Furnace Installation and Replacement in Guelph

Guelph has both very old and fairly new housing, and a furnace replacement looks different in each.

The Ward, downtown, Exhibition Park and Old University. Many of these homes date from the late 1800s to the mid-1900s. Some still have a mid-efficiency furnace venting into a masonry chimney. Every new gas furnace sold today is a high-efficiency condensing model with plastic side-wall venting, so we plan a vent route that meets code on often narrow lots. A gas water heater left alone in the old chimney may need a liner. Condensing furnaces also need a drain or condensate pump. And because ducts in these homes were often added in stages, we measure airflow and tell you whether a return or duct change is worth doing during the install.

Kortright Hills. Built largely in the 1980s and 1990s, many homes here are now on a second furnace that's approaching 15 to 20 years. Ducts are usually decent, but returns can be undersized for a modern variable-speed blower.

Westminster Woods and the South End. Builder-grade furnaces from the late 1990s and 2000s are reaching replacement age. These swaps are usually straightforward, with existing plastic venting. Sizing is the main question: builders often oversized furnaces, so sizing to the house can mean a smaller, quieter unit.

For most Guelph homes, a two-stage furnace with a variable-speed blower is the best value. It runs on low through most of the winter for quieter, steadier heat, and steps up on the coldest nights near the region's design temperature of around -19°C to -20°C. Single-stage furnaces cost less; modulating furnaces cost more and give the most even heat.

If your air conditioner is also old, consider a cold-climate heat pump paired with your new furnace. Guelph homes buy gas from Enbridge and electricity from Alectra Utilities, so homeowners can generally apply for Home Renovation Savings Program rebates on qualifying heat pumps. Check current eligibility in our Ontario heat pump rebate guide, and see our heat pump vs furnace guide for the trade-offs.

A standard high-efficiency gas furnace typically runs somewhere around $5,000 to $9,000 installed in this region. Century homes needing new vent routes, chimney liners or duct work cost more, as do variable-speed and modulating models. These are typical market ranges, not our prices. Your quote depends on the furnace, venting, ducts and your home.

Our furnace replacement cost guide explains what drives the price, and financing is available.

A furnace replacement in Guelph goes best when it's planned. In the fall you can compare options, check rebates for a heat pump add-on, and schedule the work. In a January breakdown, you take what's available that week.

If your furnace is close to 20 years old, is an original builder unit in Westminster Woods or the South End, or has needed repairs two winters in a row, get a quote while it still works. In older homes in the Ward and Exhibition Park, planning ahead also leaves time to sort out venting and duct changes properly.

We install furnaces in the Ward, downtown, Exhibition Park, Old University, Kortright Hills, Westminster Woods, Grange Hill East and across the South End. All gas work is done by licensed gas technicians, and we're TSSA-registered.

Not sure you need a new one? A furnace repair visit in Guelph gets you a straight repair-versus-replace answer. See our furnace installation service page for how an install day works, and the Guelph HVAC page for everything else we do in the city.