Someone recommend a forced air gas furnace.

[Reasonable Doubt]

Someone recommend a forced air gas furnace.

I'm need a new one now. Looking for recommendations.

I have about 1100 sq ft of living space total among 2 floors.

Any help appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I have exact same square footage, I have a Bryant 60,000 BTU. I'm not sure about all the good brands but I know Bryant is pretty well known. Never really had any major issues. It's older so I've fixed it up a few times but nothing crazy.

Any high efficiency condensing furnace should be pretty decent. Maybe look at dual stage or modulating if you're buying new. Some are like 98% efficient now days which is pretty crazy. I'd probably go dual stage over modulating as modulating is probably way more complex which means harder to fix.

 

[Kaido]

I just got an 80% Goodman. It's a budget brand, but I have a good installer guy locally who puts them in all the time who recommended it, so I went with it. I would have gotten a 90% model, but we couldn't vent as required due to our setup. Very happy with it...pretty quiet & keeps the place warm. We just turned it on last week!

 

[RLGL]

5 year old carrier 98% very happy with it. Heating 2 levels about 1200 sq ft ea level

 

[Pick2]

We had a new Trane furnace / AC unit installed in '03 , it has been a train wreck since year one. Almost every year something major goes out on it , it's been nothing but trouble.

 

[Reasonable Doubt]

5 year old carrier 98% very happy with it. Heating 2 levels about 1200 sq ft ea level

Is the 98% referring to the AFUE?

 

[BoomerD]

I miss having a gas furnace, water heater and range...all electric sucks.

 

[skull]

Just go with a base model single stage high effciency like a goodman gmss96 or any decent brand rheem, bryant/carrier. They're all pretty much the same, unlike installers. Hire a reputable installer that does load calcs. Don't let any one try to talk you in to the high end junk either, its more expensive, more prone to break and more expensive to fix when it breaks.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I miss having a gas furnace, water heater and range...all electric sucks.

They do make electric forced air furnaces, but make sure you stock up on lube for when it's time to pay the hydro bill. I guess that goes for electric heat in general though. I can't imagine being on only electric. As much as it's greener, it just makes no financial sense because of the rate at which they keep hiking the hydro prices. Despite price of oil it seems the natural gas prices have been decently stable other than a couple hikes in the past year. I was able to get my bill down to $95/mo at one point before the last hike.

 

[bfun_x1]

Do you live somewhere that has a long cold season? If so a 2 stage furnace is a nice choice. With 2 stages the furnace will run at a lower output for longer periods which helps circulate the warm air through the house. Single stages are more prone to hot and cold spots. 2 stages and variable speed fans also work well with your AC to better cool the house in the summer. AC fans are too expensive to run all the time but variable speed DC fans can be run all day if needed and that will help distribute the cold air through the house. If you have rooms that are always hotter than the rest of the house a variable speed fan can help fix that. It's also better to under size your furnace than oversize. Do let the sales guy sell you on a bigger furnace than needed.

 

[RLGL]

Is the 98% referring to the AFUE?

yep

 

[tynopik]

They do make electric forced air furnaces, but make sure you stock up on lube for when it's time to pay the hydro bill. I guess that goes for electric heat in general though. I can't imagine being on only electric. As much as it's greener, it just makes no financial sense because of the rate at which they keep hiking the hydro prices.

electric resistive heat basically never makes sense (unless you were using it to run mining rigs? hmmm)

however heat pumps, especially ground-sourced, make a lot of sense for many climates. But perhaps not Canada.

 

[BoomerD]

yeah, we have an electric forced air furnace...with a heat pump. thankfully, we've never had to turn it to "emergency heat" which relies totally on the electric furnace...

 

[Reasonable Doubt]

yep

How much did you pay?

Do you have a link?

 

[Mayne]

I only install Rheem.

