Cracked Oil Furnace Heat Exchanger

The heat exchanger on a furnace is the section that keeps the combustion chamber and the breathing air separate 3.

Cracked oil furnace heat exchanger.

Potential dangers of a cracked heat exchanger. When a heat exchanger becomes damaged and the combustion fumes and gases mix with the clean air. Furnaces are equipped with a safety feature called a flame rollout limit switch. If your gas furnace is about that age the chances are high that the heat exchanger can crack.

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. A cracked heat exchanger allows air from the furnace blower to interfere with the flame causing it to flutter or even roll out. In some cases owners discover they have a cracked heat exchanger because the furnace shut down. Consequently air temperature becomes hotter.

Look for signs that the metal has been overheated or symptoms of long term metal fatigue. Signs your furnace has a cracked heat exchanger. Even though your furnace may look and seem fine dangerous gases could leak into your home and seriously affect even kill your family members. Remove it from the furnace and examine it in the light.

Diagnosis of a heat exchanger crack typically starts with a no heat service call. So you need to get a replacement ready to avoid inconveniences if it breaks. A damaged heat exchanger in a gas furnace is potentially dangerous to a home s occupants and should not be ignored. Examine the crack itself.

If a heat exchanger becomes cracked then your heating system will not perform as it should. Here is a video of a crack in a heat exchanger we found during a oil furnace cleaning and tune up in yardley pa. Step 1 check the furnace heat exchanger. 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. The combustible gas will become hotter as it accumulates in the exchanger. There are certain signs to look for to determine if the heat exchanger has been. 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.

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. Operating a furnace with a cracked heat exchanger can be very dangerous.