When it comes to heating systems within a home, it could be the most expensive mechanical appliance present within the house. To stay away from getting up in a chilled environment, it is important that you ensure proper functioning of your heating system always. Furnaces have become the most common heating systems in homes across the US. This is because these appliances are easy to maintain, highly efficient and also simple to use. However, all these benefits you can get only in lieu of a hefty price. In case, you are planning to install a new furnace in your home or replace an existing one it is must that you find out about its cost.
Here, it must be noted that before exploring the prices of furnaces, it is important that we have a clear idea about the functioning of furnaces. The heat in the furnace is provided by the coils and the coils are heated using different kinds of fuel. Generally furnaces function using power sources like natural gas, propane or electricity. While the other alternatives could be geo-thermal furnaces, oil furnaces or the solar powered furnaces. The efficiency of a furnace depends on the AFUE rating. Higher the AFUE rating, more efficient is the furnace.
Now, as far as the price of a new furnace is concerned, the first determining factor is the type of furnace that will be installed. Mostly, homeowners opt for natural gas furnaces. The average price of natural gas furnaces is something from $2,500 to $14,000. It is true that oil furnaces came into existence before the natural gas furnaces, but is available only in some states of the US. The cost of these oil furnaces is something from $2,000 to $8,000 along with the installation charge. However, this price goes up if the existing duct work needs to be adapted.
Another option is to install the electric heat. In this system heat comes from small registers located around the border of each room. It is true that the installation cost of these heating systems is between $1,000 and $2,000 but still it is not a recommended method because it comes with a high energy cost. An alternative to this method of heating is the heat pump that pulls in the heat from the ground or air with the use of refrigerant coils. The prices of air source heat pump is $1,500 to $7,000 and the price of the ground source is $7,000 to $25,000.
The next question that could come to ones’ mind are the factors which determine the furnace cost. The most important factor that determines the price of a furnace is its efficiency. A more efficient a furnace is higher is its price. This is because the overall efficiency will play an important role in determining the future heating efficiency of the heating system.
Similarly, furnaces using propane or natural gas are more efficient than the electric ones. Hence, they are more expensive. If you have planned to install a natural gas furnace, you need to be sure that there is sufficient availability of natural gas and one should ensure that no gas or carbon monoxide is leaking.
The size of a furnace also determines its price. For example, a bigger furnace costs more than a smaller one. Along with the price of a new furnace one should also have a fair idea about its repair cost. In case, one has purchased a new one there is no need to worry much about the repair cost because it will in any case be covered by warranty. However, the average repair cost of a furnace is $258 but this price also depends on the size and the kind of furnace that has been purchased.