Tag: homeowner tips

7 Pros and Cons of a Gas Furnace

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

You may be wondering what the pros and cons of a gas furnace are if you are helping design your new home or face replacing an old heating system. A gas furnace can be an excellent heating option for your home.

To best inform yourself on your heating choices, our Kansas City HVAC pros at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning present this list of 7 pros and cons to think about if you’re considering installing a gas furnace.

Consider These Pros and Cons of a Gas Furnace

Choosing what type of heating to use in your home is a big decision. We present the below-listed pros and cons to provide you with the ability to make an informed decision based on the following criteria: heating efficiency, cost-effectiveness, adaptability, desirability, upfront costs, service life span, and maintenance costs frequency.

Pro: Heats Your Home Faster

Gas furnaces tend to heat homes faster than electric furnaces, which is certainly a major plus for keeping your home nice and cozy during the cold winter months. Gas furnaces heat up faster than electric furnaces because they come up to maximum temperature as soon as the burners begin running.

Pro: Gas Furnace is Cost-Effective

Switching from an electric heater to a gas heater can be incredibly cost-efficient. Many homes save an average of at least 50% on heating bills when switching from electric heat to gas heat. According to a midwest utility company, homeowners living in cold climates can expect to save approximately $1,700 a year in heating bills by using a gas furnace.

Pro: Adaptability

Gas furnaces are adaptable in that a newly installed gas furnace can connect with your home’s existing HVAC system. The fact that a newly installed gas furnace doesn’t require an overhauling or replacement of the rest of your current HVAC system is a huge plus.

Pro: More Desirable

If you rent out homes or are considering selling your home at some point, then consider that gas furnaces are often the most popular option among homeowners and renters. Renters are fans of gas furnaces as several of the cons do not affect them, such as the higher installation and maintenance costs, and they’ll save on monthly heating expenses.

Con: Upfront Cost of Installment is Expensive

While gas furnaces are cost-efficient in the long run, they are more expensive to install upfront than other heater types. While the upfront expense is a con to choosing a gas furnace, consider the overall benefit of significantly lower monthly heating bills.

Con: Shorter Service Life

Perhaps the biggest drawback to choosing a gas furnace is its shorter expected service life than other heaters. We expect a well-performing, well-maintained, quality gas furnace to last approximately 15-20 years. Compare that to the 20-30 year service expectancy of equally high quality, well-maintained electric heater.

Con: Higher Maintenance Requirements

Gas furnaces typically require more maintenance from an HVAC technician. These furnaces use a combustion process that requires scheduled inspection and preventative upkeep to avoid problems such as carbon monoxide leakage.

Thankfully, Kansas City homeowners can turn to the HVAC professionals at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning to perform excellent furnace maintenance, inspections, and repairs. Always install a carbon monoxide detector in your home for added safety.

Contact Us For Your Questions About the Pros and Cons of a Gas Furnace

If you live in the Kansas City metropolitan area the experts at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning are here to help you make the best heating system decision. Contact us today to discuss the pros and cons of a gas furnace and your options for installation.

Four Gas Furnace Safety Tips to Keep in Mind

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

If you use a gas furnace in your home or business, consider these four gas furnace safety tips to keep in mind to ensure the health and safety of everyone in the building.

When fuel is used to power an appliance, we must be mindful of following best practices for safety and wellbeing.

As HVAC professionals, our team at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning are experts in gas furnace safety. We have provided a list of crucial tips to keep in mind so you can safely enjoy the warmth and coziness your gas furnace provides.

Follow Gas Furnace Safety Tips by Installing Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Gas furnaces can produce carbon monoxide as a by-product of their combustion process. When the heating system is working correctly, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are vented safely outside your home.

However, leaks can happen if the furnace is damaged, and therefore it’s critical to install carbon monoxide detectors on every level of your home and near all sleeping areas.

Carbon monoxide can cause serious and potentially deadly health effects by lowering the oxygen level in your blood. Remember that we can not detect carbon monoxide through our senses. Therefore, installing carbon monoxide detectors on every level of the home and near every sleeping area is crucial to catching a leak.

Schedule Regular Maintenance

HVAC professionals performing scheduled maintenance inspections once or twice a year can catch any problems that need resolution before they become costly repairs or turn into dangerous situations. There are many parts to a functioning gas furnace, and the best way to ensure your furnace is functioning properly, and therefore safely, is by calling in an HVAC expert.

At Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning, we recommend scheduling regular maintenance inspections at least once a year, and ideally, once in the fall and once in the spring.

