One of the reasons that furnaces are so popular for home heating is because they are reliable. A furnace that receives regular annual maintenance should encounter few troubles during the winter season, even with high demand placed on it. But sometimes that reliability can vanish, such as when a furnace keeps shutting down because it trips the circuit breaker.

Why does a circuit breaker affect a gas furnace?

If you use a gas furnacebthe most common type of furnacebthen you might think itbs strange that an electrical circuit breaker could cause it to stop working. But the modern gas furnace requires electrical power in order to turn on because the old pilot flame has been replaced with electronic ignition systems. The blower fan and other parts of the air handler also require electrical power.

Reasons the furnace is tripping the circuit breaker

The most likely reason for a tripped circuit breaker is that the blower is over-strained because of a dirty air filter. This filter needs to be changed regularly throughout the year whenever either the furnace or the air conditioner is working. A technician will change out the filter during fall maintenance, but youbll need to change it on your own every 1 to 3 months. If your furnace turns off because of a tripped breaker, the air filter is the first thing you should check.
There are other reasons for extra stress on the blower. There may be blocked air vents in the rooms; check to make sure all the vents are open and unobstructed. A more serious possibility is that there are leaks in the ventilation system allowing air to escape before it reaches the room vents. In this case, you will need to contact professionals for duct sealing.
One final thing to keep in mind is that the furnace actually might not be the cause of the tripped breaker. The furnace might share the circuit with another appliance, or the breaker panel itself might be damaged.
If you change the air filter in your furnace, but it still causes a tripped breaker when it starts, donbt try to investigate the problem on your own. Call on our heating professionals and theybll get to the root of the problem.

Comfort Central, Inc. serves Mills River and throughout Western North Carolina. Webre invested in doing each job right the first time.