When it gets cold outside, you want the ideal temperature in your home to keep everyone comfortable and cozy.
What that ideal temperature differs by individual. The World Health Organization touts 18 degrees Celsius as the perfect temperature for most, with higher temperatures around 20-21 degrees Celsius recommended for the very young and very old.
Meanwhile, women and men often differ in what temperature suits them. Women tend to feel comfortable when the indoor temperature is higher since women tend to have a metabolic rate that's lower when resting.
Enter the forced air furnace as a great way to keep your home temperature just right -- and easily adjustable when trying to keep everyone happy.
But what's so great about a forced hot air furnace, you ask?
To answer that question, we've put together nine reasons we love to use forced air heating. Keep reading to learn the basics of this type of heating and why to go with forced air in your home.
Then, get ready to make the upgrade to a warmer, cozier home this winter and all year long!
1. Forced Air Furnaces Are Energy Efficient
These furnaces are built to be highly efficient when it comes to appliances. They use new tech in combustion. This is especially important if you have any kind of old system -- whether it be a space heater or an older forced air furnace.
Older forced air furnaces might be 50 to 60 percent efficient compared with 99 efficiency with a newer forced air heating model.
Ask your HVAC professional about recommended furnaces with high ratings when it comes to annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE). Look for a rating about 90 percent.
2. You'll Enjoy Cost Savings
Thanks to energy efficiency with a forced air furnace, you can save on energy costs.
For example, space heating makes up 61 percent of energy costs in Canada. With forced air, you can push the heat into all rooms and save.
Forced-air systems are reliable and last a long time. So once you pay the initial price, you will save in the long run.
New forced-air systems last at least up to 30 years. You'll need to change and clear filters but generally, they don't need much maintenance or repair compared with other systems like oil furnaces, room heaters, electrical heating systems, and heat pumps.
3. You Can Heat Up Your Entire Home Quickly
The forced air ducts and vents deliver warm air into all rooms and areas. The air is pushed forcibly so it gets there almost immediately into all rooms.
4. Your Home Is Evenly Heated
Since the air goes into all rooms at the same time, all rooms are heated evenly. You can walk from room to room and the temperature will be almost the same everywhere.
Also, you can differentiate the temperature going into each room as needed. So if you have a room with a draft, you can set the system to deliver more heat to that room to help keep the temperature even overall.
If you have a room that heats up more during the day -- like one that gets more direct sun or an attic room that gets the direct sun hitting the roof/ceiling and warming it up -- you can set the system to deliver less heat to that room than to other parts of the house.
5. You Can Adjust the Temperature of Your Home Quickly
If it's getting too hot or too cool in your home for someone, you can adjust your forced-air furnace and it will immediately push out the newly heated or cooled air. Since it gets right into all the rooms, you'll enjoy the effect right away.
6. You Can Keep Temperature at Just the Right Level
If you know how warm you like your home, you can set your forced-air furnace to keep your home at just that ideal temperature. The forced-air system has sensors and can monitor the temperature, turning on and off the system as needed.
7. You Can Use Smart Tech to Control Your Heating System
Thanks to the latest in HVAC tech, you can get a forced-air system that can be managed by your smartphone.
You can set your system to heat up your home when it gets to a certain temperature outside. You can set your system to heat up your home in the late afternoon so it's warm when you get home from work and you sit down to dinner.
You can set your system to turn off at bedtime when you go to bed. You can stay warm under your duvet while you save money on energy costs.
Then, you can set the heater to go on in the early morning so it's warm in the house when you get up to turn on the coffee and get ready.
8. The Forced-Air System Can Improve the Air Quality in Your Home
Your forced-air system can filter and humidify your air. Air filters in the forced-air system can filter the air coming in and out of your home.
New tech also has humidifiers that can take out contaminants in the air and add humidity when needed.
They also can help dry the air if you have too much humidity.
9. You Get the Right Temperature All Year Round
Your forced-air system generally comes with air-conditioning too. The air conditioner uses the same ducts, vents, and controls.
So when it gets hot in the summer or someone can't stand the heat in the winter, you can easily switch to cooling.
Warm Up Your Home With a Forced Air Furnace
Now that you know all the fabulous benefits of warming up your home with a forced air furnace, you're ready to save on energy and cozy-up with your own heating upgrade.
First, find a trustworthy HVAC professional near you to look at your home and answer questions. Next, get an estimate and get started with the installation. Then, enjoy your new comfortable and warm abode!
For additional energy-saving tips and ways to keep your home eco-friendly for the best results in both warm and cold climates, take a look at the energy efficiency section of our blog.
You'll learn about how to maximize your home's overall energy efficiency, keep your home cool in hot climates, build a home with a sustainable design, and so much more.
