There are two big parts of how a furnace works: firstly the heat exchanger and secondly the blower fan motor.

What happens when you turn the furnace on?

What actually happens when the furnace comes on is, the furnace vacuums air in or draws air in through the cold air return vents.

The air is vacuumed into the furnace and is drawn through an air filter. The blower fan motor, located at the bottom of the furnace, then pushes the air up through a heat exchanger.

The heat exchanger is a great big metal chamber that holds the fire, whether you’re dealing with a natural gas furnace and oil furnace, a propane furnace or an electric furnace, as that air passes by the heat exchanger the air warms up.

So what actually happens is that cool air passes by that hot steel, it warms up the air and then hot air is distributed throughout the house.

What does the blower fan motor do?

The blower fan motor is located down near the bottom of the furnace, regardless of what fuel it is. The blower fan motor is what drives the entire convection of air in the house.

If you think about all the air that’s coming out of the supply registers in your bedroom or in your living room, and all the air that’s being drawn into the return airs. All of that air is being driven by the blower fan motor.

Not only is the blower fan motor important when heating your house it’s also very important when cooling your house.

If you have a Central Air Conditioner or Heat Pump in your home, the blower fan motor is what is responsible for moving air past the coil. The coil can add or remove heat from the air. When that heat is removed from the air, naturally the temperature of the airdrops and the humidity of the airdrops. The blower fan then distributes nice cool, dry air is throughout your home.

And if the blower fan motor is a good, powerful motor, it is going to deliver the proper temperatures to our house. Whether we’re heating, or whether we’re cooling, a blower fan motor is definitely an important part of a furnace.

So when you’re installing or replacing the furnace there are a couple of things to look at. The first is the blower fan motor. The second thing is the heat exchanger. You want to make sure you have a good heat exchanger with a good warranty on it.

When you’re ready to install or replace your next furnace, give us a call for a free consultation to determine your needs, and we will be happy to help.