Common Problems That Can Make Your Furnace Suddenly Stops Running
ShareThe furnace in your home is essential to keeping the home comfortable for you and your family. The heating system will also keep the house warm so pipes won't freeze in the cold. If your furnace stops working unexpectedly, you might need a furnace repair service to come and address the issue. Read on to learn more.
Fuel Issues
One of the most common furnace problems that arise involves fuel to the furnace. Many times the fuel filter can clog, or the fuel line that feeds the finance may develop a leak, letting air into the system.
If air enters the line and makes its way to the furnace, the air packet will reach the fuel nozzle, and instead of fuel coming out and feeding the burner, air will come out, causing the burner to go out. Air can also enter the system if you run out of fuel, and once that happens, a furnace repair service needs to remove the air from the line to get the burner running again.
If your furnace stops working, you may want to push the reset button on it to restart it, but only try that one time, and if the furnace stops again, call a repair service. Repeatedly resetting the system can cause flooding in the firebox, which will require cleaning before restarting the furnace.
In extreme temperatures, the fuel can gel in the line and stop flowing to the furnace. The result is the same, no fuel delivery to the firebox and a furnace that stops running. Wrapping the fuel line with pipe insulation and adding kerosene to the heating oil in the tank can reduce the gelling, but the fuel line will most likely need removing and cleaning by a furnace repair tech before you can restart it.
Electonic Control Failures
The furnace has an electronic control module on the side that tells the system when to start. The module also ensures there is fuel and spark inside the firebox. If the control module stops working, the furnace may run continually, stop running completely, or run sporadically.
A physical inspection of the control module will not reveal the issue, so a furnace repair technician must test the module with a tool that allows them to determine if it is working correctly. A multimeter can test the module and determine if there is power getting to it and if the module is sending the right signals to the furnace at the right time.
If the module is not functioning correctly, the furnace repair tech will need to replace it as there are no serviceable parts in the control module. Replacing the assembly will only take a few minutes, and in most cases, the furnace can be up and running almost as quickly.