More than 500 specialists in residential heating and air conditioning told us about their experiences in installing and maintaining heating equipment.
Air handler and gas furnace.
Both air handlers and gas furnaces pair with your air conditioner or heat pump and are located in either a closet attic or basement.
In the winter the furnace heat heats the indoor air while the blower circulates it throughout the building.
In gas and oil furnaces the flames heat a component called the heat exchanger a sealed chamber that warms the air around it.
In electric furnaces this is simply a matter of the exposure of the heating elements to the open air.
The burner or combustion chamber where natural gas or another fuel is burned.
Dual fuel heat pump furnace systems.
As the air handler moves the air over the coil it heats the air and then a fan inside the air handler blows the warm air through the vents of your home.
And the flue or vent which carries combustion gases such as carbon monoxide to the outside.
This is why it can be confusing to tell the difference between the two.
A furnace has four main parts.
The best of both worlds a dual fuel heat pump system will provide you with the most energy efficient home heating and cooling system by pairing an electric heat pump with a traditional gas furnace.
The air handler has a coil and heat strips inside of it.
In fact the two systems can look so similar you may think you have an electric furnace when in actuality you have an air handler.
Each package includes a gas furnace indoor evaporator coil and a c condenser unit.
Air handlers tend to be paired up with heat pumps and help manage air flow throughout the building.
Get huge savings on your monthly energy costs with a dual fuel heat pump furnace system.
If you have a furnace you probably don t need to think about an air handler.
These air conditioner and furnace combination systems provide both heating and cooling for year round comfort.
Some models also provide secondary heating and cooling parts to help out the heat pump.
The heat is transferred to the air.
All pros listed are independent dealer owned.
Size matters the furnace s specifications.
A clean efficiently burning gas furnace produces very small amounts of carbon monoxide while a dirty gas furnace burning inefficiently furnace can produce deadly amounts.
The blower which forces the heated air through ducts into the home.
The blower motor and fan push the warm air through the ductwork and vents raising the temperature in the home.
Newer gas furnaces are equipped with many features that shut the furnace off when a problem is detected but older furnaces may not have these safety devices.
The heat exchanger where the heat from the burner but not the potentially dangerous gases produced by combustion transfers to the home s air supply.