The last thing you want to happen on a cold winter day is to turn on the furnace to heat your home, only to have the furnace immediately stop working. When this happens, we recommend that you check on the electrical panel to your home to see if a circuit breaker has been tripped. If one has, reset the breaker and try the furnace again. If the furnace turns on, but then immediately trips the circuit breaker again, there’s a problem that needs to be addressed.
(Yes, a gas furnace can trip a circuit breaker. Natural gas furnaces do rely on a number of electrical components, such as the blower motor fan and the electronic ignition system. This isn’t just an electric furnace problem.)
Why This Might Be Happening
- Clogged furnace filter: When the circuit breaker trouble starts, the first thing you should check on is the furnace filter. If the filter is heavily clogged, it will place strain on the blower, and this electrical component can then overload the circuit and trip the breaker. Change the filter (and continue to change it through the season every 1 to 3 months) and retry the furnace.
- Blocked air vents: Another way that the blower can suffer extra strain is because room vents are blocked. They may have been shut during the fall, or moved furniture might be obstructing them. Take a tour of the house to see that the vents aren’t blocked.
- Leaking ducts: If there are air leaks along the ductwork, the loss of air will make the blower work harder to replace the deficit. The ducts will need to be repaired.
- Electrical issue: The trouble may not be with the furnace itself. Another appliance using the same circuit could be creating the overload… or perhaps the electrical panel itself is broken and needs a replacement.
If you’re unsure why your furnace is malfunctioning, call our professionals and they’ll get to the bottom of the problem.
Malek Heating & Cooling has served Winnetka, IL and the rest of Chicagoland with excellent furnace repairs since 1998.