Keep Furnace Area Clear of Debris and Storage

You may feel tempted to store items near your furnace to save space. Storing items near your furnace is not wise due to the potential for a fire this scenario can cause. Always keep the area around your gas furnace clear of debris or storage.

Even if you have your furnace in a larger room that you use for storage, such as a basement, make sure that you allow several feet between the furnace and any other objects. Doing so lowers the risk of a fire starting and maintains clear and easy access to your furnace for maintenance, inspection, and repairs.

Watch for Discolored Gas Furnace Flame

The gas furnace flame should burn blue. You need to quickly call an HVAC technician to diagnose and repair a problem if you notice yellow, orange, or green streaks or a complete color change.

Changing flame color means the furnace is not burning at the correct oxygen and gas mixture. Of particular note, if you notice a yellow flame there is a buildup of carbon monoxide through incomplete combustion.

The buildup may be small enough not to cause health effects but always err on the side of safety and call in an HVAC technician. If you notice a discolored furnace flame and feel any early symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning like headache, nausea, fatigue, or dizziness, you should vacate the home until an HVAC team can fix the problem.

Follow Gas Furnace Safety Tips and Schedule Maintenance with Us Today

Preventative maintenance is always key to best practices for ensuring efficiency, longevity, and safety.

If you live in Kansas City, follow our gas furnace safety tips and schedule a maintenance call today with our expert team at Beebe Heating and Air Conditioning.

Could You Benefit From a Smart Thermostat This Winter?

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

Smart technology is increasingly used, talked about, and advertised in our daily lives, and as such, you may be wondering if you could benefit from a smart thermostat this winter. Installing this temperature-regulating technology can be advantageous to homeowners interested in additional convenience, high-tech performance, and energy saving. Continue reading “Could You Benefit From a Smart Thermostat This Winter?” →

The Importance of Heating Maintenance This Winter

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

Staying comfortable and warm inside during the cold winter months, and ensuring critical infrastructure, like plumbing, continues operating, underscores the importance of heating maintenance in the winter.

Without proper maintenance, your heating system could fail during a time of year that could have significant consequences on health, safety, and the operating systems in your building.

At Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning, we know how critical properly functioning heaters are for the winter months in Kansas City. We are experts in installing and maintaining HVAC heating systems, and in this article, we’ll outline the importance of heating maintenance this winter.

The Importance of Heating Maintenance This Winter: Health and Safety

A properly maintained, efficiently operating heating system is crucial to you and your family’s health, wellness, and comfort. Performing proper maintenance on your heating system helps to ensure that no costly failures occur that could result in a period of significant discomfort until the system is back to performing well. If you’re in the Kansas City area, you can benefit from our expert heating maintenance services at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning.

If you live in a cold environment and your heating system goes out due to a lack of maintenance, you may have to stay elsewhere until the system is back in operation. You may also resort to wearing piling on heavy coats and blankets inside your home for warmth. Pets, children, the elderly, and people with some forms of chronic illnesses may be at particular risk if the heat suddenly stops working in your home.

Ensure the Longevity of Your Heating System

Winter months are particularly straining on your heating system, and without proper maintenance, this strain could result in your heating system needing replacement earlier than expected. Replacing the heating source in your house can be a costly and extensive project.

Spending the time and money on yearly preventative maintenance is a far better option than having to prematurely replace your entire heating system, especially in the middle of winter.

The Importance of Heating Maintenance This Winter: Save on Energy Bills

When your heating system undergoes regular maintenance, it runs in an optimized state, and thus, more efficiently. As such, your monthly energy bills are lower than if the system is running inefficiently, which will result in higher monthly energy bills. The less your heating system has to work, the longer it will last, and the less money you will spend in the short term and long run, by far.

Keep Your Warranty Valid

Performing warranty-approved and required maintenance on your heating system is critical to keeping your warranty valid. Considering that heating systems are the most strained in the winter, you’ll want to ensure that you perform necessary maintenance in the winter to keep your warranty valid.

The Importance of Heating Maintenance This Winter: Identify Problems to Enhance Performance

Scheduling regular maintenance checks on your heating system can help you identify specific parts that need replacement. It’s far better to replace those parts as needed rather than leave your system unattended until a cascade of part failures occur that lead to an entire system needing replacement.

For instance, you may be noticing temperature variations resulting in certain parts of your home not heating as well as others. A regularly scheduled maintenance check helps identify issues, and components that need replacement or repair, ensuring your whole building optimally heats.

Choose the Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning Pros

From preventative maintenance to tune-ups and identifying small problems, scheduling winter maintenance is crucial to ensuring the longevity and optimization of your heating system. Now that you know the importance of heating maintenance this winter, make sure you reach out to us pros at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning for expert maintenance service.

