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| Heating For Your Home |
Choosing a
Furnace System
These days, home owners search for all the value they can find in every household
purchase they make. You’re probably no different. So when the time comes
to replace a furnace in an existing central heating system, or to install a totally
new system, you want equipment that minimizes costs and delivers reliable office
comfort for your family – season after season. Here’s a look at some
things to consider.
 What
do good furnaces have in common?
Which
furnaces are energy efficient?
Are
some furnaces better than others?
What
should I look for in a dealer?
What do Good Furnaces Have
in Common?
The best furnaces are efficient. They keep a home warm and comfortable. They
provide steady, reliable performance year after year. And they are quiet, long-lasting
and low in service frequency and cost.
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Which Furnaces are Energy Efficient?
When a furnace loses or wastes heat, it requires more energy to keep your home
warm. Some furnaces lose heat through the walls of the furnace cabinet. Energy-efficient
furnaces like Ruud’s full line of state-of-the-art models significantly
reduce this loss with a blanket of insulation that lines the inside of the cabinet
walls.
When a gas furnace is not in operation, most send a steady, wasteful draft of
warm household air traveling up the venting system and out the roof. The Ruud
Achiever® Series and High Achiever® Lines – with AFUE ratings of 78% and better – feature
an induced-draft blower that works in conjunction with a hot surface ignition
system to pull hot gases through the heat exchanger at a constant and controlled
rate of flow. As the burner cycles off, the draft blower stops, keeping the heating
air in the system.
Pilot lights also can be wasteful. The electric ignition in many of Ruud’s
furnaces eliminates the need for a constantly burning pilot. This feature alone
gives up to 6% higher efficiency. And in combination with an induced-draft blower,
can improve furnace efficiencies by over 20%.
Most gas furnaces vent combustion by-products and gases by allowing the warm
air to rise naturally. However, on occasion, proper venting of combustion by-products
may be restricted due to blockage, deterioration of venting systems, malfunctions
or other causes.
The Ruud induced-draft blower maintains a constant draft through the heat exchanger,
which assures proper venting of the furnace combustion chamber. Ruud also features
a pressure switch which continuously monitors venting; and in the event it senses
a vent flow restriction, it will automatically shut down your heating system
for your safety.
The most efficient furnaces tap the energy of the hot vent gases – which
can reach temperatures of 500 degrees Fahrenheit, and more. The Ruud 90 Plus® gas
furnace does this by routing the hot gases through a secondary heat exchanger.
This step captures the otherwise wasted heat—using it to preheat the household
air—and delivers AFUE ratings up to 94.5%
A high-efficiency furnace generally wears a higher price tag, but it can make
up the difference by reducing operating costs over the long run. And with today’s
consumer interest in efficiency, such equipment enhances the bottom line of your
home.
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Are some furnaces better than
others?
Definitely. Features to look for include heat exchangers that resist corrosion,
direct-drive blower units, induced draft blowers, pressure switches, and an insulated
blower compartment, which helps minimize operating noise.
You also should ask your dealer if the manufacturer of the brand you’re
considering quality-checks and tests every unit before it leaves the plant.
And be sure to check out the terms of the Limited Warranty. Quality manufacturers
put a convincing warranty behind their work. Ruud furnaces, which include all
the features described here, offer one of the very best. Even the primary and
secondary heat exchangers in the Ruud 90 PLUS are protected by a Limited Lifetime
Heat Exchanger Warranty.
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What should I look
for in a dealer?
Reliability. Look for a dealer you see in your community. You want one who’s
close by to provide you faster, more convenient service.
He should offer a recognized name brand. And he should have a well-stocked inventory
of replacement parts. You wouldn’t want to sit out a mid-summer heat wave
waiting for a simple repair!
One way to be sure you’ll get good service is to contact a neighborhood
Ruud dealer.
Your local Ruud dealer is knowledgeable, reliable, and as good as any you’ll
find in the home. Click here to access our Dealer Locator system.
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