When you invest in a new propane furnace, the efficiency rating of your equipment should be one of your most important considerations; much like miles per gallon in your car, an efficiency rating will tell you how much heating bang you’re likely to get for your energy buck.
One of the key measures of efficiency in heating equipment is AFUE, or Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency rating (on newer models, you will find a unit’s AFUE rating on a yellow sticker on your equipment; older models may not have an AFUE rating).
An AFUE rating tells you how much heat the furnace will produce compared to the amount of energy it needs to produce heat – in a furnace with an 85 AFUE rating, for example, 85 percent of the fuel it consumes will ultimately end up as heat in your home; the rest of that energy will be lost along the way.
On some older furnaces – or furnaces that have lost their label – an AFUE rating is not available – but you can still get a rough idea of a system’s efficiency by its equipment features. Here are the D.O.E.’s guidelines for identifying a low-, medium-, and high efficiency furnace:
Old, low-efficiency heating systems (56-70 AFUE)
Mid-efficiency heating systems (80-83 AFUE)
High-efficiency heating systems (90 to 98.5 AFUE)
Of course if you want to take the guesswork out of the equation and get the most accurate reading of the efficiency rating of your furnace in your home, we can do that for you – contact us to learn more.
Minimum requirements for furnace AFUE ratings are set by the federal government. Here are the current minimum furnace efficiency requirements for warm air furnaces, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE):
WARM-AIR FURNACES: MINIMUM EFFICIENCY REQUIREMENTS
| Equipment Type | Size Category (Input) | Subcategory or Rating Condition | Minimum Efficiency |
| Warm-air furnace, gas fired | < 225,000 Btu/h | Maximum capacity | ≥ 95.0% (U.S. North/Canada) |
| ≥ 90.0% (U.S. South) | |||
| ≥ 225,000 Btu/h* | Maximum capacity | 80% Et | |
| Warm-air furnace, oil fired | < 225,000 Btu/h | Maximum capacity | ≥ 85% AFUE |
| ≥ 225,000 Btu/h* | Maximum capacity | 81% Et | |
| * Furnaces with input equal to or greater than 225,000 Btu/h are not covered by federal purchasing requirements. Minimum efficiency presented is consistent with ASRHAE 90.1-2013. | |||
These minimum efficiency requirements are significantly higher than they were even 10-20 years ago – a big part of the reason why upgrading to a high efficiency propane furnace is often one of the smartest moves you can make for your home comfort.
Want to know EXACTLY what the efficiency of your current furnace is? We can tell you! Contact us to schedule an appointment and we’ll measure the performance of your furnace in your home. We can then break down how much investing in a new high efficiency furnace could save you so you can make the best decision possible for your home heating system.
