Setting up your routine furnace maintenance helps keep your heating equipment working up to 30 percent more efficient and helps extend the life of the equipment. But things could still stop working, and when they do, you might feel like there is always something else.
This time it’s your blower, next time it’s your pressure switch. Now you have to have your flame sensor replaced.
By the way – what is a flame sensor?
A flame sensor is a crucial safety element on your gas furnace. During the ignition pattern, your gas furnace goes through a process where either a hot surface ignitor or a spark will actually ignite the gas. As the gas is ignited, the flame sensor produces a current of electricity. The current is measured in micro amps. If the furnace’s control board does not read the proper level of micro amps, the furnace will quit giving the system fuel to stop an explosion.
Over time, if the flame sensor is not cleaned appropriately, oxidation or carbon buildup can restrict the flame sensor’s ability to operate properly, which can cause the furnace to malfunction.
The way to diagnose if a dirty flame sensor is the reason for a furnace malfunction is to take a micro amp draw reading, which an expert furnace technician can give you. If a dirty flame sensor is the reason, the furnace expert will clean the sensor with steel wool. If dirt was the single factor, we will see a notably higher amp reading. If the reading shows no change, the technician will proceed with the heating equipment repair diagnostic process.
If you aren’t sure your heating equipment is going to outlast these last few weeks of winter, give Stallion Heating Plumbing Air Conditioning a call and we’ll come out and give you a full furnace maintenance or a no-charge in-home estimate on a new heating system.