Furnace

[Dusty MI]

We have an Ultra SX-80 High Efficiency Furnace by Armstrong, in our home, Lennox is also by Armstrong. How many here have an Ultra furnace? How old is it? Should I be replacing ours?
It is now 28 years old, which seems old for a furnace.
Many-many years ago I did furnace work and never liked Lennox furnace.

Thanks

 

[Steve@Advance]

That is getting up in years.

How does the heat exchanger look? Rust falling on the burners? Any strange
blowing or fire rolling out? Discoloring around the vents? Do you have a CO
detector?

The new ones are probably more efficient but won't last as long.

 

[Oregon Tractor Jack]

Our neighbor is an HVAC contractor and I asked him the same question about my furnace. Usually the heat exchanger is what goes bad. It might have small cracks in it and will start to leak. You need to have an HVAC contractor inspect and test for CO in the ducts. HVAC contractors use CO detectors that are much more sensitive and can detect minute amounts of CO in the air were your home detector won't. At that age, I would have it inspected right away. With the current state of affairs in general, you don't know how long it would take to get a new furnace.

OTJ

 

[John T]

Dusty, I dont know how high efficiency furnaces worked 28 years ago. The High Efficiency Nat gas I
installed 4 years ago (seems like 95% if I recall) is the type that uses a PVC pipe for exhaust versus the
old traditional flu or chimney. Have a HVAC tech check it out and I believe there are some actual
professional HVAC techs on here or others not that are kind enough to research it and provide you what they
discover. Still if it aint broke dont fix it maybe

You going to the Zephyrhills Florida area again this winter where we met before ?? Still travelling in a
Class C RV ??

Your sparky friend, John T

 

[Dusty MI]

(quoted from post at 08:16:15 10/30/22) Our neighbor is an HVAC contractor and I asked him the same question about my furnace. Usually the heat exchanger is what goes bad. It might have small cracks in it and will start to leak. You need to have an HVAC contractor inspect and test for CO in the ducts. HVAC contractors use CO detectors that are much more sensitive and can detect minute amounts of CO in the air were your home detector won't. At that age, I would have it inspected right away. With the current state of affairs in general, you don't know how long it would take to get a new furnace.

OTJ

I should have added, we go to the land of warm weather & sunshine for the winter and turn the t-stat down as far as it will go, also turn the water off & drain the pipes & add RV antifreeze to the traps.

 

[Johnhof]

Other comments re safety and age are right on. To make the purchase easier I suspect that a step up in efficiency at current fuel prices would help pay for it. I
dont have a brand favorite but do have a new one with the pvc exhaust. Being away last winter from the Indiana farmhouse i only burned mabey 100 gallons propane
with thermo at 42.

 

[Dusty MI]

John,
A couple years ago we bought a Park-Model RV, so now we drive our Ford Explorer, and it only takes 2 days and 1 night, we sleep some in it.
We still have the RV lot, we should sell or maybe rent the lot.

Dusty

 

[Dusty MI]

John,
A couple years ago we bought a Park-Model RV, so now we drive our Ford Explorer, and it only takes 2 days and 1 night, we sleep some in it.
We still have the RV lot, we should sell or maybe rent the lot.

Dusty

 

[Stephen Newell]

Do some homework before you replace your furnace if it has central air with it. Rumor has it next year they are going to ban the coolant used in air conditioning units. To service it you
would have to replace the entire AC part of it.

 

[Geo-TH,In]

How long will it last?
Your 80% has lasted 28 years. My friend had a higher efficiency
furnace that lasted 15 years..
My theory is if it isn't broken, don't fix it.


When I had a gas furnace, I had a digital CO detector in every
bedroom and living room.

One time I was working on my daughter's car in my attached
garage. Dang if the CO detector didn't show the presence of CO.

I would keep the furnace until it shows the presence of CO.
If your AC is 28 years old too, then replace both if the AC or
furnace goes bad.

 

[Hay hay hay]

My experience only. I put in a very very high efficiency HVAC system when I built this house 10years ago. Works great when it works, but it
is so complicated that the local HVAC service people have a hard time working on it. If they are here for 2 hours, they spend an hour on the
phone with the manufacturer trying to figure out what to do. Maybe like the new tractors I read about. My system is York and I would not buy
another one.

 

[Geo-TH,In]

Add to your comments.
The parts for high efficiency HVAC systems
are extremely expensive to replace..

 

[Janicholson]

We have a Rheem 96% furnace (about 8 years old) the Lenox Pulse furnace that was in the house had a heat exchanger failure one year past warranty GRRRRRR as the John T would say. We needed to drain condensate into a small pumped reservoir to eliminate it into the drain system. I then changed the exhaust tube from going up the chimney, to a much shorter path out the wall sense then we have had zero condensate inside. Jim

 

[spacecadet9]

(quoted from post at 16:29:41 10/30/22) Rumor has it next year they are going to ban the coolant used in air conditioning units.

When the HVAC tech was here, yesterday, I ask about the change in refrigerant. He said it's changing to a propane base with a detergent add to suppress combustion. It's supposed to be more efficient.