Need a new furnace for your home? Quality furnace installation can help add a warm and cozy feel to your home during the winter season. However, there are many different types of furnaces available to choose from, with each designed with specific needs in mind. This can make it tough to pick the best furnace for your home. 

There are several things to take into account if you want to get the most out of your new furnace. The following tips should help you pick the right home heating solution.

1. Determine your home's heating load.

Just like you need to determine the cooling load of your home when you're shopping for a new air conditioner or cooling system, you'll need to calculate its heating load before installing a furnace. Your home's total heating load will determine what size heating equipment to install in your home and this depends on a variety of factors including the following:

• Home size measured in square footage.
• Type and thickness of residential insulation
• Number and size of windows
• Ceiling height

All the above factors and more influence the heating load of your entire home, which is measured in British thermal units (BTUs). Be sure to choose a furnace model rated to deliver as much heat output as your home requires.

2. Consider the energy efficiency rating of your furnace.

Furnaces can be significant consumers of energy in the home, regardless of whether they're powered by electricity, oil, or natural gas. Choosing the first furnace product you come across simply because it matches your residential heating load can prove to be an expensive mistake.

Before you purchase and install a new furnace, look at its annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE). AFUE is the metric used to measure the energy efficiency of home heating systems such as furnaces and boilers. A higher AFUE number denotes greater energy efficiency. Furnace products with a high AFUE number generally cost more to buy but they often result in lower your monthly heating expenses. 

3. Choose your fuel type.

As aforementioned, furnaces can use the power of natural gas, oil, or electricity to produce heat. Of the three fuel options, gas and electric furnaces are the most popular. Gas is generally preferred over oil because it delivers cleaner energy and is more economical. 

Gas furnaces are also cheaper to run than electric models although they're relatively more expensive to purchase and install. Their higher initial investment pays off well over the long term where gas is locally available.

Need heating installation service for your home? Contact a residential heating installer like Beyer Heating for assistance.