Before Your Kansas City Furnace Installation, Ensure You Understand Your Furnace Size Requirements
When it’s time to select a new furnace, you don’t want to take this decision lightly. Your furnace is one of the most important parts of your home. When your furnace isn’t working, you have a major inconvenience to deal with.
Only your roof, electricity, and plumbing can make the same claim on your time and energy. It is absolutely vital that you invest in a high-performing furnace to keep you comfortable throughout the coldest months of the year.
Once you’ve purchased your furnace, there’s much you can do to maintain it and keep it in stellar condition throughout its 15- to 20-year lifespan. Furnace clean and check services from a leading company for furnace repair near you will be essential in the long run.
However, you have to start by selecting the furnace that suits your home’s needs, and there is no more essential need than ensuring your furnace is large enough to provide heating for your entire home.
How Do You Figure Out What Furnace Size to Buy?
Figuring out the size of the furnace you need is a relatively simple calculation. Follow these steps to get an idea of the furnace you should purchase from your Kansas City furnace installation company of choice. Keep in mind that your HVAC tech will make the same calculations to determine which system is right for your home.
- Determine the size of your home in square feet.
- Be sure to include the entirety of your home in this square footage. If you imagine turning an unfinished portion of your basement into livable space down the road, you should include this space in your measurement.
- Once you’ve determined your square footage, you need to figure out which climate zone you live in, as your weather conditions affect how often you experience cold weather and to what degree. Use this map to determine your zone. Kansas City falls in zone 4.
- Depending on your zone, your home needs anywhere from 30 to 60 British Thermal Units (BTUs) for every 1,000 square feet of space. A BTU is a measurement of how much thermal energy it takes to warm a pound of water one degree warmer than its current state. In Zone 4, many user-provided estimates online suggest 40 to 45 BTUs.
- Multiply your square footage by 42.5 BTUs (the average of 40 to 45 BTUs) to get an estimate of the total number of BTUs your furnace will need to deliver.
For example, if your home is 2,000 square feet in Kansas City, you need a furnace that delivers at least 85,000 BTUs. Trane and Lennox furnace s, two of the leading brands today, manufacture furnace s ranging between 35,000 and 140,000 BTUs.
Now you can make a more informed decision about your furnace installation. You’re nearly ready to call a highly rated business for furnace clean and checks and furnace repair near you . However, you need to consider the condition of your home to get a complete picture of the BTUs required to heat your home.
What If Your Home Is Newer or Older? More Size Considerations for Your Furnace
The calculation above isn’t the only way to determine furnace size. You also want to consider whether you live in a particularly cold or warm location. Obviously, you won’t need to heat your home as often in an area with higher temperatures, and colder regions may need higher furnace outputs to ensure your comfort in the winter.
You should also ask yourself these important questions when determining the size of the furnace you need:
- Do you live in an older home?
- What is the quality of your home’s insulation?
- Do you have older windows and doors?
- Do you have gaps between your home and the foundation?
Older homes, poor insulation, and construction methods will determine how much cold air is getting into your home. Consider increasing your BTU calculation by five to 10 BTUs per square foot.
If you live in a newer home or a newly renovated home that was built with modern materials that tend to be better insulated, you might reduce your BTUs by five to 10 per square foot for a better estimate of the furnace size you require.
- For newer homes with modern construction, sealing, and insulation, multiply your square footage by 35 to 40 BTUs (37.5 average).
- For older homes with weakened construction, sealing, and insulation, multiply your square footage by 45 to 50 BTUs (47.5 average).
To return to our earlier example, your 2,000-square-foot home’s furnace in Kansas City requires 85,000 BTUs. However, if this is a newer home, you can reduce your BTU calculation, so it looks like this:
- (2,000 square feet) x (37.5 BTUs) = 75,000 BTUs, which is 10,000 less than our original calculation.
There may also be an additional benefit to underestimating your BTUs, regardless of whether your home is new. If you still have questions, your best bet is to speak with a Kansas City furnace installation company for furnace repair near you.
Who to Call for Furnace Installation in Kansas City
When looking for a technician that will not only install your new furnace, but will also provide future furnace clean and checks, repairs, duct cleaning, and more, you want to carefully vet any company you work with.
- Read their testimonials.
- Check for favorable reviews online.
- See if they can explain available rebates and promotions.
- Ensure they help customers save with a signature service agreement.
If the team for furnace repair near you that you’re considering is well-regarded by customers and provides opportunities for you to save, you’ve found a business you can trust. You want to come away from your furnace installation experience feeling like you have a contractor that truly cares.
Learn more in this article about what makes a Kansas City furnace installation team worth your time.
