Furnace Efficiency 80 Vs 95
The higher the afue percentage the more efficient a furnace is at converting gas into heating energy.
Furnace efficiency 80 vs 95. In this scenario an 80 furnace running on low most of the time will be about as efficient as a 95 furnace running on high all the time. That means a 95 afue furnace will cost less to run than an 80 afue furnace. A furnace will put out its rated output regardless of whether it is 80 or 95 efficient. In this type of furnace 20 of the energy produced by natural gas is expelled as exhaust.
If it s located in an unconditioned space then the moisture condensation issues that accompany high efficiency furnaces may dictate that you pick the 80 unit. The distinction is how much gas or other fuel you use to get the 100 000 btu. High efficiency furnaces offer 90 or more afue. The price of the furnaces will be similar too since the 80 unit has a two stage gas valve probably a nicer blower motor while the 95 s is a single stage valve with a cheaper motor.
So a 95 furnace is more efficient than an 80 furnace. Both heat the same. Furnaces that are more than 15 years old are usually single stage and have efficiencies in the range of 56 to 70 afue. An 80 efficiency furnace burns natural gas using open combustion by pulling air from the surrounding area and exhausting the waste up the chimney.
A 95 furnace will pull in outdoor air via a dedicated pvc pipe. But besides the level of efficiency another key difference between the 80 afue and 95 afue furnaces is that they operate a little differently. A 95 efficiency furnace is 15 more efficient than an 80 efficiency furnace in terms of afue. When you need a new heater and you get a estimates in most cases the cost to install a new furnace is about the same to install a 80 percent vs a 95 except for some venting in some cases the cost of the furnace is a little more labor little more cost to do business same venting a little more in most cases effiency is huge and the impact on the environment well you decide i just sell have.
Efficiency is probably lost because the 95 furnace is now oversized and short cycling to an extent. These days 95 afue is a common rating among new gas powered furnaces. Thus a 100 000 btu furnace will put out up to 100 000 btu regardless of whether it is 80 or 95 efficient. Another thing to keep in mind when choosing between 80 and 95 is where the furnace will be physically located.
For this comparison exercise we will assume a 65 afue furnace is getting replaced by a standard efficiency 80 or a high efficiency 95 furnace. A 95 efficiency furnace uses sealed combustion where the heating unit pulls air in from outdoors instead of using air in the home. The 95 efficient bigger furnace would just deliver this in a shorter period of time than the 80 furnace.