What is a Multi-Speed Furnace?

Winters in Fairfax, Virginia can bring-very cold days and nights that require full furnace power. But sometimes you don’t need the furnace on full blast to combat the chilly weather. A multi-speed furnace is a great energy-saving option when your home needs heat, but doesn’t need the furnace to run at full capacity all the time.

Understanding Furnace Stages

The various furnace stages refer to how hard the blower needs to work to provide hot air for your home. In a single stage furnace, the furnace is always running at 100 percent capacity, even if your home doesn’t need very much heat. Multi-stage furnaces were developed as a way to save energy by running the furnace’s blower at a lower capacity when 100 percent heating capacity isn’t necessary.

Multi-Speed Furnaces are More Efficient

Multi-speed furnaces, also known as multi-stage or variable-speed furnaces, run at several energy levels. Multi-stage furnaces can cut the blower capacity down to as low as 40 percent, so you can have just the level of heat you need and save money and energy. Multi-stage furnaces are more costly, but they can have annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE) above 94 percent. The most advanced multi-stage furnaces also are able to recycle exhaust heat.

Two-Stage, Three-Stage, and Multi-Stage

A two-stage furnace is also sometimes called a multi-stage furnace. However multi-stage furnaces can have more than just two stages. Two-stage furnaces have low and high options, while three-stage furnaces have low, medium, and high settings. If you want a true multi-stage furnace, you will enjoy more than just two or three efficiency levels. Some furnaces can be used with a smart thermostat to get the desired level of efficiency for even more energy savings.

To find out more about multi-stage furnaces, or to replace your old furnace with an upgraded multi-stage model, turn to the professionals at Brennan’s Heating and Air Conditioning. Call us today at 703-783-0145.

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