Winter Checklist for Your Commercial Building Heater

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

If you own a commercial property in a seasonal climate, following a detailed winter checklist for your commercial building heater is critical to ensuring longevity and optimal performance. If you own a building in the Kansas City area, you probably know that maintaining a heater for your commercial building is crucial to endure the winter months. Continue reading “Winter Checklist for Your Commercial Building Heater” →

6 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Furnace

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

If you are noticing performance issues, you may be wondering what the signs are that it’s time to replace your furnace. While high-quality furnaces can last up to 20 years of service, they will eventually age out, and it will be time for a replacement. The Kansas City HVAC professionals at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning have the expert answers you need.

Notice These 6 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Furnace

Below, we have provided the tell-tale signs that your furnace requires replacement. These signs include the age of your system, varying and inconsistent temperatures in your home, higher-than-expected heating bills, excessive noises, and a yellow pilot light flame.

Your Furnace is over 15 Years Old

The average service span of most high-quality furnace heaters is about 15 to 20 years. If your furnace is at least 15 years old, you may want to start thinking about hiring an HVAC professional to install a new furnace.

If you are not experiencing any problems with your furnace, you may not yet need a replacement, but make sure to perform regular maintenance inspections and be on the lookout for any of the below-listed signs.

Inconsistent Temperatures in Your Home

If you notice that your house has cold spots and heats irregularly, then it may be time for a heater replacement. Particularly dramatic and noticeable shifts in the temperature of your home can especially be a sign that your furnace may be failing.

Often, older heaters near the end of their service life will fail to distribute heat throughout the house.

If you notice this sign we recommend that you schedule a service call to diagnose the issue and determine if the problem is repairable or if the furnace requires replacement.

6 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Furnace: Higher Heating Bills

One particularly frustrating sign of a furnace that may need replacement is an increase in your monthly heating cost. If your furnace is breaking down, it will not run as efficiently and will have to work harder to heat the home. It will waste more fuel in the process, thus increasing your monthly heating bill.

Excessive and Loud Furnace Noises

Regardless of the type of furnace you have, you should not notice excessively frequent or loud noises. It’s time to call in a professional if you hear loud rattling, banging, and screeching noises.

Chances are some serious mechanical damage may be occurring to your furnace. If your furnace is already older than ten years, it’s often more cost-effective in the long run to replace it with a new model.

Yellow Pilot Light Flame

A properly functioning furnace should have a blue pilot light flame, always. If you notice that the pilot light flame is yellow on your furnace, then you need to immediately call in an HVAC technician.

The yellow flame is a sign of a ventilation problem with your system and incomplete gas combustion. This incomplete combustion can lead to an elevation of carbon monoxide levels in your home.

Indoor Air Quality Decline

While you can potentially address indoor air quality decline through cleaning parts of your HVAC system, it can also be a sign that your furnace requires replacement.

Your furnace may be damaged or aged to the point that it is not heating efficiently, combustion correctly, or properly diverting combustion gases away from your home.

Call Us Today If You Notice the 6 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Furnace

Our experts at Beebe Heating & Air Conditioning can set up a time to diagnose your furnace and determine if we can perform a cost-effective repair or if we recommend replacement.

If you live in Kansas City and have checked off these 6 signs of a possibly failing furnace, contact us today.

How to Fix Temperature Variations in Your Home

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

What’s more frustrating than shoveling snow? Is there such a thing? As it turns out, there is! The one thing that’s more frustrating than throwing your back out trying to fend off the Kansas City snow with a shovel is having cold spots in your home. You pay good money to heat your home, so why the devil are there so many cold spots in your home? Temperature variations in your home can drive you batty when left unchecked. Continue reading “How to Fix Temperature Variations in Your Home” →

Furnace Maintenance Checklist for Winter

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

Winter is here! Don’t let Old Man winter catch you or your furnace off guard! The more you prepare for Winter early on before the snow flies, the more you’ll save. Remember, you don’t want to have to call for help because your furnace is on the fritz in the middle of Winter with freezing cold temperatures. You can save yourself a lot of time, trouble, and even money by running through this furnace maintenance checklist for Winter. Continue reading “Furnace Maintenance Checklist for Winter” →

Effective Ways to Prepare Your Home for the Summer Heat

Posted on by Beebe HVAC

The summer heat can be brutal. You may be thinking about sunscreen and barbeques, it’s not just you that needs to gear up for summer. You have to make sure your home is ready, as well. The good news is, there are a few tips you can use to get your home ready for the summer heat – and beyond. Continue reading “Effective Ways to Prepare Your Home for the Summer Heat” →