Like any other appliance in your home, your furnace just isn’t designed to last forever. Over time it will slowly lose its efficacy and will need to be switched out for a newer model. The good news is that your furnace or heat pump will usually let you know when it needs to be replaced. Just keep an eye out for these six tell-tale signs.

1. 1. Your energy bill keeps going up, up, up! Arizona winters may not be considered record-breaking, but they do still require some heating. This is especially true at night when the temperatures plummet. That being said, your winter energy bill should not be creeping up higher than the ones you get during the summer when the AC is on blast. A sudden increase in energy consumption is a good sign that your heating unit is on its way out. 
2. The unit is 15-20 years old. Most furnaces have a lifespan of about 15 to 20 years. After this time their efficiency will dramatically increase. Not only that, but you risk a total failure of the unit. Instead of waiting for a breakdown, start shopping around for a new furnace. You may find a great deal now instead of having to settle for what you can get later in the middle of a cold snap!
3. Your house sounds like it’s haunted. Due to their nature of creating and distributing warm air throughout your home, furnaces are seldom silent. A little bit of noise is completely normal. But if you start hearing intermittent pinging noises, grinding, or even screeching, your furnace may be letting out its death cry. Call a professional to inspect, but if the noises are very loud and have been going on for a while, the unit may need to be replaced entirely. 
4. You’re constantly paying for repairs. Annual maintenance is one thing. Changing the filter every few months, clearing the area around the unit, and getting your ducts cleaned are all normal parts of maintaining a functioning HVAC system. Having our phone number on speed dial and needing to invest in fixes every month is a completely different story. As much as we love talking to you, that old furnace is costing you more money than it’s worth. Get it replaced before it completely breaks down. 
5. The unit is constantly running. Our mild Arizona winters mean that our heating units shouldn’t be running every minute of the day and night. Most furnaces are designed to cycle, meaning that they will blow for a while and turn off once the house has reached the set temperature. If it never turns off, it means the unit is struggling to hit that goal.
6. You can’t seem to warm up your home evenly. This tends to be one of two issues: your ductwork needs to be checked, or your furnace isn’t equipped to properly and evenly heat your home. In the latter case, you may need to upgrade to a more energy-efficient model that is the right size for your house. Otherwise, you’ll keep cranking up the heat to get rid of those cold spots and you’ll end up wasting hundreds of dollars in utility bills!

If your heating unit is about to give up the ghost, reach out to our team of HVAC professionals at McMillin Air today! We can help assess the problem and talk to you about viable replacement options for your home and budget.