by Fix-It Club

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Club, Fix-It.  "How to Maintain a Furnace."  04 May 2006.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-maintain-a-furnace.htm>  08 September 2008.
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Home & Garden Videos

How to Troubleshoot an Electric Furnace

Although an electric heating system does have advantages, its operating cost generally makes it less desirable than any of the other furnace systems available today. The high cost means that minimizing heat loss caused by improperly installed ducts or inadequate insulation is even more important than with other types of systems.

Electric furnaces use heating elements controlled by relays to warm the air.
© 2006 Publications International, Ltd.
Electric furnaces use heating elements controlled by relays to warm
the air. The elements are fused on a separate panel.

For maximum energy efficiency, have a professional service person clean and adjust your electric furnace every year before the beginning of the heating season. Do not attempt any repairs to the heating elements, electrical connections, relays, transformers, or similar components of an electric furnace; repairs to these components must be made by a professional service person.

Electric Furnace
Care Guide
Whether it's a noisy furnace or a blower that won't stop running, you probably have wondered what brought on the problem.
Click here for instructions on troubleshooting.

The controls of an electric furnace may be mounted on the surface of the housing or installed behind an access panel on the front of the furnace. The access panel may be slip-fit on hooks fastened to the furnace housing with a series of sheet-metal screws. To remove the access panel to the blower, filter, and blower motor, slip the panel up off hooks or remove a series of sheet-metal screws.

Fuses

Electric furnaces are fused at a building's main electrical service entrance. Many electric furnaces are on separate circuits, sometimes located in a separate fuse box away from the main panel. The heating elements of the furnace are also fused, and these fuses are located on a panel that is on or inside the furnace housing.

The heating elements on an electric furnace are fused on a separate panel located on or inside the furnace housing.
© 2006 Publications International, Ltd.
The heating elements on an electric furnace are fused on a
separate panel located on or inside the furnace housing.

If changing the fuses or resetting the breakers does not restore power to the furnace, call a professional service person. Do not attempt to repair heating elements, the transformer, heating relays, or po
wer relays. Repairs to these components must be made by a professional service person.

Now that we've run the entire furnace gamut, your home should be nice and toasty all winter long. Though major furnace repairs to a furnace are best left to a professional, you should be able keep those house calls to a minimum with our maintenance tips.

©Publications International, Ltd.