No auto !! only manual !!

[Elmer Fudge]

Okay i turned on the heat for the first time this season and what do you know? no heat,T/stat set to auto ,temp setting set to 75 degrees,system setting moved over to heat all i got was a loud click from the unit in the attic.So i'm thinking, well, just give it a minute and it'll kick on,...two minutes....three...four.. hey!! this ain't the norm,so i shut it down,switch from auto to fan and WOOOAAAHH!!! The whole house filled up with smoke.all the smoke alarms started blaring.SO! i opened all windows,doors turned on the celing fans,grabbed a couple of portable one's from the garage and promptly begin to air the place out.Brrrr!! After freezing of the you know what, for a while,i switch the system back to heat.Left it on fan and VOILA!!I started to get heat.But when i switch from fan back to auto..Nothing happens. some body explain to me what's going on here?

 

[eurolarva]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

I am assuming this is a gas furnace. YOu need to call a pro. Your heat exchanger could be cracked or your floe is blocked up. Gas furnaces turn burners on for about 30 seconds before the blowers come on. This is so that the fan does not blow cold air through the house. The reason the burners are kicking off is that there is not enough oxygen in the burn chamber to keep the fire burning. When you turn the fan on you are giving the furnace the air it needs to burn. If the heat exchanger is cracked or the floe is plugged you are running a big chance of carbon monoxide poisoning. Call your gas company and tell them your carbon monoxide detector went off. They will usually come out and send someone free of charge.

 

[eurolarva]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Are you still with us Elmer? Did you get your funace fixed or did it fix you?

 

[Elmer Fudge]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Hey eurolarva, terribly sorry i am for not getting back to you sooner. my neighbor came over and had a look at it,he found a couple of roofing tiles stuck in the air intake vent, it works terrific now, that crap got in there somehow when i had a new roof put on due to some rather nasty hail storms which walloped the north Dallas area early last summer.so you were right in mentioning a plugged floe, that thought probably would'nt have occured to us in a million years,saved me a few bucks,you did.Thanks,i owe you one,if you ever make it down this way i'll buy the drinks .

 

[Xcusme]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Just a friendly word of caution .....<br /><br />If you don't have a CO(carbon monoxide) detector...get one...they are cheap insurance. It's sad that every year I read or hear about some poor souls loosing their lives to a silent killer.<br /><br />A few years back, a family lost 7 members to CO just down the block. These folks had just bought this house and came from Mexico. There was a problem with the furnace flue. They called a 'contractor' who jury rigged the flue without fastening the sections with sheet metal screws. The flue shifted, blocking the exhaust gases.<br /><br />Be smart, be safe , and have a GREAT holiday season.

 

[Elmer Fudge]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Carbon monoxide detectors is a must in every home "imho" i have one in every room including the hall way.<br />I'm getting a home alarm installed and would like to know if i should, as recomended by the service rep, hook them up so that they're monitored along with the other sensors?

 

[Xcusme]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Elmer,<br />Having been in the home security trade for 30 years, I would have the CO detectors monitored 24/7. The CO detectors will be a 24hr zone and are 'ON' all of the time. Being connected to your main alarm panel means no batteries to replace (or forget !)

 

[Elmer Fudge]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Thanks for the advice, will do, i was worried about when cooking sometimes a smokey kitchen might unintentionly invite the fire dept,but i was told that the alarm co will call first to prevent any false alarms.

 

[Xcusme]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Good call....the Central Monitoring Station should call you to verify the signal. They may want your account number and pass code , so keep it handy. If there's no answer when they call, they will roll the trucks. Worse case scenario, you are overcome by fumes and can't grab the phone. They 'open' your door and check things out. Doors and locks are cheap, lives are not.<br /><br />Be sure to follow a periodic system check to the central station from time to time to make sure all signaling is working OK. Usually takes just a few minutes. You call them FIRST and tell them you want to put your account on test. Activate system, then reset alarm. Call them back and verify that the proper signals were received.

 

[Elmer Fudge]

Re: No auto !! only manual !!

Terrific info, I appreciate the advice,the installation will be in a few days,there ain't nothing like peace of mind