 

[BurnItDwn]

My Goodman that "skul" installed is great.
Just be aware, modern efficient furnaces have their input & exhaust pipes pretty close to ground level. Deep snow can be a problem in the winter, critters can be a problem in the summer.

 

[gill77]

During a remodel a while back went with high efficiency gas. Now wish it was a mini-split.

 

[WilliamM2]

My Goodman that "skul" installed is great.
Just be aware, modern efficient furnaces have their input & exhaust pipes pretty close to ground level. Deep snow can be a problem in the winter, critters can be a problem in the summer.

Rodents/Birds can be a problem year round. I use these in the winter, a little pricey but work well:

https://pvcventscreens.com/product/pvs-rs2-2/

I use a home made window screen version in the spring/summer/fall when it's above freezing to keep out bees and ants too. Can't use the finer screen in the winter as it will freeze over.

As far as snow, code here is intake/exhaust must be 2 feet off the ground. Snow usually melts around the foundation anyways.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Rodents/Birds can be a problem year round. These are pricey but work well:

https://pvcventscreens.com/product/pvs-rs2-2/

I use a home made window screen version in the spring/summer/fall when it's above freezing to keep out bees and ants too. Can't use the finer screen in the winter as it will freeze over.

As far as snow, code here is intake/exhaust must be 2 feet off the ground. Snow usually melts around the foundation anyways.

I think mine is around 18 inches off the ground .. normally not a problem .. . but once every decade or so .. we will get hit with HUGE blizzards. This one put 30+ inches on the ground near me. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_31_–_February_2,_2011_North_American_blizzard Drifts were taller than me.

 

[dyna]

The installation matters more than the brand.

 

[skull]

My Goodman that "skul" installed is great.
Just be aware, modern efficient furnaces have their input & exhaust pipes pretty close to ground level. Deep snow can be a problem in the winter, critters can be a problem in the summer.

I probably messed up there used to our winters, instructions say a foot above anticipated snow level. We don't get the crazy blizzard stuff you guys get generally. T will be up your way next weekend I can see if he'll swing over and put a snorkel on her, I might even take the road trip with him.

 

[skull]

During a remodel a while back went with high efficiency gas. Now wish it was a mini-split.

No you don't mini-splits are expensive and disposable. Most techs arn't trained to repair them and even the ones that are have trouble fixing them.

 

[gill77]

No you don't mini-splits are expensive and disposable. Most techs arn't trained to repair them and even the ones that are have trouble fixing them.

This does not address the maintenance issue, but the useful life seems comparable:

http://culluminc.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/ASHRAE_Chart_HVAC_Life_Expectancy 1.pdf

My HVAC knowledge is limited to say the least. Really would like to know.

 

[NoTine42]

yeah, we have an electric forced air furnace...with a heat pump. thankfully, we've never had to turn it to "emergency heat" which relies totally on the electric furnace...

I was just checking my MIL’s thermostat and was explaining that plain “Heat” is good as it uses the heat pump (until the outdoor temp sensor drops below 32F). You dont want to use “e.Heat” because it only uses gas....

Now wait!!! I have always known e heat as Emergency Heat (gas only), but hearing it out of my mouth, why does e.heat mean gas? I sound like an idiot explaining that e Heat is gas.

Selecting “E. Heat” on a thermostat to use gas-only mode is a major UI fail.

Almost as amusing as pressing Start to shut down.

 

[BoomerD]

I was just checking my MIL’s thermostat and was explaining that plain “Heat” is good as it uses the heat pump (until the outdoor temp sensor drops below 32F). You dont want to use “e.Heat” because it only uses gas....

Now wait!!! I have always known e heat as Emergency Heat (gas only), but hearing it out of my mouth, why does e.heat mean gas? I sound like an idiot explaining that e Heat is gas.

Selecting “E. Heat” on a thermostat to use gas-only mode is a major UI fail.

Almost as amusing as pressing Start to shut down.

http://precisioncomfort.com/2016/01/myth-heat-pumps-are-not-efficient-in-cold-weather/