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3398 Washington Road
Atlanta, GA 30344
USA

773.398.5288

Advanced residential construction and home improvement consulting and owner's advocacy in Atlanta, using the latest building performance diagnostic and modeling techniques and tools. Airtightness, insulation, HVAC, ventilation, moisture, and air quality and EMF consulting for homeowners and building professionals alike.

Furnace Comparison: Atmospheric Draft, Induced Draft, and Sealed Combustion (and Barometric Dampers)

Videos/Podcasts/Articles

Home performance articles and stories from the field with internationally respected building forensics guru Corbett Lunsford at the Building Performance Workshop. Hear new episodes of the Building Performance Podcast, see new videos from the Home Performance YouTube channel, and learn all about how diagnostic testing (more than an 'Energy Audit') can make home improvement and new home construction a proven process!

Furnace Comparison: Atmospheric Draft, Induced Draft, and Sealed Combustion (and Barometric Dampers)

Corbett Lunsford

There are 3 main types of furnaces, and the difference is in the venting system to exhaust the combustion gases. Here's a quick guide to how to identify one type of furnace from another, and what they do and don't do.

Natural, or Atmospheric, or Ambient Draft furnaces allow the gases to rise out the chimney powered by their own buoyancy.

Induced Draft furnaces don’t let as much heat escape in the combustion gases (83% efficient and up), and so require a small fan to ‘induce’ the gases to get started.

Sealed Combustion furnaces pull all their combustion air from outdoors, and push all the combustion gases outside with a powerful fan. The gases here are only 100-140 degrees F.

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