We all know the sounds of our furnace when it is in use. What are those noises that your furnace keeps making, though? What do they mean? Are you actually hearing something or are they just vibrations that you are sensing? What is causing them to happen and what can be done about them? Let’s go through some of the most common noises made by furnaces today. Most of them have a logical explanation for how they happened and possible solutions on how to fix them so that they don’t happen again.
Furnace Rattling Noise
The most common cause for a furnace that rattles is that one or more of the bolts holding the heat exchanger in place has come loose. The heat exchanger is essentially the core of the furnace as it functions as where all of your hot air gets produced from burning fuel, such as gas or oil.
What’s happening here is that as the furnace either start-up or continues to run, there are vibrations caused by those loose bolts which cause a rattle noise to be heard. In some instances, this noise will continue throughout operation but should not present any safety concerns at all. What you’ll want to do is check around the heat exchanger for any loose bolts. If you happen to find one that’s loose, tighten it with a wrench until it can no longer be tightened. If there are none that are visibly loose then have an HVAC technician come out to look at your furnace as you might have a bigger issue on your hands.
Furnace Clicking Noise A furnace that is clicking sounds exactly as it is.
What’s happening here is that your flame rectification sensor, which essentially makes sure the furnace has a good flame going before attempting to heat the unit up, is trying to fire but cannot do so because there isn’t a decent enough flame being produced for it to work correctly. What you’ll want to do if you have this problem is first to ensure that there isn’t some debris blocking the airflow to the burner assembly. If it’s clear then your next step would be to replace this part of your furnace with a new one.
Furnace Popping Noise
As with many noises made by furnaces, this one too has a simple explanation for what’s going on. What happens here when you hear your furnace popping is that there may have been some sort of blockage in one of the burners which caused it to shut down. What’s causing this blockage could be any number of things from crumbs in the vent or even just a pocket of gas being ignited in your gas supply line outside and being released indoors through the burner assembly. What you’ll want to have done is check all around your burners to ensure they are clear and aren’t logged with anything preventing proper airflow. What you’ll also need to do is check around your gas line outside to ensure it isn’t missing a cap or anything that could cause a pocket of gas to be trapped and ignite inside.
Furnace Squealing Noise
This noise is much different from all of the others in that it’s not a rattle or a click. What happens here when you hear your furnace squealing is that there might be some friction occurring between certain parts of your furnace, such as the blower itself and other internal components. What you’ll want to do if this sound persists is replace any faulty moving components with new ones. What you’ll also need to check for if this problem persists, though, is to make sure there isn’t too much debris built up on the blower and around the outside vent where suction occurs.
Furnace Maintenance by DeZiel Heating & AC, Inc If you are dealing with some strange noises from your furnace, we got you covered. Get in touch with our team today by giving us a call at (763) 200-5453 . Our team of experts will be more than happy to assist you and make your furnace run like new again.
