Customers in the market for new home heating systems frequently end up choosing gas furnaces for their indoor comfort needs. The following outline should give you an idea of the average cost of running a gas furnace, so you can decide if this type of home heating system is right for you.
Purchasing a Gas Furnace
Natural gas is a clean-burning, efficient heating fuel. It’s plentiful and relatively inexpensive. Heating with gas usually costs less than heating with fuel oil or with an electric furnace. Gas-burning furnaces tend to cost a bit more than oil-burning or electric models. On average, a gas furnace can cost about $3,000. The price can be affected by many factors, such as the quality and efficiency of the equipment, dealer pricing and market conditions. Natural gas furnaces are also typically much less costly than heat pumps.
Ongoing Monthly Costs
During an average winter, your home may consume around 150 million BTU of heat. The typical cost is $12 per million BTU. In this case, your season’s heating costs may be around $1,800 during the winter. Costs can be affected by factors, such as local climate, severity of winter temperatures, local costs for fuel and the functional capacity of the furnace.
Increasing Furnace Efficiency
Your local HVAC expert can provide the preventive maintenance required to keep your gas furnace working at the greatest level of efficiency. You should have maintenance performed at least once a year. You can also help maintain system efficiency and lower operating costs by changing your air filters once a month.
Marsh Heating & Air Conditioning has more than 38 years of experience providing professional heating and cooling services in the Twin Cities and surrounding communities. Contact us today for more information on the costs associated with running a gas furnace and for help selecting a gas furnace that works best for your home heating needs.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about gas furnaces and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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