What happens during a furnace repair visit in Pueblo

What a furnace repair visit usually involves

Here is what happens during a furnace repair visit. A contractor starts with questions about the symptoms, then checks the ignition, the burner, the flame sensor, the blower, the filter and the venting. The findings and the options come last, in plain terms.

Every furnace and every fault is a little different, so the order can shift. These are the checks that come up most often on a gas furnace.

What should you note before calling?

The first questions at a visit are usually about what the furnace has been doing. A few plain notes make those answers easier:

• What the furnace does: blows cold air, shuts off before the house warms, lights and drops out, or makes a new noise.
• Where the thermostat is set, and whether its batteries are fresh.
• When the filter was last changed.
• Whether the breaker tripped, and whether you reset it once.

Jot these down in a phone note. They save the contractor from guessing, and they save you from trying to remember a noise you heard days ago.

How does a contractor check ignition, the burner and the flame sensor?

A contractor watches the furnace run through its start-up sequence, from the thermostat's call for heat to a steady flame. Each stage depends on the one before it, so the first stage that fails points to the fault.

Ignition comes first. Older furnaces light from a small standing pilot flame, while newer ones use a hot surface igniter or an electric spark. Next the gas valve opens and the burners light.

A flame sensor is a thin metal rod that sits in the flame's path. It tells the control board that fire is really there. When the rod is coated or weak, the board shuts the gas off after a few seconds, which is one reason a furnace can light and drop out.

Opening the burner compartment, cleaning the sensor or touching the valve belongs to a licensed contractor, because a slip there involves gas and live voltage. You can read more about the service itself on the furnace repair page.

The NOAA weather station near Pueblo averages 5,386 heating degree days a year, counted from a base of 65°F. A heating degree day marks a day colder than that baseline, so a high total means plenty of days when a furnace's start-up sequence has to work.

What do the blower, filter and airflow checks show?

The blower pushes warm air through the ducts, and the filter protects it. A contractor checks both because weak airflow can make a healthy furnace look broken.

A furnace that overheats shuts itself off at a safety switch. A clogged filter can trigger that switch, so the furnace stops before the house warms. The contractor also looks at the blower wheel and motor, and a licensed contractor checks the electrical parts that start the motor.

ENERGY STAR advises inspecting, cleaning or changing air filters in a central air conditioner, furnace or heat pump once a month. It also says a dirty filter can increase energy costs and damage equipment, and early failure can follow.

Here is a safe filter check:

1. Turn the furnace off at the thermostat, then switch off its power at the furnace switch or the breaker.
2. Slide out the filter and hold it up to a light.
3. If you can't see light through it, put in a new one of the same size, with the arrow pointing toward the blower.
4. Restore power and set the thermostat to heat. Steady warm air at the vents tells you it worked.

Stop there if the filter was clean or the furnace still shuts off. The safe furnace checks for a cold night also cover the thermostat, the breaker and open vents and returns.

Why are venting and safety checks part of the visit?

Venting carries exhaust from the burner out of the house. A contractor checks that the flue pipe is connected, intact and clear, and looks for soot or rust around it.

Carbon monoxide is a gas you can't see or smell. A furnace that burns fuel can produce it when combustion or venting goes wrong, so this check matters even when the house feels warm.

If you smell gas, leave the house, then call the gas utility from outside. If a carbon monoxide alarm sounds, get everyone out and call emergency services.

The City of Pueblo lists Xcel Energy as a gas provider for Pueblo. Separately, about 78% of the 46,414 occupied homes in Pueblo are heated with utility gas. A gas-fired furnace brings fuel into the house, so the safety sentences above belong with any gas furnace.

How are findings and options explained?

After the checks, a contractor explains what turned up. A good explanation covers which part failed and what the choices are. You can ask the contractor to repeat anything that is unclear.

Useful questions to ask:

• Which part failed, and what does it do?
• Is a repair enough, or is another fault likely?
• Does the job need a permit?
• What would waiting risk?

The longer list in questions to ask a licensed, insured HVAC contractor goes further. Each independent contractor confirms its own fees.

Age is one input to the repair-or-replace choice. ENERGY STAR suggests considering replacement when a furnace or boiler is more than 15 years old. The decision stays with you.

Where to go next for furnace repair in Pueblo

If the checks point to a part you can't safely touch, the next step is a licensed contractor. Contractor-only work covers burners, valves, wiring and sealed components.

For the service itself, see furnace repair in Pueblo.