This is normal
Probably normal: the warm-up delay
Carrier says a 30 to 60 second delay before warm air arrives is normal. Give it a minute.
Why this happens
When a furnace starts, it lights and warms the heat exchanger before the blower pushes air through the house. Carrier lists this normal warm-up delay among the reasons you might feel cool air at first, and puts it at 30 to 60 seconds. Some furnaces also run the blower briefly after the heat shuts off, which can feel cool.
What to do
- Wait at least a full minute after the furnace starts, then feel the air at a vent.
- If it warms up, nothing is wrong.
- If it's still cold after several minutes, go back and work through the rest of the questions.
If it still worries you, tell the HVAC technician
- How long you waited after the furnace started.
- Whether the air ever turned warm.
Build the full list: what to tell the HVAC technician.
Start this troubleshooter over
References (every fact above comes from one of these pages)
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