I just had furnaces and ACs replaced with Kenmore/Tempstar equipment
and have some questions. My contractor seemed to be rushing through
the job even more than I’d feared he might. This was confirmed
when I found a gas leak the day after he did the work. He left the
cap on the end of the drip-leg quite loose (not even finger tight).
My complete list of issues totals 14. Most of which I won’t rant on
about here either because they are minor or they are issues I fully
understand.
The furnace is a 92 AFUE 2-stage condensing gas furnace.
The AC is a 14 SEER unit.
Questions:
1. Instructions for furnace specify vent pipe be sloped to drain
condensate back to furnace to be drained off. None of horizontal
PVC pipe is sloped the minimum slope of 1/4 inch per foot. The
longest run has no slope. How big a problem is this?
2. Instructions for furnace specify vent pipe exiting the side of
house to look like this:
<—- 8 in. –>
|—————
|—————
but what I have looks like this:
<—-> 3 in.
|———
|—–|—|<— 90 degree elbow
…….|—|
Should I be concerned?
3. Instructions for AC condenser specify that the two refrigerant
lines be “kept seperate”. They are only seperated by the insulation
on the suction line since the two lines are taped together. This
requirement seems extreme to me, but it is in the instructions.
Should they be seperated?
Replies
If the pipes are horizontal with no low spot to collect condensate, it should be OK, but, not as good as could/should be. If a situation has been created where water/condensate will collect and stay, it needs to be remedied.
As far as the vents at the side of the house, again, not the best practice, but not bad either.
The refrigerant lines being separated by only the 1/2 rubatex on the suction line is normal, accepatble practice. This IS separated.
I would be more concerned about any other portion of the gas line that he touched. Check 'em for leaks. It sounds like you looked everything over pretty well. It doesn't sound like he did too sloppy a job.
Was he the lowest of several to bid the job? What did you get and what did it cost (if you don't mind saying)?
Did you get a new thermostat compatible with two stage heat? (or did you already have a two stage 'stat).
While none of these may be a huge issue, the fact is he did not install it correctly. There is no excuse for this. The manufacturer specifies the installation this way for a reason. If you ever have problems expect problems on warranty issues. If someone is too stupid to follow instructions I have a very low opinion of them. My trade is full of the creeps.
On number 3... they are separated by the insulation and that is enough. That is all they are asking for.
I made my comments realizing I only have one side of the story. You do seem like a reasonable person unlike some who complain here.
There is no reason you should not expect it installed to specs. Anything less is shoddy and unprofessional.