Trane XR95 Furnace Overview

Starting at two years old this furnace has broken down every winter since, three so far, with a minimum $500 problem. All the HVAC repairmen say it is a good system but from my perspective it is only good for repair companies.

After having to replace a Bryant 3 times in 12 years, I got tired of listening to my husband. I called a different heating and cooling company that has been in business for over 30 years. They installed the furnace, changed the intake and exhaust pipes to a larger size and this is the best investment that we made in this house. Having a furnace put in requires expertise in the field and knowing what size pipes and furnace belong in your size house. Old furnaces were too big for the house; they didn’t run hot enough and therefore water collected inside. I love Trane. Saves big money on propane.

Had an xr95 professionally installed in my home in August of 2010. Blew a fuse in the control card the first week of operation – easily fixed – but thought I was doomed … and then … no problems since. It’s quiet, efficient, warm, reliable. Absolutely no issues. The way a furnace should be. Keeps those Colorado winters at bay. Love it.

Have two of these furnaces and what a lousy system that breaks down after 2 years – guaranteed. One furnace failed to come on – the pressure switch was gone – cost more than $500 to replace as had to call tech in the middle of the night. Then the drain pipe leaked so the motor went – they had to change the motor. Then today the second furnace went as well with the pressure switch error and they have to replace the switch – another $500 down the drain as its middle of the night and temperatures are minus 20 deg c outside. Next time I would rather get a low efficiency furnace that actually just works!

I moved into a condo in Cleveland in August. When the heating season began, the furnace ran ok at first, but soon failed to ignite. The startup sequence progressed to the gas valve opening but the flame could not be confirmed. I called a Trane licensed company that works in this building and the analysis of the technician was that the flame sensor was bad and the blower motor bearing was noisy. Unit was 11 years old and had operated successfully for those 11 years. Nonetheless, I decided to install a new one, just to have everything new and a-ok. a new tuh1d120a9601aa was installed and I was told this was a direct replacement for the old one, same unit. The new furnace would not ignite reliably either and the installing tech noted the flame was not tight but was being sucked backward. Removed the intake 3″ pipe from the collar. Unit operated properly with the intake pipe removed from the collar so that ambient air could be used for combustion. In this ambient air mode the pressure drop across the furnace (using same ports as the pressure switch) with the furnace running was 1.95″ of water column. Replacing the intake pipe on the fly reduced the pressure drop to 1.88″, a minor reduction in air flow and still well above the 1.48″ value of the pressure switch. I repeated this process several times and to confirm that the flow reduction due to the intake pipe in steady state operation was only about 0.07″. Although the 3″ intake pipe (now largely converted to 4″ with long elbows) length is near the limit (50′), the intake pipe is not significantly restricting the air flow during steady state operation. The problem is that much of the intake pipe run is vertical (I am on the 4th floor of a 6-story condo where the intake and vent are on the roof) and a chimney-effect draft is generated in the intake pipe. The pressure in the intake (measured relative to ambient) is only 0.04″ water column, but the amount of flow as felt with your hand at the intake is impressive. My view is that the negative air flow is disrupting the flame ignition even though the total flow through the unit at steady state is sufficient as measured by the pressure switch. Question #1: Why does this new unit operate more poorly than its predecessor, even with new 4″ intake and flue pipe? Has the inducer motor been downsized? It seems to me that a more powerful inducer motor would generate the necessary laminar flow in the combustion air so the burners could ignite with a tight flame pattern. Question #2: Horizontal pipe run is very different from vertical pipe run due to the chimney effects noted. Is this furnace not recommended for apartments with long (30′) runs of vertical pipe? (BTW: the chimney effect is great for the flue, but a killer for the intake). Point #1: The quality of this new furnace was not good. The ignitor failed right away and was replace under warranty by the installing company (BTW, the company was very responsive and worked hard on this problem, but still!!!). Even the fit and finish is poor, the blower door and the upper door have sharp unfinished edges that cut my hands. The little tabs that hold down the bottom panel in the blower compartments don’t work well and I hear clanging every time the blower turns off. Point #2: Ditto for the main board. Replaced. Point #3: The chat line is incredibly frustrating. I could not even get anyone to come online with me. The comments of other reviews seem equally frustrating!! And why is there not a technical call line for customers? I even called La Crosse, WI and got stonewalled. Terrible company policy. Outcome: Installation company rigged up a situation where some of the combustion air comes from ambient and some from outside air. All is working now, but I would like to know if Trane has downsided the induction motor in this unit, hence the failure, or if this unit is not recommended for installations with large vertical runs of pipe. AND, mostly, I would like to speak with someone at Trane to understand this situation and mostly so I can feel like an appreciated customer.