot to provide sufficient heat. If your home is well-insulated, use the number at the lower end of the range (50). However, if your home has air leaks or high ceilings, use the larger number (60).
For example, for a well-insulated 1800-square-foot home in Michigan, you’ll need:
1800 (sq ft) X 50 (climate zone factor) = 90,000 BTUs to heat your home.
Step 2: Calculate Furnace Output
To determine the BTU output of a given furnace, you’ll need to know its ideal labeled output and its efficiency rating. Manufacturers label furnaces by how many BTUs they would generate in a perfect world, but in the real world, the furnace’s efficiency, denoted by its Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) rating, determines how many BTUs it will actually put out.
By multiplying the ideal BTU rating by the AFUE rating, you’ll get an estimate of the real BTU output. Use this number to select your furnace.
For instance: 100,000 (nominal BTUs) x 90% (AFUE rating) = 90,000 BTU heat output.
Step 3: Compare Results
Since the numbers match, the example above might be a good choice for an 1800-square-foot house. However, if you fail to account for the efficiency rating, you could end up installing a furnace that’s the wrong size for your space.
Understanding AFUE Ratings and Heating Efficiency
A furnace’s AFUE rating represents its heating efficiency, or the percentage of energy the furnace uses to produce heat. In other words, an 85% AFUE rating indicates that a furnace uses 85% of its fuel to generate heat and 15% to operate.
Higher AFUE ratings correlate to a less wasteful, more efficient furnace, resulting in lower utility bills. Ratings between 80% and 89% indicate standard efficiency. These furnaces are reliable, but they may be more expensive to operate and have a worse environmental impact. Furnaces with AFUE ratings of 90% or higher are high-efficiency units that are engineered to prevent heat loss and reduce environmental impact.
While high-efficiency furnaces may be more expensive upfront, they recoup that cost over time. The U.S. Department of Energy states that upgrading from an older furnace to a high-efficiency model can reduce your heating energy costs by 15% to 30%, resulting in significant savings.
Popular Furnace Types
All furnaces work by warming the air, circulating it through ductwork, and passing it through vents into rooms. When choosing a furnace for your Michigan home, there are several types to consider, including gas, electric, propane, and oil. Each type of furnace has its own set of characteristics that make it more or less suitable for a particular home.
Gas Furnaces
Michigan has an abundance of natural methane gas, so most residents will use natural gas-burning furnaces to produce heat. Modern gas furnaces are powerful, reliable, cost-effective, and highly efficient, reaching up to 98% AFUE. They’re also quick to heat up when temperatures drop suddenly.
Electric Furnaces
Electric furnaces use electric heating elements to warm up the air. They are low maintenance, have a low upfront cost, and can be nearly 100% efficient. However, they can also be more expensive to operate in areas where electricity costs more than natural gas. Electric furnaces are well-suited for smaller homes with lower overall heating demands.
Propane Furnaces
Propane furnaces use liquid petroleum gas as their fuel source. They burn cleaner than natural gas furnaces, with AFUE ratings that can reach 95%. Propane furnaces provide a reliable source of heat and are well-suited for rural areas where natural gas is less readily available.
Oil Furnaces
Oil furnaces generate heat by burning fuel oil. They tend to be found in homes that don’t have easy access to gas or electricity. Although they are higher maintenance and less efficient than other models, with AFUE ratings below 90%, they do heat homes effectively.
Why Should I Replace My Current Heater With a New Furnace?
Today’s furnaces offer many benefits over older models and other types of heaters. Modern furnaces are energy-efficient, dependable, and capable of heating your entire house quickly and evenly. Since they use a variety of fuel sources, you can get a model that best suits your needs. Furnaces can also withstand extremely cold weather, whereas other heaters, such as some heat pumps, may not provide sufficient heat when temperatures drop to very low levels.
With regular tune-ups, a new furnace can last up to 20 years, making it a great long-term investment in your comfort. Many furnaces also feature special enhancements, such as smart thermostats and variable-speed blowers, which enable precise climate control, as well as air filtration systems that improve indoor air quality.
Ready to Find the Best New Furnace for Your Home?
At Matheson Heating, Air & Plumbing in Commerce, MI, we understand that having a reliable, energy-efficient heater is a top priority, especially during Michigan’s coldest months. If you want to upgrade your old heater by replacing it with a high-efficiency furnace, we can make it happen.
Our team of heating service professionals will help you select the ideal model for your home and install it to ensure maximum performance. We’ll also help you calculate your potential energy savings and take care of any future maintenance and repairs you may need. To learn how a new furnace can keep you toasty through the chilly seasons ahead, call us today.