My furnace kicks on about every 10 mins. Should it be set up or down?

  8 answers
  • Shelley Shelley on Oct 29, 2017

    What temp is it set at? If it's too high it will come on more often.

    • Dannise Ross Bartlett Dannise Ross Bartlett on Oct 29, 2017

      Its set at 68. My furnace is over 20 years old, and the thermostat doesn't seem to be to old. Wasn't sure if it was the furnace or not. I have good windows and insulation in the ceiling. (new house to me, first winter)

  • April13 April13 on Oct 29, 2017

    It may be time for a new thermostat. Our furnace was acting weird like that last winter. Hubby replaced the thermostat and all was well. Also, when was the last time your furnace was cleaned/checked?

  • Dannise Ross Bartlett Dannise Ross Bartlett on Oct 29, 2017

    My furnace is over 20 years old, and the thermostat doesn't seem to be to old. Wasn't sure if it was the furnace or not. I have good windows and insulation in the ceiling. (new house to me, first winter)

  • Car2488665 Car2488665 on Oct 29, 2017

    You need to set it down for heat and up for cool

  • Shelley Shelley on Oct 29, 2017

    You might want to get it checked out. Off and on every 10 minutes is way too much.

    • Kevin Kevin on Oct 30, 2021

      I’ve read that 3-8 times is normal. Every 10 minutes would put that at 6 times, per hour. It would be less than 6, when you factor in run time. “How to Air” says an “ideal” session runs for 7 minutes, and takes place every 8-20 minutes. Other places say a furnace should cycle for 10-15 minutes. So I’m confused as to what is normal… and what is too much. It’s almost impossible to get a straight answer from the internet.

  • William William on Oct 30, 2017

    It's time to replace the thermostat. There is a small resistor coil in thermostats called a heat anticipator. It fine tunes the thermostat on and off cycle so the furnace doesn't run beyond or under the set temperature within two degrees +-. This resistor coil does fail and causes the thermostat to open and close causing what we call "short cycling" in the trade where the furnace turns on and off as yours is doing.

  • What do you have it set on? When was the last filter change? (I change mine once a month.) And when was its last check up? Should be looked over and checked at least once a year. I do spring before a/c season and fall before heating season.

  • Adam Adam on Dec 01, 2019

    I'm heating a 3000 square foot home. The current temperature outside is 4 degrees. My oil fired hot air furnace is running for seven minutes and is off for twenty. Thermostats is set to 65. Is this acceptable or do I need to insulate more?