7 Types of Furnace Hot Surface Ignitor Problems & Ways to Fix
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Types of Furnace Ignition Issues
A hot surface ignitor is the most effective and efficient way to heat your home using a modern-day gas furnace. However, like with any home appliance, it’s still susceptible to several issues from its day-to-day operation. To help you diagnose issues with your furnace, we have compiled a list of different types of hot surface ignitor issues and troubleshooting methods.
Overuse
If your gas furnace turns on and off too frequently, it kills the life of the furnace’s ignitor—as well as the whole unit. This typically occurs if your home had an improperly-sized furnace installed, so you can schedule us to find you the right-sized replacement furnace.
Gas Pressure
The gas flame the hot surface ignitor is exposed to during operation breaks it down little by little over time. If the system is installed improperly, it could pressurize and overheat the flame so that the ignitor breaks down faster. We can correct this following a home visit!
Radiant Heat
If your heat exchanger overheats, it could radiate that heat to the furnace ignitor and damage it. When the system shuts down to correct this overheating, ensure the cool-down fan is on for at least a minute or two to prevent this.
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Broken Control Board
The control board is what signals the igniter to turn on and begin the heating process. If your control board begins malfunctioning, then the igniter will be left on for too long and begin wearing down prematurely. At the first sign of trouble, call us straight away so we can order a replacement as needed.
Contamination
Air particulates that circulate around your home can make their way into your furnace and land on your hot surface ignitor. Once on it, dust, condensation dirt, rust, and other contaminants will get burned and gunk it up. Scheduling Team Electric semi-regularly for maintenance should alleviate this.
Incorrect Voltage
If the voltage powering your furnace ignitor comes in too high, the ignitor could break down immediately or more rapidly over time to take out other gas furnace components, like the control board, along with it. We can check this out during a routine inspection.
Weak HSI
For being so important to the heating of your home, the hot surface ignitor is pretty fragile. It can break even under the professional cleaning of another HVAC repair company! Have the licensed and certified technicians at Team Electric handle it instead.
How a Hot Surface Ignitor Works
Your home’s heating process begins when your thermostat signals that it’s colder than the minimum set temperature.
The gas furnace ignitor in a hot surface ignition system is usually made from silicon nitride or carbide so that when electricity is passed through it, it will glow hot. When the unit’s gas valve opens, the gas flowing over the hot surface ignitor will ignite going into the burners. As soon as the flame sensor—which is sometimes the ignitor itself—determines a fire is sitting in the burner, the igniter shuts off until it’s needed again.
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The Differences Between Hot Surface Ignition Systems and Pilot Lights
In the past, most homes were heated with gas furnaces using pilot lights. Still seen in some older houses today, a pilot light is a small flame that always stays lit. This is so your furnace can use it to light up the gas whenever the system turns on.
Hot surface ignitors are preferred in modern homes because they consume less energy than leaving a controlled flame burning perpetually. For this reason, and because they require less maintenance, furnace ignitors are also less expensive. Pilot lights have to be cleaned relatively frequently so that the flame doesn’t stop burning due to a gunked up burner: costing you time and money.
Heating & Furnace Repair Services
Team Electric is not only equipped to repair a broken hot surface ignitor system, but we can expertly handle all types of furnaces: gas, oil, electric, single-stage, two-stage, and modulating. We offer dependable emergency heating services such as furnace tune-up, boiler installation, heat pump maintenance, and furnace repair. Our technicians look out for your best interest by completely optimizing your system, which helps you save enormously on monthly bills due to minimized heat loss and energy consumption. Book us here or at (732) 201-3305 to experience high-quality, affordable, and convenient heating services you can rely on—even during the most brutal winters.
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