Cracked Oil Furnace Heat Exchanger

A cracked heat exchanger in a gas furnace is a serious safety issue.

Cracked oil furnace heat exchanger.

Signs your furnace has a cracked heat exchanger. The heat exchanger on a furnace is the section that keeps the combustion chamber and the breathing air separate 3. Examine the crack itself. Broken and leaking heat exchangers are responsible for about 1 500 deaths per year in the united states and many more people are poisoned by exposure to toxic gasses that go unfiltered by defective heat exchangers.

Combustion gasses and carbin monoxide can be. A heat exchanger is made of thin metal and as it heats up from the combustion of the furnace it transfers the heat to the air being distributed through the house by the blower 3. There are certain signs to look for to determine if the heat exchanger has been. So you need to get a replacement ready to avoid inconveniences if it breaks.

Operating a furnace with a cracked heat exchanger can be very dangerous. Remove it from the furnace and examine it in the light. Even though your furnace may look and seem fine dangerous gases could leak into your home and seriously affect even kill your family members. If your gas furnace is about that age the chances are high that the heat exchanger can crack.

Proper diagnosis of a failed or cracked heat exchanger. Before you can do any repairs you should make sure that you check over your furnace heat exchanger thoroughly. Potential dangers of a cracked heat exchanger. If the flames come outside the proper area like in the video above the flame rollout limit switch senses it and shuts the furnace down to protect itself.

If a heat exchanger becomes cracked then your heating system will not perform as it should. Look for signs that the metal has been overheated or symptoms of long term metal fatigue. Diagnosis of a heat exchanger crack typically starts with a no heat service call. A cracked heat exchanger allows air from the furnace blower to interfere with the flame causing it to flutter or even roll out.

A damaged heat exchanger in a gas furnace is potentially dangerous to a home s occupants and should not be ignored. In some cases owners discover they have a cracked heat exchanger because the furnace shut down. This trips a safety switch and shuts down the furnace. Consequently air temperature becomes hotter.

Here is a video of a crack in a heat exchanger we found during a oil furnace cleaning and tune up in yardley pa. The combustible gas will become hotter as it accumulates in the exchanger.