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Why Isn’t My Furnace Working? (Part 2)

Posted on by Binsky Home Service
Binsky Truck
A common call we get from Edison homeowners is “Why won’t my furnace turn on?” So it was no surprise when Vincent W., a homeowner in Edison, NJ, called saying he tried to turn up the thermostat but was getting “no heat” from his furnace. The worst part? This happened during a snowstorm. We didn’t want Vincent to become a popsicle, so we dispatched our technician, Mark, right away to fix the furnace. When Mark arrived, he first needed to find the cause of the “no heat” problem. This is called performing a “diagnostic.” While investigating the entire system, Mark found that the furnace draft inducer motor was broken. What is a draft inducer motor and why would this breaking prevent the furnace from working? Let us explain.

Draft inducer motor: A quick explanation

For your furnace to turn on, it has to go through a particular operating sequence. So if any part of that sequence fails, the furnace won’t turn on. In Vincent’s case, the draft inducer motor went bad, which then meant the draft inducer fan couldn’t turn on. You see, the draft inducer fan has 2 functions:

  • Getting rid of any old combustion gases from the heat exchanger
  • Pulling in combustion air and gases to the burners so they can ignite

So a broken motor means no movement of combustion air, which means no furnace ignition.

The solution: Replace the draft inducer motor

Mark documented and provided a written quote for Vincent. Unfortunately, Mark didn’t have the part on him. So he let Vincent know we needed to order the part and could install it the following day since supply houses are closed on Sunday. Vincent agreed to the quote and Mark did his thing: Got the part and installed it the next morning. Note: Keep in mind that the cost and time to fix a furnace all depends on what’s wrong with it. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. If your furnace is having issues, the first step is always to have a professional diagnose what’s wrong. It’s just like how a doctor asks questions and diagnoses what’s wrong with you before recommending a course of treatment to remedy the problem.

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