{"id":856,"date":"2017-02-02T17:15:18","date_gmt":"2017-02-02T22:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.heatingcoolingchicagoland.com\/blog\/?p=856"},"modified":"2017-02-02T17:15:18","modified_gmt":"2017-02-02T22:15:18","slug":"furnaces-more-efficient-heres-why","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goservicemax.com\/blog\/heating-service\/furnaces-more-efficient-heres-why\/","title":{"rendered":"Furnaces Are More Efficient Than Ever: Here\u2019s Why"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"furnace-burner-flames\"<\/a>Heating technology doesn\u2019t stand still. It is constantly advancing, and that\u2019s why modern gas furnaces<\/a> are more energy efficient than the furnaces of 30, 20, or even 10 years in the past. But simply saying that \u201ctechnology got better\u201d isn\u2019t really saying that much. What exactly makes the new furnace so efficient?<\/p>\n

And New Furnaces Are Indeed Much More Efficient<\/h3>\n

Before we get into why furnaces are more efficient, let\u2019s look at exactly how<\/em> much more efficient they are today than in the past.<\/p>\n

The measure of furnace efficiency is AFUE (annual fuel utilization efficiency), which is the percentage of natural gas the furnace converts into heating power. Older furnaces have an AFUE range of 56% to 70%, which means that between 30% and 44% of the natural gas goes to waste as heat bleeds from the combustion chamber and exhaust leaves\u00a0the flue. New furnaces, however, can have AFUEs from 80% all the way to 98.5%. In order for a gas furnace to earn the ENERGY STAR certification<\/a>, it must have an AFUE of 90% or greater.<\/p>\n

The Secret of High Furnace AFUE<\/h3>\n

A number of technological improvements have allowed furnaces such improved efficiency. Not all furnaces have these developments, and you can always ask HVAC professionals to assist you with finding the right high-efficiency unit for your needs.<\/p>\n