Gas-powered furnaces are not inherently dangerous appliances. This is something we want to clarify right away! We aren’t looking to panic you just because you choose to heat your home with a gas-powered furnace. But like any other powerful appliance in your home that uses gas, hazards can happen if it’s not well cared for.
When a gas-powered system isn’t well cared for, you risk one component failure in particular you never want to have—a cracked heat exchanger. This is most likely to happen with an aging heater (10-15 years old or older). For this reason we recommend looking into a replacement once your furnace has reached about a decade. Routine maintenance will help you avoid this problem, but it’s still a problem you should be aware of.