Dangerous Furnace Fixed Before Winter Hits

The furnace wouldn’t turn on.

In South Dakota as winter approached, that was bad news for Frances and her husband.

“We turned it on, and there was no heat,” Frances said.

The average temperature hovers between highs of 32 degrees Fahrenheit and lows of 10 degrees Fahrenheit during the winter in South Dakota. Frances and her husband could not go into the prairie winter without heat.

However, Frances had a plan offered from HomeServe, introduced to her through a partnership between HomeServe and Montana-Dakota Utilities. When she moved into the home in 2010, her son, who had lived there prior to her, already had a plan in place.

“So, we figured we would just keep it,” Frances said.

That had proved to be a good idea when, in 2019, they had a gas valve, thermocouple and capacitor replaced on the furnace, which saved Frances almost $700 and allowed her to get another five years of use out of the unit.

Frances had used her plan for a second time earlier this year, when the same furnace wouldn’t turn off – the exactly opposite problem she was now experiencing. HomeServe had covered a visit from Glenn Foltz and Sons Electric, Heating and Cooling to resolve the problem, saving Frances $175.

“Glenn (Foltz, owner of Foltz and Sons) told us then that it looked like it would eventually need to be replaced,” she said.

Now, with winter coming on, that prediction looked like it had become a reality. The heat exchanger shield had failed, and that could allow dangerous gases, like carbon monoxide, into Frances’ living spaces. ?

“It was Glenn who came out here and said that it can’t be fixed,” Frances said. “There was a hole up in there, and Glenn was worried about gases, so he shut off the (natural) gas that day so we wouldn’t get any fumes from it.”

Without HomeServe’s help, Frances and her husband, who were both retired and on a fixed income while they helped care for their chronically ill child, would not be able to make the repair, which would have otherwise cost $4990.

Glenn and his crew got an A-plus from Frances, who noted they communicated well, showed up on time and tidied up after themselves.

“They were really nice guys and they worked fast and furious,” she said. “They did a very good job and knew what they were talking about. I like Glenn. He really wants to help you out. He cares about you. He was a big help. If I have another repair, I’m going to ask for him. I was very satisfied with the whole thing.”