Choose the Right Size Furnace for Your Home

We have come a long way through generations and generations of keeping warm and now have the luxury and convenience of the furnace in our home. To keep your house comfortable should also come with efficiency, and that means choosing the right size furnace for your home.

A furnace that is too small cannot keep your home at the proper temperature, and will lead to higher energy bills and even heating and a shorter lifespan.

A furnace that is too large will make parts of your house too hot, and it can continuously cycle on and off, causing it to wear out faster. So how do you find out what is the “right size” for your home?

The power of your furnace needs to be proportionate with the size of your home. BTU capabilities differentiate gas furnaces. One BTU, or British Thermal Unit, represents how much energy we require heating one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.

Finding the right furnace requires some math, and that starts with the square footage of your house. Ideally, know this number already, or you can find it quickly on the paperwork you received back when you first purchased your home. If you cannot find that, you could ask your realtor, otherwise you will need to calculate the square footage yourself.

To determine your home’s square footage yourself, you will need to measure each room of your home by both its length and width. Multiplying those two numbers will give you that room’s square footage. Do that for every room of your home and then add that total together.

Finally, you need to reference the square footage of your house with the recommended amount of BTUs needed to heat it. A general rule is to multiply the square footage by 20 BTUs per square foot.

While that method is simple, it does not take into account other factors such as insulation, age or climate.

Finding the right size furnace by yourself is possible, but help is available. The professionals at Sunrise Heating and Plumbing can answer questions you have about the make, model, or size for the right furnace for your house.

Call us today at (616) 293-9326 if you have questions about properly heating your home. At Sunrise Heating and Plumbing, we pride ourselves in providing nothing but exceptional customer service.