Is It Possible for a Furnace to Get Too Hot in Winter?

While a furnace that warms your home efficiently and safely is a real benefit during cold Oklahoma winters, an overly hot furnace might be malfunctioning and can present a hazard. Today’s gas-fired furnaces have an excellent safety record if the unit is professionally installed and receives annual preventive maintenance. Still, certain issues may arise over time, including overheating. If you ever suspect that you have a hot furnace at an unsafe level, always contact a qualified HVAC contractor immediately. 

Signs of an Overheated, Hot Furnace

• The smell of something burning coming out of HVAC vents inside the house. While a few minutes of acrid odor is to be expected when the furnace is first started up at the beginning of the heating season, this should dissipate rapidly. Any suspect odor that occurs later is a sign to shut off the furnace and call for professional help.

• The furnace shuts down quickly. If your furnace automatically turns itself off soon after cycling on—known as “short cycling”— it may be the safety sensor detecting excess heat somewhere in the unit. Alternatively, the sensor itself may be defective. If an automatic safety shutdown occurs, don’t keep restarting the furnace until it’s been inspected by a certified HVAC technician. Also: Many furnaces will not restart after a safety shutdown until a technician resets the sensor.

Causes of Your Furnace Overheating

• Insufficient system airflow. If the air circulating through the furnace is obstructed, internal furnace components of the furnace, such as the heat exchanger, do not receive sufficient cooling and may overheat. This can permanently damage critical components, as well as pose a fire hazard. Causes of restricted airflow include a clogged system air filter and obstructed supply or return vents.

• Failing components. A worn-out blower motor often overheats, causing pungent burning odors before it fails completely. Aging electrical wiring inside the furnace may also begin to disintegrate and melt when exposed to heat.

For qualified professional service to diagnose a hot furnace, contact the heating experts at Air Assurance.

How Much Heat Is Too Much Heat in the Winter?

During those cold winter months, there's nothing better than feeling your heating system turn on to keep you warm and cozy. But what if it produces too much heat? Is that a cause for concern? Let's explore this notion of your house getting too hot in the winter.

The Problem with Too Much Heat in the Winter

It seems silly to consider excessive heat on a cold winter morning or night as a bad thing. However, a house that's overheating when the HVAC system is on is no joke. It will feel uncomfortably hot, and the feeling of sweating every time will make your home feel stuffy. A furnace that's overheating your home also wastes a lot of energy and wears down sooner than it should.

The Causes of Too Much Heat

Several factors can contribute to an overheated home in the winter. For instance, duct blockage and poor fan speed can make hot air linger in your heating system. Therefore, troubleshooting the problem may start with changing the filter in your system — or rather, not doing so if you haven't changed it recently. Alternatively, you may need to open your ducts if you've closed more than 20% of them.

There are several other causes of too much heat that require professional assistance. These include:

• A nonstop system. A furnace that constantly runs without shutting off like it's supposed to will supply too much heat to the rooms in your home. The unit running nonstop may be due to a broken limit switch, a malfunctioning primary control, broken thermostat wiring, or stuck control buttons.

• A faulty thermostat. If the temperature sensor of your thermostat is broken or miscalibrated, then it will have problems reading your home's temperature. It may not detect heat, or it may read your home as being cooler than it actually is, making your heater turn your house into an oven.

Besides causing discomfort, too much heat affects your heating system's components and causes your energy bills to skyrocket. An HVAC professional will help you find the specific reason behind the overheating issue. For more information on fixing the issue of too much heat in the winter, contact Air Assurance. We're Broken Arrow's trusted source for quality HVAC installation and repair.